WACO, Texas – Four horses were announced as the 2026 National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) Championship Most Outstanding Horses, revealed Wednesday by the association.
To be named a Most Outstanding Horse, the equine athlete must have been in the Championship rounds or nominated by the judges. The winners are chosen on a coaches vote, and one horse from each event is selected.
Presley and Georgie from Auburn, Charlie from Oklahoma State and Player from TCU are honored for their prowess across the Championship in their respective events.
For Fences, it was Auburn's Presley who was chosen. Presley competed in two meets and had scores of 85.3 and 86.3 in his first showing, with scores of 89.7 and 90.3 in his second.
In Flat, Auburn's Georgie was selected. Georgie also was in the pen for two meets, with scores of 86.3 and 84.3 for his first meet, and 88.3 along with 82.7 in the second.
On the Western side, Charlie from OSU was chosen for Horsemanship. Charlie competed in two meets, and in the first, he earned scores of 77.7 and 76.8, while earning 77.7 and 76.7 in the second.
TCU's Player was chosen for Reining, competing twice over the course of the three days. In his first time out in the ring, he scored a 72.5 and a 72.3, then earning a 73.7 and 73.5 in the second.
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 Committe of Women's Athletics (CWA) as an emerging sport for women at the Division I and II levels.
NCEA competitors 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 reams 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 hrose 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 -