Oklahoma State University Athletics
Equestrian Advances to Finals at Varsity Nationals
April 22, 2006 | Cowgirl Equestrian
The Cowgirls defeated regional-rival Texas A&M in a close match, 840.5-838, to advance to the championship finale. O-State will be trying to claim their third Varsity National Championship in the Western discipline.
Fourth-seeded Oklahoma State took three of seven match ups against Texas A&M, the one seed, and tied in another. The Cowgirls once again got two strong rides from Brianne Wiebe. The junior tied for top point honors for the Cowgirls by scoring a 143 in horsemanship and beating Texas A&M's Sassie Broaddus by 6.5 points. Wiebe lost her match up to Tonna Brooks in reining but still pulled a 142.5-point ride.
Samantha Davidson tied Wiebe's high of 143, also in horsemanship. The sophomore took her match up against Debbie Ramirez. Katie Bohr was the other Cowgirl to pull out a win on Friday. Bohr scored 131.5 point and defeated Amanda Ryan in reining.
The tie came in reining, where Cowgirl Jacque Roberts and Aggie Debbie Ramirez each scored a 136.5.
Oklahoma State will face Auburn in tomorrow's finale. Auburn, the seventh seed, advanced to the championship by upsetting Georgia, 841.5-840, on Friday.
The fourth-seeded Hunt Seat team went 0-2 on Friday at Varsity Nationals. The Hunt Seat team had a first round bye and was defeated by No. 5-seed Auburn, 810-778, in the second round.
The Cowgirls managed to win three of the seven match ups against Auburn. Bailey Mahoney, the region's Hunt Seat high point rider of the year, downed Natilie Burton in the flat competition. Michelle Woolschlager also pulled out a win in flat by beating Erin Gaddy.
In fences, the lone win for the Cowgirls came way of Paige Hortman. The junior scored 165 points and beat Auburn's Kelly Gottfried. Her score was the highest by any Hunt Seat rider on Friday.
OSU then moved to the loser's bracket where they were defeated by No. 9 Kansas State, 757-701. This time the Cowgirls only managed to win two of the individual match ups. Mahoney and Woolschlager both won in flat and stayed unbeaten in the flat competition during the tournament. Auburn and South Carolina will face in each other in the Hunt Seat Finals.
The Hunt Seat team will face No. 10 Baylor in the seventh place match on Saturday. Even though the Hunt Seat team did not do as well as hoped at Varsity Nationals, they still have qualified for next month's IHSA National Championships.
