Spirited Effort Falls Short for TCU in Big 12 Equestrian Championship

Saturday, March 25

Stillwater, Okla.

1:15 PM

TCU

Oklahoma State

Scoresheet

Spirited Effort Falls Short for TCU in Big 12 Equestrian Championship

3/25/2023 6:28:00 PM | Equestrian

Horned Frogs now turn their attention to April's NCEA Championships

By: Brady Johnson

STILLWATER, Okla. – TCU Equestrian's pursuit of Big 12 Conference and school history fell agonizingly short on Saturday.

Facing off vs. reigning Big 12 and national champion Oklahoma State in enemy territory, the Horned Frogs came up two rides short of capturing the program's first-ever Big 12 title.

No. 3 TCU dropped a 12-8 decision to the fifth-ranked Cowgirls in the Big 12 Championship.

The Horned Frogs initially took a 6-4 lead into the intermission. TCU throttled the Cowgirls 4-1 in Horsemanship and were awarded two points in Fences. One of TCU's winning scores in Fences, however, was adjusted in favor of Oklahoma State, rendering a 5-5 gridlock. From there, the Cowgirls notched a 4-1 victory in Flat before clinching the meet in a Reining duel that featured multiple score reviews, two of which went against the Horned Frogs.

TCU now awaits its postseason fate. Seedings for the NCEA Championships, which run from Apr. 13-15 in Ocala, Florida, will be unveiled on Tuesday. The Horned Frogs are almost assured one of the top overall seeds in the eight-team bracket. TCU's record stands at 12-3. Eight of the Horned Frogs 12 victories have been against NCEA top-10 opponents, including five at the expense of their Big 12 peers.

Fences and Horsemanship

TCU fell behind 2-0 after suffering consecutive defeats in Fences. Oklahoma State's Sydney North notched a meet-high score of 265 against Jordyn Scelssa's 213-point ride. Sydnie Ziegler then edged TCU's Ella Bostwick 257-249.

The Horned Frogs seemed to have halved the deficit from there. Isabella Baxter, the Big 12 Rider of the Year in Fences for the second straight season, was awarded a 255-250-win against Grace McReynolds. Her score, though, was altered to 247 during the intermission.

Assuming the All-American Baxter's score had stood, TCU would have commanded a 3-2 lead from there. Giorgia Medows and Mattie Dukes each rode to scores of 226 to superficially pull the Horned Frogs ahead 3-2.

Medows and Dukes, who both received All-Conference Rider recognition following the meet's conclusion, were the top overall performers in the event.

The Cowgirls assumed a one-point advantage after Emma Pacyna downed TCU's Sydney Berube 255-238 in Fences.

Ashleigh Scully, who notched more combined wins (24) of any Horned Frog in 2022-2023, punched back to gridlock the scoreboard at 4-4 via her 12^th Fences triumph of her junior campaign in the form of a 247-238 defeat of Riley Hogan.

Scully and Baxter enter the NCEA Championships tied for the team-lead in Fences wins.

Shea Graham and Jessica McAllister's Horsemanship patterns were each awarded scores of 220.4, giving TCU an assumed edge on the scoreboard entering the half.

Flat and Reining

The Cowgirls counterpunched with three consecutive wins in Flat to assume a decisive three-point advantage at 8-5. Reinauer narrowly defated TCU's Sydney Berube 241-235. Hope King followed with a 237-220 upset of Scully. Riley Hogan won a coin flip duel with Laurel Smith 205-200.

Wynne Weatherly brought the Horned Frogs back within two points after taking down McReynolds 249-245. Weatherly, a graduate student, garnered her first All-Big 12 rider honor in Flat following the meet.

Elizabeth Carter, who was the event's leading scorer at 254, made the score 10-6 shortly thereafter.

Jojo Roberson scored 209.5 points in Reining vs. Graham, who did not receive a score, to clinch the meet.

Dukes notched her second win of the afternoon in Reining in the form of a 208.5-203.5 defeat of Molly Mitchell following a lengthy review.

McAllister received a team-leading score of 214.5 to account for TCU's final point.