The sixth-ranked Auburn Tigers lost a close match against Fresno State, 9-8 on Saturday at the Student Horse Center in Fresno, California.
"We definitely had some good individual rides, but we just didn't get it done today," head coach Greg Williams said. "A couple of the mistakes that I didn't think would be as costly turned out to be. We can move forward from this, but we will remember this one when we start back up in January. We will use this to fuel the fire. I am disappointed, but we will move on."
Auburn jumped out to a 3-2 lead on Equitation over Fences, as junior Elizabeth Benson continued her undefeated season by defeating Paige Pastorino, 40-30 and improving to 6-0. Junior Megan Bifano beat Gianna Armanio 75-69 before sophomore Ashley Foster defeated Randi Pomrehn, 81-68, to earn MOP honors for the event.
Auburn had a rough time in the Reining event, as freshman Alexa Rivard secured the lone point for the Tigers by defeating Hailey Robinson, 72-70 and earning MOP honors.
After going into halftime tied at four, Auburn opened the second half with a 3-2 victory in Horsemanship, thanks to victories from junior Griffin Knight and seniors Lucy Igoe and Katie Buff. Knight was named MOP after defeating Rachel Williams, 75.5-74
Sophomore Tory Hoft continued her strong play after Friday's match against Kansas State, as she earned her second-consecutive MOP honor and third of the season following her 87-84 victory over Kylina Chaiack.
With the loss, the Tigers fall to 3-3 (1-2 SEC) on the season.
The equestrian team will return to action on January 30 as the Tigers host seventh-ranked Southern Methodist University at the Auburn University Horse Center at 3 p.m. CT.
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