Skyhawks Host A Pair Of Opponents This Weekend As Senior Day Set For Saturday

Friday, February 21

Martin, Tenn.

8:30 a.m.

UT Martin

Delaware State

Photo by: UT Martin University Relations

Skyhawks Host A Pair Of Opponents This Weekend As Senior Day Set For Saturday

2/20/2025 8:31:00 AM | Equestrian

Live Scoring (Both Meets)

MARTIN, Tenn. – For the first time in nearly four months, the University of Tennessee at Martin equestrian squad will compete in front of its home crowd as the No. 9 ranked Skyhawks host Eastern College Athletic Conference rival Delaware State (Feb. 21) and No. 4 SMU (Feb. 22). The Delaware State meet will start at 8:30 a.m. while the matchup against SMU will start at approximately 10:25 a.m. at the Ned McWherter Agricultural Complex.

A Senior Day ceremony will take place following the SMU meet on Saturday as seven UT Martin seniors (Lexi Bailey, Elizabeth Becker, Kate Davis, Aubrey Malone, Mia McAfoos, Logan Putvinski, Rileigh Weiss) will be recognized for their career contributions. Entering this weekend, this senior class has individually combined for 171 victories, 35 MOP accolades and 31 ECAC Rider of the Week or Month accolades. These seven have also helped the Skyhawks to three straight ECAC reserve championships and have continued an active streak of 36 consecutive appearances in the NCEA top-10 rankings.

Bailey became only the third UT Martin rider in program history to earn NCEA All-American first team accolades in reining while also becoming the second Skyhawk to ever claim All-ECAC accolades in multiple events (horsemanship, reining). Additionally claiming All-ECAC honors in horsemanship as a sophomore, she has posted 38 total victories and 13 MOP's while making 80 career starts across both Western discipline events. The eight-time ECAC Rider of the Week and two-time ECAC Rider of the Month honoree out of Union Mills, Ind. has also claimed NCEA All-Academic awards in the last two seasons.

Hailing from Grosse Pointe, Mich., Becker has made 61 career starts in the Jumping Seat discipline – 40 of which have occurred in fences. She has achieved 31 head-to-head wins in her career with a trio of MOP medals while also landing three ECAC Rider of the Week and one ECAC Rider of the Month honors. This season, she is responsible for 10 combined victories, including a team-best six triumphs in fences. She received NCEA All-Academic first team accolades last season.

Davis was the first-ever UT Martin rider to be named ECAC Reining Freshman of the Year, securing that prestigious honor in 2021-22. The Williamston, Mich. native has logged 95 career starts in both Western discipline events, emerging victorious 39 times to go along with eight MOP accolades. A seven-time ECAC Rider of the Week and twice named ECAC Rider of the Month, she has been spotlighted as a NCEA All-Academic first team recipient in back-to-back seasons from 2022-24.

A Fayetteville, Tenn. native, Malone has made 41 appearances in the Skyhawks' reining starting lineup in her career. A four-year starter, she has garnered 14 victories with three MOP's in her career – tying her season-high with four triumphs during her senior campaign while nabbing an ECAC Rider of the Week accolade in 2021-22. She was named to the NCEA All-Academic first team in both her junior and sophomore seasons and tallied the ECAC Standout Student-Athlete of the Month award in December 2024.

McAfoos has been a constant in UT Martin's horsemanship lineup over the last two seasons, making 23 starts while securing three ECAC Rider of the Week awards over that stretch. She has accumulated 14 victories with four MOP's in that span, including team-highs of seven wins and three MOP's during the 2024-25 campaign. The standout from Alton, Ill. has also brought home NCEA All-Academic accolades in each of the past two seasons.

A mainstay in the Skyhawk reining lineup, Putvinski has strung together 49 starts over her phenomenal four-year career. The Knoxville, Tenn. native became just the fourth Skyhawk to notch NCEA All-American accolades in reining when she accomplished that feat as a sophomore. She accounts for 29 victories and four MOP awards during her career, showing remarkable consistency by chalking up at least seven head-to-head wins in all four seasons. The four-time ECAC Rider of the Week is also a two-time NCEA All-Academic first team honoree.

Weiss has made 14 appearances in UT Martin's flat starting lineup over the last three seasons, posting six victories in that event. The Orlando, Fla. native has received NCEA All-Academic status in each of the last two seasons and was crowned with the ECAC Sportsmanship Award during her junior campaign.

To follow along with live scoring in both meets this weekend, click on the link above.