No. 2 Seed [8] SMU (6-5, 4-1 UEC) vs. Tennessee-Martin (1-5, 0-1 UEC)
Date / Time	Fri., March 24 // 9 a.m. ET/8 CT
Location	Delaware State Fairgrounds // Harrington, Del.
Live stats	Live Stats
Facebook	SMU Equestrian| SMU Mustangs
Twitter	@SMUEquestrian | @SMUMustangs

 

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The No. 2-seeded SMU equestrian team squares off against No. 3 seed Tennessee-Martin in the first round of the United Equestrian Conference (UEC) Championship Friday at 9 a.m. ET/8 CT at the Delaware State Fairgrounds in Harrington, Delaware. With a win, the Mustangs would advance to the championship round and take on the winner between Fresno State and Delaware State. Fans can follow the meet via live scoring or by following @SMUEquestrian on Twitter.
 
SMU QUICK HITS: The Mustangs are 6-5 overall, and are tied for first in the UEC with a 4-1 mark. SMU is ranked No. 8 in the National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) poll. Yowan leads the team with a 15-6-1 record, while senior Sylvia de Toledo and sophomore Nora Gray boast 14 and 12 wins, respectively. In the western arena, Snively leads the way with an 8-3 mark, while Hannah McCain holds a 7-4 record.
 
SMU's BY THE NUMBERS: In the English arena, the hunters are 7-3-1 overall, with 13 MOP honors, and have outscored opponents, 61-39. In equitation over fences, SMU has held opponents to 19 points (39-19), en route to an 8-3 mark. Freshman Vivian Yowan leads the jumpers with an 8-3 record, while senior Sylvia de Toledo and Nora Gray each have seven wins. Five Mustangs have four or more wins in equitation on the flat, led by Yowan (7-3-1) and de Toledo (7-2-2). Nora Gray and Leina King each have five wins, with Haley Zimmerman at four.
 
In the Western arena, Keagan Snively leads the team with an 8-3 record, with senior Hannah McCain boasting a 7-4 mark. Madison Steed and Ashley Mauney each have five wins. The western team has won 10 MOP honors, with Snively leading the team with four.
 
SCOUTING UT MARTIN: The Skyhawks are 1-5 overall, with its only win against Minnesota-Crookston. The University of Tennessee at Martin equestrian team won 16-0 against Minnesota-Crookston to close out the regular season on March 3. UTM rode against Miami (OH) and Alabama in exhibition rides, where the Skyhawks went 1-1.
 
ALL-TIME AGAINST THE SKYHAWKS: This is the 11th meeting between the two programs, with SMU holding a 6-4 all-time record. This is the first meeting this season between the two squads. SMU and UTM split last season's meetings with SMU winning 9-5 in Martin, Tennessee on Feb. 13, before the Skyhawks managed an 8-8 (2194.5-1835.25) tiebreak win in the first round of the UEC Championships on March 25.
 
SCOUTING THE FIELD: Fresno State (7-6, 4-1 UEC) will be the top seed for the UEC Championship. The Mustangs are 1-1 this season against Fresno State, with a 15-4 win at home on Feb. 10, before a 10-9 loss in Fresno, California, on Feb. 18. The Tennessee-Martin equestrian team is the third seed at 1-5 overall. Host-school Delaware State comes in at No. 4 for the tournament. The Hornets are 0-9 this season. The Mustangs topped Delaware State at home, 12-6, on Nov. 12, 2016.
 
A full recap and final results will be made available following the competition on SMUMustangs.com. During the meet, live results can be found on SMUMustangs.com or the SMU equestrian twitter page. Fans are encouraged to follow @SMUEquestrian.
 
LAST TIME OUT: The No. 8 SMU equestrian team beat South Dakota State, 8-8 (1576.75-1567.25), at the DeHaan Equestrian Center on Saturday, March 11. After falling behind 3-0, the Mustangs (6-5, 4-1 UEC) claimed horsemanship 3-1 to cut its deficit to one, 4-3, going into the intermission. Hannah McCain beat Jordan Gates, 74-72, to open scoring, before Morgan Redwine posted a 72-67.5 win against Angela Lopez. Ashley Mauney won her fifth point of the year and claimed the discipline for SMU with a 73-71.5 win over Kelsey Swainston. SMU tied the meet at 6-6 following a 3-2 win in equitation on the flat. Sylvia de Toledo knocked off Natalie Howard, 76-73, before freshman Vivian Yowan posted a convincing 83-76 win over Jacey Chorlton. Senior Leina King defeated Jessica Andronowitz, 89-80, and was named MOP for her performance. King is now 5-1 this season. In reining, Jaclyn White earned her fifth victory of the season, scoring a 68.5 to better Catelyn Hall's 67. Junior Keagan Snively was named MOP in Reining with a 71.5-71 win over Mariah Wright. The Winter Haven, Fla., native leads the reiners with eight wins and four MOPs.

NCEA RIDER OF THE MONTH HONORS: Freshman Vivian Yowan and junior Keagan Snively were named the February NCEA National Riders of the Month. Yowan snagged the EquiFit Equitation Over Fences Rider of the Month honor, while Snively earned the Shorty's Reining Rider of the Month. Both Yowan and Snively went 5-0, with two MOPs in their respective disciplines. The national recognition is the first for both riders, and the first for any Mustang this season.
 
UEC RIDER OF THE MONTH: SMU has snagged five UEC Rider of the Month awards this season. Vivian Yowan has won second consecutive equitation over fences award (Nov., Feb.), while Keagan Snively picked up the February reining rider of the Month award for her second career honor. In November, Michaela Dinger was the Horsemanship Rider of the Month. In October, Sylvia de Toledo was named the equitation over fences Rider of the Month.
 
SMU CAREER WINS LEADERS: Senior Sylvia de Toledo became SMU's all-time career wins leader after a 79-77 Equitation Over Fences win over TCU's Patty Gill on Sept. 23, 2016. She passed former teammate Schaefer Raposa. With one win versus South Dakota State, she now has 66 wins in her tenure on the Hilltop.
 

1	Sylvia de Toledo* - Sr.	66
2	Schaefer Raposa	52
3	Emma Roberts	48
4	Kristen Collins	45
5	Juliana Fisher	38

 
WIN 'EM BOTH: Sophomore Nora Gray won both of the hunt seat MOP honors against Fresno State on Feb. 10, to become the third rider in SMU history to manage the feat. Emma Roberts (2011-14) managed the achievement as a freshman against top-ranked Georgia on March 9, 2012, before Schaefer Raposa earned both honors last season against TCU on Sept. 24, 2015.
 
ROLLING IN MOPS: Through 11 meets, SMU has won 23 Most Outstanding Player honors, 13 in the hunt seat arena and 10 in the western ring. Keagan Snively, Nora Gray and Vivian Yowan lead the Mustangs with four MOPs apiece, while Sylvia de Toledo and Madison Steed each have two. Seven different Mustangs have one.
 
HOME SWEET HOME: The SMU equestrian team has moved to the Dallas Equestrian Center (DEC), which will serve as its official stables and training facility. SMU finished its home slate with a 4-1 record at the DEC.

SMU EARNS HIGHEST RANKING IN PROGRAM HISTORY: The SMU equestrian team earned its highest ranking in program history, being ranked No. 4 in the National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) poll, after beating then-No. 9 Oklahoma State. SMU surpassed its previous high of fifth after wins at then-No. 3 TCU and most recently then-No. 9 Oklahoma State. SMU's previous high ranking of fifth came in November of 2014, after the Mustangs topped three consecutive top-10 teams, including No. 1 Georgia, No. 8 Texas A&M and No. 10 New Mexico State.
 
ACADEMIC SUCCESS: Last season, 14 members of the SMU equestrian team earned NCEA academic honors. Six riders earned spots on the Beval Saddlery Academic All-America team, while 13 were named to the La Hacienda Academic Honor Roll. Schaefer Raposa, Sylvia de Toledo and Keagan Snively achieved first-team status, which is awarded to student-athletes who competed in a minimum of 70 percent of meets during the 2015-16 season, and earned a cumulative 3.5 GPA while maintaining full-time enrollment in the 2015 spring and fall semesters. de Toledo achieved a team-high 3.97 GPA, Raposa boasted a 3.70 and Snively maintained a 3.54.
 
2015-16 SEASON RECAP: The Mustangs posted a 7-10 record and finished tied for first (4-2) in the United Equestrian Conference. SMU advanced to the NCEA National Championship quarterfinals after a 10-6 upset over the defending-champion and No. 7 seed South Carolina. During the regular season, SMU topped three ranked-opponents: No. 6 South Carolina, No. 7 Fresno State and No. 3 Texas A&M. SMU was ranked as high as No. 6, and spent 10 of 13 weeks in the polls.