UT Martin
Auburn
NO. 10 SKYHAWK EQUESTRIAN HOSTS NO. 1 AUBURN TIGERS FOR THURSDAY SEASON OPENER
9/18/2018 8:48:00 AM | Equestrian
MARTIN, Tenn. – The No. 10 ranked University of Tennessee at Martin equestrian team begins the 2018-19 season with a showdown against defending national champion Auburn at 10 a.m. on Thursday, Sept. 20 in the Ned McWherter Agricultural Pavilion.
Thursday's meet will be the fifth straight season that head coach Meghan Corvin and the Skyhawks host a nationally ranked opponent in its season opener, as the visiting Tigers were crowned No. 1 in the National Collegiate Equestrian Association preseason poll. This is also the fourth time in the last five years that UT Martin has hosted Auburn for its season opener – also hosting the Tigers in 2014, 2015 and 2017.
The 2018-19 Skyhawk roster includes 28 returners, although 25 of the 37 student-athletes are underclassmen. The trio of Sammi Felts, Sydney Lintner and Monika Zoromski make up UT Martin's senior class as the Skyhawks are coming off a season where they were ranked in the national top-10 for 16 straight polls from Oct. 10 through March 27.
UT Martin returns 17 Hunt Seat riders, including 2018 All-American Abbie Hopkins. The sophomore out of Seekonk, Mass. combined for 13 victories (eight in equitation over fences, five in equitation on the flat) and three MOP's on her way to United Equestrian Conference Equitation over Fences Freshman of the Year accolades last season.
Overall, the Skyhawks return four players who notched at least five wins in equitation on the flat and seven riders who posted a victory in equitation over fences. Standout returners in the Hunt Seat discipline also include Zoromski (14 total wins, two MOP's over both equitation on the flat and equitation over fences events), sophomore Lindsay Anderson (10 total wins, two MOP's in both events) and junior Randi LaChance (eight combined wins, two MOP's in both events).
In the Western discipline, UT Martin welcomes back a dozen riders – including 2018 All-American Noel Meadows. The Staunton, Va. native became the first player in school history to nab All-UEC Freshman of the Year honors in reining after earning six wins and one MOP in 2017-18.
Horsemanship appears to be a major strength for the Skyhawks, as six riders come back after posting at least two victories in 2017-18. Key returners include junior Bobbie Piddock (team-best six wins, one MOP), sophomore Devon Woods (five wins, one MOP, 2018 UEC Freshman of the Year) and sophomore Tess Baumann (three wins, two MOP's). Alongside Meadows, junior Liana Nowak (five wins) and sophomore Hannah McDonald (four victories) will look to pace UT Martin in reining.
Auburn returns 11 of 12 riders from its national title squad, as the Tigers captured five of the seven possible NCEA championships (team, equitation over fences, horsemanship, overall Hunt Seat and overall Western) in 2017-18. Senior Caitlin Boyle (2018 NCEA Equitation over Fences MOP) and sophomore Taylor St. Jacques (2018 NCEA Equitation on the Flat MOP) headline the returners for head coach Greg Williams, who has presided over all five of the Tigers' national team championships since 2006.
