OCALA, Fla. – The National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) congratulates both Lynchburg and SMU for their performances in the 2024 Championship. The Mustangs take their second-straight title while the Hornets earn their third-consecutive.
 
Mustangs take back-to-back title, downing TCU
The SMU equestrian teamed won its second consecutive National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) National Championship by defeating top-seeded TCU 12-7 on Saturday at the World Equestrian Center.
 
"It is incredibly special to win back-to-back national championships," said Head Coach Carol Gwin. "This group has accomplished so much over the last four years. We have won two national championships, been national runners-up, won conference championships and earned countless awards. I am so proud of this group, and we will never forget this moment."
 
The Mustangs captured the school's tenth national championship, and second in equestrian. It also marks just the second time a school outside of the Big 12 and SEC has won the equestrian National Championship, a feat first accomplished by SMU last season. SMU becomes the third equestrian program to win back-to-back National Championships, a feat previously accomplished by only Auburn (2019) and Georgia (2009, 2004). 
 
SMU finishes the season 12-4, which included a five-meet win streak to end the year. The Mustangs are now 25-5 over the last two seasons en route to becoming back-to-back champions.
 
SMU never trailed on Saturday, leading the meet from beginning to end.
 
The championship meet began with Reining, where the Mustangs jumped out to a commanding 4-1 lead. Shelby Clausen scored first for SMU, posting a 67.83 to beat out Giorgia Medows' 65. Dani Latimer scored next for the Mustangs with a Reining event-high of 73.5. With her third win of the tournament, Latimer tied the program record for career Reining victories (33). Latimer's ride was followed by Taylor Zimmerman's 72.17-71.83 victory against Shea Graham, with Chalyce Head put up SMU's fourth point on the board in her 71.67-66.67 defeat of Mattie Dukes.
 
The Mustangs picked up two more points in Horsemanship. Nya Kearns scored a 78 to defeat Payton Boutelle's 75.83. Kearns' second win of the tournament marked her 46th overall as a Mustang, tying the program record for career Horsemanship wins. Caroline Nielson added to SMU's first half tally, notching a 75.67-75.33 victory over Medows to roll the Mustangs into the break with a 6-3 lead.
 
SMU took the Flat with three points to begin the second half. Katy Merchant scored an 83, topping Lilly Goldstein's 82.33. Augusta Iwasaki then defeated Ashleigh Scully 81.67-81, with Taylor Madden earning the Mustangs' third point on the Flat in a 78.67-74.33 victory against Ella Bostwick.
 
SMU entered Fences with a 9-5 advantage, needing just one more point to secure the title.
 
Iwasaki posted a 91.33-79.67 victory over TCU's Goldstein to clinch the championship. Both Hannah Hoch and Elli Yeager added on with additional Fences scores, finalizing the total at 12-7 SMU advantage.
 
"I want to shout out Laura Persons, Brad Kearns, and Dean Latimer for having the team well prepared for this entire tournament, and season" Gwin said. "We truly have a special group of coaches and student athletes, and they deserve every bit of this achievement."
 
Lynchburg equestrian wins third-straight NCEA title
The University of Lynchburg equestrian team won the NCEA single-discipline national championship for the third year in a row cementing the program in the history books as a dynasty across the equestrian landscape. The Hornets defeated Sweet Briar 6-3 on Saturday at the World Equestrian Center.
 
The Hornets and Vixens were locked in a tie up until the final two Lynchburg riders broke the stalemate with consecutive points to secure the historic win. Sweet Briar has been the victim in all three of Lynchburg's title wins, falling by the greatest margin in this year's single discipline finals. 
 
Competing riders for Lynchburg included Emma Schweizer, Lucy Metzler, Fallyn Belcastro, Abby Zemp, Mackenna Moss, Jacqueline Needle, and Kelley McCormick.
 
The first point of the meet for the Hornets was secured by ODAC rider of the year Belcastro with a score of 85, good for a margin of 19.33 over her opponent. Schweizer earned the only other point won by the Hornets over fences riding to a score of 77.33. 
 
The two teams were evenly matched over fences as three different points were decided by a margin of less than one, including a tie at 77.67 between Needle and her opponent. Smith's 84 fell to a Vixen score of 84.67, and the meet moved to the flat all tied at 2-2.
 
The defending champs would not be denied their third ring, nearly sweeping the flat for the second day in a row at the championships. The lone Vixen point on the flat came by a slim margin of 0.33 over Zemp who earned a 78. 
 
McCormick, the captain of the Lynchburg squad, rode to a 75 defeating her opponent by a margin of 7.66. 
 
Belcastro continued her dominance scoring her second point of the meet. She earned the high score on the flat of 82.33, winning her head-to-head by a margin of 11.33. The junior's performance earned most outstanding performer on the flat for the championship meet. Belcastro swept her opponents through the championship weekend winning four points for the Hornets and was awarded all-tournament team honors. The NCEA all-tournement team includes riders from both the dual and single discipline formats.
 
Flat specialist Metzler secured her point with a 72.67, and Schweizer won her second point of the meet earning a 77.33. Metzler and Schweizer won their points by a combined margin of 17. 
 
Lynchburg defeated the Vixens 4-1 on the flat just as they did in last year's championship final, where they erased a 1-4 deficit to take down Sweet Briar via raw score.
 
Lynchburg made history taking down Sweet Briar 6-3 establishing themselves atop the single discipline world for the third consecutive year.
 
About the NCEA
A non-profit corporation, the NCEA is a governing body to advance the sport of equestrian. The NCEA is responsible for the development and administration of equestrian rules and guidelines. Equestrian is subject to all NCAA policies and procedures in the same manner as other sports. In 1998, Equestrian was identified and adopted by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Committee on Women's Athletics (CWA) as an emerging sport for women at the Division I and II levels. 
 
NCEA competitions are in a head-to-head format, and schools may choose to compete as a single or dual discipline team (Jumping Seat and Western). Each discipline has two events: in Jumping Seat, Fences and Flat, and in Western, Horsemanship and Reining. Teams can have five riders per event, with horses assigned by random draw at the start of the competition. Riders from opposing teams compete on the same horse, and whichever rider receives the higher score earns one point for her team. The level of difficulty is demonstrated by the accuracy of the pattern and how the competitor uses the horse to the best of her ability.
 
To stay up to date all year long on all things NCEA Equestrian, follow the organization on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @NCEA_Equestrian and @ncea_eq.