No. 3 Cowgirl Equestrian Set for Big 12 Championships

March 26, 2014 | Cowgirl Equestrian

March 26, 2014

STILLWATER - The No. 3 Oklahoma State equestrian team will travel to Waco, Texas, to participate in the 2014 Big 12 Equestrian Championship. The Cowgirls will face No. 5 Kansas State in the first round on Friday, March 28, at 10 a.m. at Willis Family Equestrian Center.

Preview Big 12 Championships

Follow the Cowgirls
A full recap and final results will be made available following the end of competition on okstate.com. For all of the most up to date information on the Cowgirls on Twitter, follow @OSUEquestrian for live results of the action. Keep up with all of Oklahoma State athletics on Twitter @OSUAthletics and by using the #Okstate hashtag.

To watch the Big 12 Championships live, click here, or go to Big12Sports.com

About the Cowgirls
Oklahoma State is 8-3 this season and finished conference play with a 3-3 record. In their last match, the Cowgirls dropped Tennessee-Martin in a dominating contest at Animal Science Arena on March 15, defeating the Skyhawks, 15-5. With the victory, the Cowgirls have strung together a three-game winning streak, with victories in eight of their last nine matches. OSU is 5-0 at home this season and 3-3 on the road.

Know the Foe
The Kansas State Wildcats are 9-4 overall this season and finished 3-3 in Big 12 action. The Cowgirls and the Wildcats split the season series. K-State won the first match in Manhattan, Kan., 11-9, and the Cowgirls earned the victory in Stillwater, 13-6. OSU leads the all-time series with the Wildcats, 18-8.

“Any school within the Big 12 is going to be prepared, ready to go and is tough to compete against,” coach Larry Sanchez said. “It didn't matter who it was that we drew in the first round, we knew it would be a tough competition.”

OSU in the Rankings
The Cowgirls are ranked third in the latest National Collegiate Equestrian Association Poll. OSU opened the season at No. 4 and dropped after losing the first two matches of the season. The Cowgirls have won three straight and eight of the last nine matchups. It is the highest ranking for OSU this season.

Three Times as Nice
The No. 3 Cowgirls were awarded the top seed at the 2014 Big 12 Equestrian Championship for the third-straight season. They're looking for their third-straight conference title after finishing Big 12 play with a 3-3 record. The other three teams in the conference also finished with 3-3 records, but the Cowgirls earned the top seed thanks to head-to-head tiebreakers and point spread differential. OSU leads the league with three titles, taking the crown in 2009, 2012 and 2013.

Last Week's Most Outstanding Performers
In the match against Tennessee-Martin, the Cowgirls earned three of the possible four Most Outstanding Performer honors. Junior Katy Krshka picked up her team-leading ninth honor after her 77-74 win in the horsemanship event. It was her sixth in the discipline this season. Senior Sammy Elser garnered her third award this season thanks to her 77-76 victory in the equitation on the flat event. It was her second in the discipline, as her first came against South Dakota State on Nov. 2. Senior Jenna Blumer also earned her third honor in the reining event, after her 72-70.5 win.

Cowgirls Blank Opponents
OSU has kept their opponents off the scoreboard in seven events this season. Against South Dakota State, the Cowgirls posted a 4-0 score in the equitation on the flat and a 5-0 score in the horsemanship event. Against TCU on Nov. 16, the horsemanship squad defeated the Frogs, 5-0. At Delaware State, the equitation over fences and reining teams tallied 5-0 scores in their respective events. On March 1 against Baylor, the horsemanship squad defeated the Bears, 4-0, and on March 15, defeated the Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks, 5-0. The Cowgirls are 5-0 overall when they keep their opponents from scoring in one of the four events.

All-Americans
Seven Cowgirls earned NCEA All-America honors. In the equitation on the flat event, freshman Jorden Davis earned First Team honors. Senior Samantha Harrison garnered Second Team accolades in the equitation over fences event. Junior Katy Krshka earned her third consecutive All-American honor. Junior Lindsey McMullen earned her second All-America selection and senior Lauren Halvorson became a four-time All-American award winner. Krshka, McMullen and Halvorson were all named to the First Team in the Horsemanship event. In the reining discipline, sophomore Justine Peters earned Second Team honors and senior Jenna Blumer received Honorable Mention accolades.

Academic All-Big 12
Fourteen Cowgirls were named to the 2014 Academic All-Big 12 Equestrian Team. Jenna Blumer and Justine Peters were two out of three athletes elected to the First Team with a 4.00 GPA. Maggie Gampfer, Lauren Halvorson, Allie Joyce, Katy Krshka, Lindsey McMullen, Paris Nottingham, Ty Paris, Ali Rose, Kaitlyn Skog and Erin Willoughby were also named to the First Team. Samantha Harrison and Andrea Robbins earned Second Team honors.