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 WACO, Texas (SMU) –The fifth-seeded SMU equestrian team begins its quest for a national title Wednesday as it squares off against No. 4-seed and defending national champions Texas A&M in the first round of competition at the NCEA Championship at the Extraco Events Center.
 
THE EVENT: The nation's top eight teams will vie for the NCEA National Championship. Additionally, the newly expanded NCEA National Championship format will include a team seeded bracket not to exceed 16 teams in an NCEA format competition for the four Event titles. Event rankings are determined by statistics (Win/Loss; Home/Away; Current Rank of Opponent) of regular season head-to-head competition.
 
The first round of the single-event brackets will be completed on April 18, and both the quarterfinals and semifinals of the main draw will take place April 19. Single-event quarterfinals and semifinals are scheduled for Friday, April 20, with all five national championships up for grabs on Saturday, April 21.
 
NCEA CHAMPIONSHIP CHANGES: The following NCEA event titles and team championships will be held in Waco, Texas on April 18-21, 2018.

1. National championship event titles will now be awarded in four separate events conducted at the national championship: 4 riders in each event
   1. NCEA Equitation over Fences
   2. NCEA Equitation on the Flat
   3. NCEA Horsemanship
   4. NCEA Reining
2. National championship discipline titles will now be awarded for two separate disciplines based on the points assigned to teams during the event competitions at the national championship
   1. NCEA Hunter Seat
   2. NCEA Western
3. National Team Championship will be awarded based on combined discipline team head-to-head bracket competition at the national championship. (4 riders in each event)
4. Schools may qualify teams for each of the event titles – schools do not need to enter teams in both disciplines. Schools with single discipline teams are now eligible for NCEA national titles.
5. All competitive opportunities will be organized in the bracket head-to-head format (event titles and team title).
6. Seeding for the event title competitions will be based on regular season NCEA competitions for the four different events (fences, flat, horsemanship, reining). To be eligible for seeding for any NCEA national championship title, teams are required to compete in a minimum of three head-to-head competitions.

SEEDINGS: As determined by the NCEA Selection Committee, the Mustangs earned the No. 5 seed in the main national championship draw and will face defending NCEA National Champions and No. 4-seed Texas A&M in the quarterfinals on Thursday, April 19 at 8:30 a.m. CT.
 
SMU also earned a spot in each of the four 15-team single-event brackets, which begin on Wednesday, April 18 at 8:30 a.m. CT.

In the hunt seat arena, the Mustangs are seeded fifth and will take on 13th-seeded Baylor in equitation on the flat. In equitation over fences, SMU is the No. 4 seed and will face No. 13 Delaware State.

On the western side, SMU enters as the No. 7 seed in horsemanship and will ride against 10th-seeded UT Martin in the opening round. In reining, the Mustangs hold the No. 4 seed and will open the meet against No. 13 West Texas A&M.
 
SCOUTING A&M: The defending national champions posted an 11-6 record this season. Texas A&M earned the No. 1 seed in Equitation over Fences after finishing the regular season with a 14-3 ledger. The Equitation on the Flat squad was named the No. 4 seed. In Horsemanship, the Aggies, who ended the regular season with an 11-5-1 record, were selected the No. 3 seed. Texas A&M is the fifth seed in Reining with an 8-8-1 record.

LAST TIME OUT: CHAMPIONS! SMU CAPTURES UEC CONFERENCE TITLE
The top-seeded SMU equestrian team claimed its first conference title in program history, defeating No. 3-seed Fresno State, 13-3, in the United Equestrian Conference title round Saturday afternoon at the Dallas Equestrian Center. SMU swept Equitation Over Fences to jump to a 4-0 lead over Fresno State. Brett Burlington led the charge, defeating Alex Dirickson 171-157 to open the day. Banas bested Sierra Swaffar, 167-142, before Nora Graycaptured a 161-145 win over Paige Pastorino. Yowan recorded a 173, to better Kylina Chalack's 156, to secure the discipline sweep.The Mustangs topped the Bulldogs 3-1 in Horsemanship. Ashley Mauney used a 151.5-150.5 edge to put SMU on the board, before Schoonover used a pair of 76.5s to beat Taeya Harle, 153-150. Kara Vickery sealed the event win with a dominant 148.5-138.5 win over Katie Altenhofel.The SMU Equitation on the Flat squad used a dominant 3-1 performance to seal the event and ultimately the UEC title. Gray set the pace, outscoring Dirickson 157-151. Yowan was up next, defeating Swaffar 153-150. The UEC Freshman Flat Rider of the Year Kirsten Ostling notched the final point, a 133-128 decision over Brooke Nelson.The Mustangs rounded out the dominant day with a 3-1 reining win against the Bulldogs. Steed set the bar, taking a 148-143 victory over Kara Gustafson. Keagan Snively knocked off Shea Gilson, 141.5-140, before Holly Lansidel closed the day with a 140.5-139.5 edge over Paige Barton.Over the two-day event, SMU only conceded four total points. SMU advanced to the championship after a 15-1 victory over No-4 seed South Dakota State on Friday.
 
ALL-AMERICAN CORNER: Holly Lansidel was selected to the 2018 Ariat National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) All-America Reining First Team, while Vivian Yowan and Nora Gray each earned Ariat NCEA Equitation Over Fences Honorable Mentions.
 
Lansidel is the second western rider in program history to earn All-America status after a discipline-high 12-2-1 record. During the regular season, the sophomore from Roy, Wash., posted an 83 percent winning percentage by winning 10 of 13 competitions and recording a tie. During that span, she averaged 69.1 points per show and beat opponents by an average of 2.5 points. Lansidel followed her regular-season dominance with a pair of wins during the 2018 UEC Championship to help lead SMU to its first program conference title.
 
Yowan, an Equitation Over Fences Honorable Mention selection, earned her second career All-America honor after posting a discipline-high 12-3 record. The Darien, Conn., native went 10-3 in the regular season with two Most Outstanding Player (MOP) awards. The sophomore posted a 2-0 mark at the 2018 UEC Championship to help lead SMU to its first program conference title.
 
Gray earned her second Equitation Over Fences All-America nod following an 11-3-1 record. Prior to the UEC Championship, the Owen Sound, Ontario, native went 9-3-1 and registered an average score of 85.8. The junior posted a 2-0 mark at the 2018 UEC Championship to help lead SMU to its first program conference title. She has two career All-America honors, after earning Over Fences honorable mention honors her freshman year.
 
BOOK SMARTS:Twelve members of the SMU equestrian team earned 2018 Farnam NCEA All-Academic honors, the National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) announced. Hayley Banas, Nora Gray, Alexandra Murphy, Ashley Mauney, Olivia Pakula, Madison Steed, Keagan Snively, Vivian Yowan and Haley Zimmerman all achieved first-team status, which is awarded to student-athletes who compete in a minimum of 70 percent of meets during the 2017-18 season, and earned a cumulative 3.5 GPA while maintaining full-time enrollment.Mauney picked up her second consecutive All-Academic honor after posting a 3.966 GPA during the 2017 academic year (spring/fall). Gray recorded a 3.806 GPA to earn her second All-Academic honor. Snively, a three-time first-team honoree, achieved a 3.762 GPA during 2017 and will graduate in May. Pakula and Murphy each earned first team honors after earning 3.718 and 3.662 GPAs, respectively. Madison tallied a 3.675, Yowan recorded a 3.612, Zimmerman registered a 3.516 and Banas posted a 3.508 GPA.Mary Elizabeth Cordia earned second-team accolades, which is given to student-athletes who showed in at least 60 percent of meets, and achieved a minimum GPA of 3.25. Cordia recorded a 3.332 GPA.Michaela Dinger and Holly Lansidel all earned Farnam NCEA All-Academic Honorable Mention accolades. Honorees had to compete in at least 50 percent of meets, and tally at least a cumulative GPA of 3.0. Dinger posted a 3.200 GPA and Lansidel posted earned a 3.144 GPA.
 
SMU MATCHES HIGHEST RANKING IN PROGRAM HISTORY: After winning the 2017 Masterson Farms Invitational, SMU earned its highest ranking in program history of No. 2 in the latest National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) Farnam Poll. The undefeated start marks the best start to a season (5-0) in program history, set the program record in consecutive wins and makes the Mustangs the first team outside of the SEC or Big 12 conferences to earn a spot in the top three.
 
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.
 
REPEAT: SMU head coach Carol Gwin was named the United Equestrian Conference (UEC) for the second straight season.Gwin led the Mustangs to the top of the UEC for the third straight season, guiding SMU to a 5-0 record in conference meets. SMU opened the season with a 5-0 record and claimed the Masterson's Farms Invitational title, en route to a No. 2 ranking in the NCEA poll, the highest mark in program history. The Mustangs finished the regular season with an 8-5 mark.
 
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.