WACO, Texas – The National Collegiate Equestrian Association has announced the Riders of the Month for September, determined by the NCEA Awards Committee and released Wednesday.
Three Aggies and one Gamecock earned monthly accolades for their performances in September.
Fences Rider of the Month: Grace DeFoe
Junior / Texas A&M / Perrysburg, Ohio
- Posted a 2-0 record
- Garnered two MOP accolades
- Averaged an 86.5 for the month
- Had a 16.5-point average win margin
- She won her point, 87-72 against Delaware State and 86-68 against Minnesota Crookston in a doubleheader.
Flat Rider of the Month: Vanessa Mc Caughley
Sophomore / South Carolina / Lexington, Ky.
- Went 2-0 for the month
- Earned 1 MOP honor
- Posted a 90.5 average score
- Had a 18.5-point average win margin
- Put on a show in her home opener weekend against two Single Discipline programs, posting in the 90s in each of her appearances and defeating her Hollins opponent by nearly 30 points. Earned her first career MOP against Sewanee.
Horsemanship Rider of the Month: Ady Kallay
Sophomore / Texas A&M / Drayton Valley, Alberta, Canada
- Posted a 2-0 record for September
- Garnered 1 MOP accolade
- Had an average score of 71 for the month
- Posted an average win margin of 1.75 points
- Had a high score of 72.5 against Minnesota Crookston to earn the MOP in the doubleheader.
Reining Rider of the Month: Isabelle Gonzalez
Senior / Texas A&M / Lafayette, La.
- Went 2-0 for the month
- Posted an average score of 68.5
- Had a 4.25-point average win margin
- In the doubleheader meet against Delaware State and Minnesota Crookston, Isabelle had scores of 70 and 67, respectively.
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.
- collegiateequestrian.com -