On Saturday at the UGA Equestrian Complex, the Georgia equestrian team fell to the Auburn Tigers 15-5 in the Southeastern Conference Championship.
Senior Hayley Mairano (Fences) and junior Kaitlin Dierks (Horsemanship) both earned Most Outstanding Performance Honors for their rides in the championship meeting. Junior Sara Lewis found herself on the SEC All-Championship Team, earning those honors after clinching the semifinal win for Georgia and winning her ride against Auburn.
“There was a lot of great fight, but also a lot of disappointment today.” Georgia head Coach Meghan Boenig said. “We wanted to have those scores reflective in the efforts put forward. I’m really proud, I just talked to the team and they are holding each other accountable. We don’t want this feeling, we don’t want to be in this spot. I’m very proud of the way they presented themselves and worked as hosts. There were some incredible performances here, what you don’t get to hear about are the performances happening behind the scenes to make this championship happen. So, I’m grateful and proud for all of those things, but we have so much more to put out there and do. We want this opportunity again.”
Auburn took an early lead in Fences, beating UGA 4-1. Georgia would add two more points in Horsemanship. After two events, Auburn led 7-3.
The Tigers rolled from there.
Next, Georgia will compete at the NCEA National Championship April 15-17 in Waco, Texas.
