Thursday, April 17 at 7:30 A.M.
First Round - NCEA Championships - [1] SMU (10-4) vs. [8] UT-Martin 
World Equestrian Center - Ocala, Fla.
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The top-seeded SMU equestrian team is set to begin its title defense on Thursday against No. 8 UT-Martin at 7:30 a.m. CT at World Equestrian Center.

Should the Mustangs advance, they would face the winner of No. 4 TCU and No. 5 South Carolina the following day in Ocala with a trip to the National Championship on the line.

This is the second matchup this season between the Skyhawks and Ponies, previously meeting in February in Martin, Tenn., with SMU taking an 11-6 victory.

BACK TO BACK
The Mustangs are the defending back-to-back National Champions, marking the 10th national title for SMU Athletics. SMU is the third school to claim back-to-back national titles, joining Auburn and Georgia.

HORSEMANSHIP SHUTOUTS
SMU has been strong in horsemanship this season. The Mustangs had a perfect 5-0 advantage in the event against No. 6 Georgia and No. 2 TCU, along with a 4-0 victory over No. 9 Baylor. SMU continued its success with a 5-0 result during the win over South Dakota State and a 4-0 result during the thrilling victory over No. 3 Georgia. The Mustangs added another unblemished Horsemanship result in the win over Delaware State. In addition, the Mustangs have earned Horsemanship MOPs in all 13 of the meets this season, with Nya Kearns leading the way with eight.

NYA CONTINUING TO BREAK RECORDS
Against Auburn, Nya Kearns eclipsed two milestones for her collegiate career. Her victory in horsemanship marked the 50th of her career, and her MOP in the event earned her the 25th honor of her career. Both numbers are SMU records, and she now has the most horsemanship MOPs in NCEA history. In addition, Kearns is the NCEA All-Time Leader in Horsemanship MOPs. Kearns is also 14-0 this season, the only Mustang unbeaten and has earned two Arion Sellier Horsemanship Rider of the Month honors.

ALL AMERICANS
Five Mustangs were named Ariat All-Americans following the regular season by the NCEA. SMU earned four spots on the First Team, with Elli Yeager (Flat), Alexa Black (Horsemanship), Nya Kearns (Horsemanship and Chalyce Head (Reining). In addition, Yeager earned Honorable Mention honors in Fences, while Augusta Iwasaki picked up the same honor on the flat.