UT MARTIN EQUESTRIAN OPENS SEASON AT HOME WITH TOP-10 SHOWDOWN AGAINST NO. 8 BAYLOR TOMORROW

Friday, September 24

Martin, Tenn.

10 a.m.

UT Martin

Baylor

Photo by: UT Martin University Relations

UT MARTIN EQUESTRIAN OPENS SEASON AT HOME WITH TOP-10 SHOWDOWN AGAINST NO. 8 BAYLOR TOMORROW

9/23/2021 10:09:00 AM | Equestrian

Live Scoring

MARTIN, Tenn. – A matchup between two nationally ranked squads looms for the University of Tennessee at Martin equestrian squad as the Skyhawks play host to the No. 8 Baylor Bears at the Ned McWherter Agricultural Complex at 10 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 24.

Ranked 10^th in the NCEA's preseason poll released last week, UT Martin will take on Baylor for the ninth time in school history but first time outside of Waco, Texas. This is the first meet featuring a pair of top-10 squads in the NCEA this season as the Skyhawks are ready for an early season test against the Big 12 Conference opponent.

"Two top teams facing off really sets the standard for the year," UT Martin second-year head coach Kim Leiter said. "One of our goals is to go to nationals and that starts by proving ourselves against other ranked programs. We're ranked 10^th currently because of how we ended last year so we need to continue and build that momentum."

Leiter presided over a Skyhawk squad that captured the Eastern College Athletic Conference reserve championship last year, winning three out of four meets down the stretch (with the only setback coming via a raw points tiebreaker).

After serving in an interim role and chalking up ECAC Coach of the Year accolades in 2020-21, Leiter earned the full-time gig as UT Martin head coach this summer. One of her first tasks was booking a fully loaded 15-meet regular season schedule that includes seven head-to-head meetings against currently ranked opponents. That means plenty of opportunities for the Skyhawks to boost their postseason resumé as the top eight squads advance to the NCEA Championships, which are being held for the first time at the World Equestrian Center in Ocala, Fla. on April 14-16.

Of the 30 returners on the UT Martin roster, five were regulars in the starting lineup and posted multiple victories last season. In Jumping Seat, Julia Gilman chalked up seven combined wins and boasted one MOP in flat while Mahalia Alascio earned three total victories with an MOP in each event. Haley Kane dialed up a pair of wins and two MOP's in flat while Maggie Malone (four reining wins) and Paige Benson (three horsemanship wins, one MOP) pace the Western returners.

Eight talented newcomers also grace the roster in 2021-22 although one of those riders isn't your typical new kid on the block. Kelby Kane, who accumulated 23 wins, seven MOP's and a conference Freshman of the Year award from 2018-20, returns to the Skyhawks after she attended UT Martin but was not a member of the equestrian program last year.

Against Baylor, the Skyhawk lineup will consist of Tyler Anderson, Elizabeth Becker, Gilman, Haley Kane and Kelby Kane in fences. The flat lineup includes Alascio, Anderson, Gilman, Haley Kane and Kelby Kane while the horsemanship lineup features Lexi Bailey, Benson, Emma Schaefer, Katelyn Schultz and Keely Seiter. In reining, UT Martin's representatives will be Brooke Bradley, Kate Davis, Rachel Davis, Malone and Logan Putvinski.

"We have a lot of talent," Leiter said. "We graduated a successful group of seniors but we are really excited for those who are stepping up and we have a strong incoming class of freshmen that have shown a lot of promise. Practice season has been fantastic. Our team saying for this year is 'burn the boats' – we're ready to watch them put their hearts on the line and come together as one team with one goal."

Live scoring for tomorrow's matchup against No. 8 Baylor will be available at the link above.