Thursday, Nov. 9 – No. 4 SMU (3-0, 0-0 UEC) vs. Delaware State (0-3, 0-1 UEC)
Friday, Nov. 10 – No. 4 SMU vs. Fresno State/UT Martin
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The fourth-ranked SMU equestrian team hits the road for the first time this year, heading to the Masterson Farms Invitational at the Ned McWherter Agricultural Complex in Martin, Tenn.
 
COACH GWIN QUOTABLES:  "Our trip to Martin, Tenn., will be our first road test of the season and will certainly be challenging. I am excited that it will be a tournament style competition. If we can ride well and can be mistake free, I feel like we have the talent to be successful."
 
ABOUT THE EVENT: The Masterson Farms Invitational, which is hosted by UT Martin, runs Thursday and Friday. Competition is slated to begin at 10:00 a.m. both days. No. 4 SMU takes on the Delaware State Hornets and the No. 10-ranked Skyhawks host the No. 5 Fresno State Bulldogs. The two winners will then battle for the championship at 10 a.m. on Friday, while the consolation winner will also be determined as the competitions will run concurrently on both days.
 
SCOUTING THE MUSTANGS: SMU is 3-0 following an 11-9 win against then-No. 4 Oklahoma State. The Mustangs have a combined 3-0 record in the hunt seat disciplines, including a 7-3 win against Oklahoma State. SMU hunt seat riders have tallied 19 points, while allowing just 10. SMU has won three MOPs this season. The Mustangs have 13 new faces on the squad, all bringing impressive accolades under their belts. SMU also returns 20 members from 2016 team, including two 2016-17 NCEA All-America honorees Vivian Yowan and Keagan Snively. SMU also brings back 2015-16 NCEA All-America Nora Gray.
 
LAST TIME OUT: (W, 11-9 at SMU) DALLAS (SMU) – The No. 5 SMU equestrian team knocked off No. 4 Oklahoma State, 11-9, at the Dallas Equestrian Center. With the win, the Mustangs close out their fall home schedule undefeated at 3-0. In the meet's first event, Equitation over Fences, SMU quickly took a 4-1 lead. Ransome Rombauer captured the first Mustang point with an 83-81 victory over Hannah Janson. Vivian Yowan followed with an 86-81.5 win over Kaitlyn Arnold. Alexandra Murphy scored a 76, besting Maggie Drysch's 75, before Nora Gray defeated Carly Barrick, 84-81, to round off the discipline. The Mustangs took a 7-3 advantage into the half after winning Reining, 3-2. Olivia Pakula led off the event with a 71 to defeat Danielle Cohen's 70.5. Holly Lansidel defeated Hannah Mitchell, 69-68.5, prior to Keagan Snively topping Ebba Lange, 68-62.5. SMU secured the win following a 3-2 win in Equitation on the Flat. Haley Zimmerman began with a 71-63 triumph against Kendall Pedigo, before Yowan defeated Hannah Janson, 75-72. Gray rounded off the discipline with a 72-68 win against Maggie Drysch. Ashley Mauney used a 73-70.5 rout of Sarah Miller to claim the lone horsemanship point.
 
SCOUTING DELAWAR STATE: The Hornets have a 0-3 overall record, with a 0-1 record in the United Equestrian Conference. Delaware State earned a No. 10 national ranking for the first two weeks of the 2017-18 season but is 0-3 on the season against tough competition. The Hornets have fallen to No. 8 TCU (10-5), UT Martin (9-6) and No. 1 Texas A&M (18-6) so far this season.
 
ALL-TIME AGAINST THE HORNETS: SMU holds an 8-6 all-time advantage over the Hornets. The two sides met twice last season, splitting the matchups. SMU downed DSU, 12-6, on Nov. 12, before falling 6-6 (2557.75-2546.25) in the United Equestrian Conference Championship show.
 
SCOUTING THE FIELD: Following Delaware State, SMU will take on either Fresno State or UT Martin on Friday. No. 5 Fresno State is 2-2 on the season, with its only setbacks coming against No. 1 Texas A&M (14-5) and No. 2 Georgia (10-8). Both of the Bulldogs' wins this season have come against South Dakota State, the latest coming when the Jackrabbits were ranked No. 10 in the nation. The Mustangs went 1-1 last season against Fresno State, with a 15-4 win at home on Feb. 10, before a 10-9 loss in Fresno, Calif., on Feb. 18. UT Martin (1-2) has been nationally ranked in the Farnam NCEA polls for the last four weeks. The Skyhawks have previously faced one team in the tournament field this season, defeating then-No. 10 Delaware State by a 9-6 margin on Oct. 7. UT Martin also battled against ranked opponents No. 3 Auburn and No. 8 TCU before falling.
 
UP NEXT: SMU kicks off the spring season on February 3 against South Carolina at the Dallas Equestrian Center.
 
SMU MATCHES HIGHEST RANKING IN PROGRAM HISTORY: The SMU equestrian team matched its highest ranking in program history, being ranked No. 4 in the National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) Farnam poll. SMU opened the season with three straight wins (No. 6 TCU (11-8), No. 7 Baylor (10-10; 1,510-1,464 raw points tiebreaker), No. 4 Oklahoma State (11-9)) to reach the mark. SMU's previous high ranking of fourth came on Oct. 26, 2016, after opening the season 2-0 with wins against TCU and Oklahoma State.
 
MURPHY NAMED SEPTEMBER UEC OVER FENCES RIDER OF THE MONTH: Junior Alexandra Murphy was named the United Equestrian Conference (UEC) September Equitation Over Fences Rider of the Month, the National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) announced. The award is the first of her career. In the first meet of the season, Murphy recorded a career-high 86 over fences to knock off the Horned Frogs' Patricia Gill, 86-81. The ride stood out to the judges and was enough for her first career most outstanding player (MOP) honor.
 
2017 ACCOLADES:
Alexandra Murphy – UEC Rider of the Month (September) – 10/12/2017
 
SMU MOPs:
Alexandra Murphy – Fences (86-81 vs. TCU)
Kara Vickery – Horsemanship (75-73 vs. TCU)
Vivian Yowan – Flat (86-70 vs. Baylor)
 
ALL-AMERICAN CORNER: SMU returns two of its NCEA All-American's from the 2016-17 season in Vivian Yowan and Keagan Snively.
 
Yowan, an NCEA All-American Over Fences Second Team selection, posted a team-best 19-7-2 record, with an 11-3 mark over fences and 8-4-2 on the flat. The Darien, Conn., native was named the United Equestrian Conference (UEC) Equitation on the Flat Rider of the Year after posting a 7-3-1 record in the regular-season. Yowan also earned the Equitation Over Fences Freshman of the Year honor, following an 8-3 regular-season record which included four MOPs.
 
Following a 10-3 record and five MOPs, Snively was named to the NCEA Reining second team, and became the first western rider in program history to earn All-America status. The Winter Haven, Fla., posted an 8-3 mark, with four MOPs in the regular season, before back-to-back wins at the UEC Championship earned her the UEC Championship Reining MOP.
 
PLAYING HOST: For the first time in program history, the SMU equestrian team will host the United Equestrian Conference tournament. The championship event will take place at SMU's home, the Dallas Equestrian Center, on March 30 and 31.
 
2016-17 RECAP: Last season, SMU posted a 7-7 overall record and finished atop the United Equestrian Conference for the second straight season with a 4-1 mark. After finishing tied for first in the regular season, the Ponies earning runner-up honors at the UEC Championship. After wins at then-No. 3 TCU and against then-No. 9 Oklahoma State to open the season, SMU earned its highest ranking in program history being ranked No. 4 in the National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) poll.
 
COACHING CORNER: Head coach Carol Gwin enters her fourth season as the head coach of the equestrian program. Gwin guided the Mustangs to a 7-7 overall record in 2016-17 and led the Mustangs to the top of the UEC for the second straight year with a 4-1 conference mark. The Mustangs finished the regular-season tied for first, before earning runner-up honors at the UEC Championship. After wins at then-No. 3 TCU and against then-No. 9 Oklahoma State to open the season, SMU earned its highest ranking in program history being ranked No. 4 in the National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) poll. In 2016-17, Gwin was named the United Equestrian Conference Co-Coach of the Year, and boasted four NCEA All-America honorees, including two second-team nods. The hunt seat program finished the season with a 9-3-2 combined record and outscored opponents 77-47. The western team finished with a 5-7-2 combined record, with a 7-6-1 record in horsemanship. SMU riders won 25 Most Outstanding Player awards.