After cruising past No. 7 South Carolina in the national quarterfinals and No. 3 Oklahoma State in the semifinals, the Tigers fell to No. 1 SMU by a score of 11-8 in the 2023 NCEA championship meet on Saturday, April 15, in Ocala, Florida.
Heading to the national championship, Auburn had looked very strong in the previous two rounds.
Thursday, April 13, marked the fourth time the Tigers have faced the Gamecocks in the season. With its 13-7 win, it also marked Auburn’s sweep of South Carolina for the year.
The Tigers won all four disciplines against the Gamecocks, going 3-2 in Flat, Horsemanship and Reigning, while winning 4-1 in Fences.
Auburn then faced the Oklahoma State Cowgirls for the second time this season in the NCEA semifinals on Friday.
Once again, the Tigers pulled away early, leading 8-2 after the Jumping Seats half. They then put together a 6-4 Horsemanship half to defeat the Cowgirls 14-6 and advance to the championship.
On Saturday, Auburn was battling from behind early, falling 4-1 in the Reining round to the Mustangs. The Tigers’ only point came from freshman Caroline Buchanan, whose 217 mark bested SMU’s Lily Anderson’s 214.
Auburn fought in the two Jumping Seat events, but its efforts were not enough to overcome SMU’s early lead coming out of the Western events. Out of the four disciplines, the Tigers came out on top in the Fences round with a score of 3-2, but needed the sweep to win the championship.
“I'm so proud of them," said head coach Gregg Williams. "We wound up in a hole to start and had to battle out of it. I'm really proud of their efforts and the way they were riding. We just came up short."
In a season with its first national championship appearance since 2019 as well as capturing its fifth-straight SEC title, several Auburn riders are still returning home with some honors.
Sophomore Sophee Steckbeck was placed on the Fences team, with her winning score of 267 capping her undefeated tournament run. Also ending her week undefeated is freshman Caroline Fredenburg, who was honored on the Horsemanship team alongside fellow freshman Alexia Tordoff. Junior Olivia Marino was also recognized by placing on the Reining team.
"We have a great future," Williams said. "The way the team builds and puts in the work just shows that they'll be contenders for years to come."
Senior Ava Stearns added to her already-impressive career accolades after being named to both the Fences and Flat teams. Sterns also won both of her head-to-heads in the same events.
The loss for the Tigers was bittersweet, as they had bested SMU earlier in the year when the Mustangs visited the Plains on Saturday, Feb. 25. In that meeting, Auburn routed SMU with a lopsided 15-5 mark. The meeting marked the only loss on SMU’s otherwise perfect record for the year, although the Mustangs got the last laugh with the national title win in Ocala.
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Emily Porch is a senior from Sylacauga, Alabama. She joined The Plainsman in fall 2021.
Twitter: @emilycporch
