The top-ranked Auburn equestrian team will travel to face No. 6 South Carolina in a Southeastern Conference meet on Saturday, February 7. The event is scheduled for 10 a.m. CT at One Wood Farm in Blythewood, South Carolina.
Head coach Jessica Braswell commented on the upcoming competition: “We’re excited to get on the road and compete in the conference. South Carolina had a good fall and their coaches have done a good job building up that program really quickly. I expect a really tough competition on Saturday and I think it will be close. We have the talent and we can come out on top, but we’re going to have to put in solid rides and stay away from the penalties and mistakes.”
Auburn enters the meet with a 6-1 record after opening its spring season with a win at UT Martin last week. Braswell noted the importance of maintaining consistency: “We’ve continued on that consistency piece that I keep talking about. I think that’s key for us this spring, especially in our events that are not as strong.”
A victory against South Carolina would help Auburn move closer to securing the top seed at the 2026 SEC Championship, which will be hosted by Auburn in March. Braswell said, “We control our own destiny in this part of the season. We can have that No. 1 seed at the SEC Championship if we do our job this spring. Going on the road and coming home with a win Saturday would be big.”
The lineup for Auburn includes three seniors, four juniors, four sophomores, and three freshmen who competed against UT Martin last week.
In Jumping Seat events, junior Avery Glynn leads with a 13-1-0 overall record this season—6-1-0 in Fences and 7-0-0 on Flat—while sophomores Kate Hagerty and Ariana Marnell as well as freshman Caroline Olsen are set to compete in both Fences and Flat. Marnell and Olsen each hold records of 6-1-0 in Fences; Olsen is also 6-1-0 on Flat.
Freshman Emily Jurnovoy joins them in Fences after earning her first career win last week at UT Martin, while sophomore Sadie Berkhout (4-2-0) will compete on Flat.
On Western events, senior Alexia Tordoff (unbeaten at 6-0-1 Horsemanship; 4-2-1 Reining) and junior Callie Hogg (five wins Horsemanship) will participate in both Horsemanship and Reining.
Senior Caroline Fredenburg (5-1-1), juniors Brooke Jolstad (four wins; current SEC Horsemanship Rider of the Month for January), and Sydney Swallom (6-1-0) join Tordoff and Hogg for Horsemanship.
Reining competitors include Tordoff, Hogg, senior Caroline Buchanan (three wins), sophomore Michelle Fumagalli (three wins), and freshman Sofia Tieche.
Auburn holds an all-time series lead over South Carolina at 38–20 overall—including a 13–8 advantage when playing away games. The teams’ most recent meeting was November 8 at Auburn University Equestrian Center where Auburn won 12–8.
Following Saturday’s contest, Auburn returns home for a non-conference match against No. 4 SMU on February 21 at Auburn University Equestrian Center; admission is free for all meets.
