NORWALK, Conn. — With a dominant showing in Flats, the Sacred Heart University equestrian team notched its first National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) victory of the season, defeating #2 College of Charleston on Sunday, 5-3.
Starting the day off in Fences, the Pios grabbed strong showings from
Kylie Hwalek who grabbed her second-consecutive win in the event, grabbing an 84 on Pixel to grab Most Outstanding Performer in the event.
Reagan Waggoner also earned a close win over Charleston's Hailey Pendl, taking an 83-82 win on Remi as the Pios grabbed two points during the Fences portion. Though the Pios failed to get a sweep in Fences,
Rebecca Skelton and
Emma Grimes were one point from tying Charleston's Kathryn McCarthy and Camilla Murray with Skelton grabbing a 79 on Torch and Grimes taking a 78 on Foxy as the Pios and Cougars sat deadlocked, 2-2, heading into Flats.
In Flats,
Kennedy Teasdale's 76 on Solo provided enough cushion for the Pios to take a point off the board as Charleston's Pendl could not better the Pioneer, ending her afternoon with an identical 76 to earn a tie. In the latter half of the show,
Carina Muratore and Waggoner combined to grab two important points for SHU as the seventh and ninth riders. Muratore took a decisive 75-69 win on Viv over Charleston's Camila Murray while Waggoner cleared a 77-74 win on Pixel to push SHU to victory after Charleston's Caroline Berg could not best Grimes' 73 on Alfie as the eighth rider of the afternoon. With victory having been secured for SHU, the Cougars grabbed the final point of the meet with a 79-75 win over SHU's Hwalek as the Pios took their first-ever win over the Cougars in the first-ever meeting between the schools, 5-3.
Up Next:
The Pioneers are back in action next weekend for a two-meet outing on Sunday, November 10. The Pios will travel north to Hanover, N.H. to take on #3 Dartmouth in the NCEA format while another portion of the squad will head to Brookville, N.Y. to take part in an Intercollegiate Horse Shows Association (IHSA) show hosted by LIU Post.
