Equestrian Season Recap
May 04, 2015 | Equestrian
ATHENS, Ga.- The Georgia equestrian team capped of the 2014-15 season with the 13th Annual Equestrian Team Awards Banquet held April 25 at the Classic Center in downtown Athens. During the banquet, the team was celebrated for yet another successful season. Individual riders were also recognized for their accomplishments throughout the year.
Seniors Sara Parr and Kylee Arbuckle were the Most Outstanding Player recipients. Parr earned the honors for her performance in Horsemanship, while Arbuckle was recognized for her accomplishments in Equitation on the Flat. The Rookie of the Year awards went to freshmen Kyndall Harper (Reining) and Addyson Cord (Equitation Over Fences) for their exceptional performances in their first season with the team. Other award winners included Lauren Tieche and Jess Denker who received the Coaches' Award; and Madi Berger and Caroline Blackshear received the Sportsmanship Award.
The Bulldogs began the 2014-15 campaign ranked as the No. 1 equestrian team in the country. The team rode to an 11-4 record during the regular season, before going 4-1 in the post season.
Georgia picked up its first win of the season on the road against SEC foe South Carolina. The Bulldogs then dropped two competitions in a dual-meet weekend against Baylor and SMU. The team returned to Athens for the lone home meet of the fall, grabbing a 13-6 win over Auburn. Georgia fell to Texas A&M before closing the fall schedule with two wins against Kansas State and UT-Martin.
South Carolina edged Georgia 11-9 in the first competition of the spring portion of the season. The Bulldogs bounced back with an at-home win against Delaware State, followed by a win on the road against Auburn. Georgia and Texas A&M met once again, this time Georgia taking the win in Bishop. The Bulldogs concluded the 2014-15 season in Fresno, Calif. earning wins against Fresno State and TCU.
The Bulldogs earned the program's first ever Southeastern Conference Championship March 27-28 at the Hildebrand Equine Complex in College Station, Texas. As the No. 1 seed of the tournament, Georgia first defeated Auburn to advance to the championship. In the finals, Georgia handed Texas A&M a 12-5 loss to capture the 2015 SEC title. Georgia also had two riders named to the SEC All-Championship team as Sara Parr (Horsemanship) and Liza Finsness (Equitation on the Flat) earned the honors.
Georgia then set its sights on the 2015 NCEA National Championship. Ranked as the No. 1 seed, the Bulldogs first face ninth-seeded Kansas State. After breezing past the Wildcats, 10-5 Georgia met No. 5 Auburn in the quarterfinals. The Bears were no match for the Bulldogs, earning a 10-6 win to move on to the championship round of competition. Georgia and South Carolina met for the second year in a row to compete for the national title. After a tight competition, the Gamecocks were able to come away with the win and were crowned the 2015 national champions.
In addition to the team awards, Georgia had seven riders named to NCEA All-America teams for the 2014-15 season. Parr (Horsemanship), Paige Stawicki (Horsemanship), Kylee Arbuckle (Equitation on the Flat) and Lauren Garmon (Reining) all earned spots as NCEA First Team All-Americans. Leylan Gleeson was named to the Second Team in Equitation Over Fences and Meg O'Mara (Equitation Over Fences) and Finsness (Equitation on the Flat) earned Honorable Mentions. The team also had eight members named to either the NCEA Beval Saddlery Academic First or Second Team, five Beval Saddlery Academic Team Honorable Mentions and 19 riders named to the La Hacienda Academic Honor Roll.
The Bulldogs put eleven riders on All-SEC teams as Finsness (Equitation Over Fences, Equitation on the Flat), Arbuckle (Equitation on the Flat), Rachel Kolb (Horsemanship), Parr (Horsemanship), Stawicki (Horsemanship) and Garmon (Reining). Cord (Equitation on the Flat), Bailey Anderson (Horsemanship), Sammie Johnson (Horsemanship) and Harper (Reining) were each named to the SEC All-Freshman Team.
Georgia equestrian claimed six of a possible eight Rider of the Year awards, including SEC Freshman of the Year honors. Arbuckle (Equitation on the Flat), Stawicki (Horsemanship) and Garmon (Reining) were named the Southeastern Conference Riders of the Year. Cord (Equitation on the Flat), Anderson (Horsemanship) and Harper (Reining) were named as the SEC Freshman Riders of the Year. Head Coach Meghan Boenig rounded out the awards, earning SEC Coach of the Year honors.
Players Mentioned
