NCEA EQUESTRIAN

HOW MANY WOMEN ARE ON A TEAM? There is no roster size limit. The teams range from 15 to 85 girls. The average team has about 46 members.

CAN NCEA TEAMS ONLY COMPETE NCAA? No, schools that are members of the NCEA are permitted to compete in both the NCAA-NCEA head-to-head format and IHSA (club) competitions. However, universities can only compete in one National Championship event.

HOW MANY COACHES ARE THERE? There can be anywhere from one to three coaches. Some teams also have volunteer coaches designated by the team- one western coach and one jumping seat coach for the whole season.

WHERE DO THE TEAMS PRACTICE? Practice and competition facilities can be owned by the athletics department or can be multiple use facilities on campus partnered with the Agriculture or Animal Science Department. Some programs lease a private facility.

WHO PROVIDES THE HORSES? Most programs have their own string of horses for practice and competition. These horses are donated, purchased or leased for the competition season.

TYPICALLY HOW MANY COMPETITIONS ARE THERE? Teams can have up to 15 dates of competition, not including conference or national championships. Competitions that last more than one day, or tournaments can be considered one date, up to five times.

WHAT DOES IT COST TO RUN AN EQUESTRIAN TEAM? Annual operating budgets can range from $100,000 to $450,000, depending on the size of your program. The average cost per student athlete is $3,000 to $7,000.

WHAT ABOUT GRADES? The average equestrian grade point average is 3.2

ARE THERE SCHOLARSHIPS? The sport of equestrian can offer up to 15 scholarships per team. The NCAA defines equestrian as an equivalency sport, allowing the scholarships to be divided amongst the team.

CAN STUDENT-ATHLETES RECEIVE COURSE CREDIT? Some universities offer class credit for participation. 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. Currently, there are 16 Division I and four Division II programs sponsoring equestrian.

The National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA), a non-profit corporation, was created as 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.

The NCEA developed sub-committees for areas critical to the advancement of equestrian. These sub-committees consist of coaches and administrators from member institutions. Coaches and administrators are invited to serve on any of the various NCEA Committees of their choice. The committees include but are not limited to: Membership Services, Competition, Strategic Communications, Sponsorship, Selection, and Championship. Each committee is charged with helping to progress equestrian to championship sport status within the NCAA. Additionally, liaisons from the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) and the American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA) interact with and provide input to these committees and the NCEA Executive Committee.

Part of the NCEA’s structure includes a National Advisory Board (NAB) comprised of corporate leaders, philanthropists, and equine industry experts. The goal of the NAB is to develop the financial support to make Equestrian the first financially-independent nonrevenue generating collegiate sport. NAB efforts have shown early success in the form of grants to help sustain current NCEA teams, as well as providing financial strategies for the development of new Equestrian teams across the nation.

The NCEA, in concert with the mission and vision of the NCAA, is committed to providing collegiate opportunities for female equestrian student-athletes to compete at the highest level, while embracing equity, diversity and promoting academic and competitive excellence.

To be recognized globally as the premier level of competition for elite female collegiate equestrian student-athletes.

MISSION

VISION

CROP A short whip used in riding, only as an aid to reinforce the rider’s leg.

DIAGONALS The correct posting, up/down motion, of the rider in sequence with diagonal movement of the horse’s legs at the trot.

EQUITATION / HORSEMANSHIP In competitions, these indicate that riders are being judged on their ability to control and show the horse while maintaining the correct riding position. Riders have the added challenge of riding an unfamiliar horse, one that they draw for in a lottery system just before their event.

FENCES An individual performance where each rider shows a horse over 8-10 jumps up to three feet, six inches high. Riders are judged on their ability to position the horse correctly at the jumps and avoid interfering with the horse’s balance, while maintaining the correct riding position and producing a smooth, polished performance.

FIGURE EIGHT Two circles connected by a change of direction, most often seen in Reining patterns.

GAIT Three ways — canter/lope, trot/jog, or walk — by which a horse can move by lifting the feet in different order or rhythm..

HORSEMANSHIP Refers to an event in Western discipline which is judged on a predetermined pattern consisting of several maneuvers is performed by each rider. The rider’s overall position and effectiveness in the saddle are major factors in scoring.

JUMPING SEAT The category of Equitation English riders compete in, whose foundation lies in jumping and riding across country, such as foxhunting.

LEADS They are determined at the canter/lope by which front foot is leading. Correct leads have the inside foreleg reaching furthest.

NATURAL AIDS Body signals from the seat, legs, hands and voice to communicate commands to the horse, all the while appearing comfortable, relaxed and balanced. These signals should be subtle or imperceptible to the judge and spectators and exaggerated shifting of the rider’s weight is not desirable. The resulting performance shown by the horse is not to be considered more important than the methods used by the rider in obtaining them.

REINING In this class, Western riders perform an individual, pre-assigned pattern from memory, demonstrating a variety of stops, turns and maneuvers at various speeds. The emphasis on this class is on precision, technical application of natural aids and the rider’s ability to show unfamiliar horses.

ROLLBACK A tight turn performed in the Jumping Seat Fences class to show control of the horse and rider’s ability to maintain a position between two fences. . In Western Reining, a rollback is a 180 degree pivot with speed after a halt.

SCHOOLING The horses will be schooled, or prepared for competition using stretching and suppling exercises at various gaits, or practice jumps if necessary by riders who will not compete the day of the show.

SLIDING STOP A smooth stop from the lope, in which the horse is supposed to balance on its back feet while the front feet continue to move.

COMPETITION FORMAT The National Collegiate Equestrian Association tests five riders from each team in head-to-head competitions. Five horses are selected for each event. Each rider is paired with one of the five horses in a random draw before the competition. The rider is able to watch the horse warm up and receives four minutes to practice on her assigned mount before competing. Riders from opposing teams compete on the same horse in the headto-head competition. Each rider receives a score, and the rider with the highest score receives one point for her team. In NCEA competition, the level of difficulty is demonstrated by the accuracy of the pattern and how the competitor uses the horse that she draws to the best of her ability.

GENERAL SCORING Jumping Seat riders are scored on a scale of 1-100. There are eight maneuvers each worth 10 points, plus an overall score worth 20 points, to total 100 possible points per ride. Maneuvers are scored on this scale: 10=Excellent; 9=Very Good; 8=Good; 7=Fairly Good; 6=Satisfactory; 5=Sufficient; 4=Insufficient; 3=Fairly Bad; 2=Bad; 1=Very Bad; 0=Not Executed. Scores usually range from 70-85, depending on the judge. Western riders are scored on a 70-point scale. There are a minimum of eight maneuvers which are scored on the following scale: +1.5=Excellent, +1=Very Good, +.5=Good, 0=Correct, -.5=Poor, -1=Very Poor, -1.5=Extremely Poor. Scores range from 68 to 74. Horsemanship and Jumping Seat riders are judged on their ability to control and show the horse while maintaining the correct riding position. Fences riders are judged on their ability to position the horse correctly and not interfere with its balance while maintaining the correct riding position for a smooth, polished performance. Reiners are judged for precision and application of natural aids as they execute intricate maneuvers at varying speeds.

JUMPING SEAT - FENCES The judges evaluate the rider’s position, consistency on course, smoothness, flow from jump to jump, the number of strides (steps taken by the horse) in a line and the rider’s plan to complete the course. Scoring for the event is out of a perfect score of 100.

JUMPING SEAT - FLAT The riders have to perform a flat test on their horses in a 40 x 20 meter arena. The test consists of eight movements to be judged on accuracy, smoothness and overall position of the rider. Each movement receives a score from 1-10. The ninth and tenth scores judges the position and seat of the rider and the correctness and effectiveness of her aids, and the overall accuracy of the test. The score is out of a perfect score of 100.

WESTERN- HORSEMANSHIP This event is designed to evaluate the rider’s ability to execute a prescribed set of maneuvers with precision and smoothness while maintaining a balanced, functional and fundamentally correct body position. The ideal horsemanship pattern consists of seven to nine maneuvers and is extremely precise with the rider and horse working in complete unison, executing each maneuver with subtle aids and cues. Exhibitors are scored for each sequence of maneuvers with a -1.5 to +1.5 score for each maneuver with a base score beginning at 70.

WESTERN - REINING This event based on set patterns and a precise scoring system. Within these patterns the horses’ and riders’ athletic abilities are tested in a series of maneuvers including spins, stops, flying lead changes and circles with changes in size and speed. In collegiate competition, the rider must perform one of the set National Reining Horse Association (NRHA) patterns. There are a total of eight parts to a reining test with each individual maneuver judged from -1.5 to +1.5 with a base score beginning at 70.

CHAMPIONSHIP FORMAT DUAL DISCIPLINE CHAMPIONSHIP The top eight dual discipline teams will be competing in the NCEA National Championship Dual Discipline Championship. Each team will compete head to head with five riders in each of the Events: Fences and Flat for the Jumping Seat events and Horsemanship and Reining for the Western events. The team that receives the most points (20 possible points available for each matchup) will advance to the next round. The dual discipline competition begins on Thursday with the quarterfinals. The semifinals are on Friday and the conclusion of the dual discipline events run on championship Saturday.

SINGLE DISCIPLINE CHAMPIONSHIP The top four single discipline teams will be competing in the NCEA National Championship Single Discipline Championship. Each team will compete head to head with up to five riders in each of the Jumping Seat events: Fences and Flat. The team that receives the most points (10 possible points available for each matchup) will advance to the next round. The single discipline competition begins on Friday with the semifinals. The conclusion of the single discipline events run on championship Saturday.

2002 Overall Champion...............................................Texas A&M Jumping Seat Champion..........................................Georgia Western Champion ..................................West Texas A&M

2003 Overall Champion.....................................................Georgia Jumping Seat Champion..........................................Georgia Western Champion .................................... Oklahoma State

2004 Overall Champion.....................................................Georgia Jumping Seat Champion..........................................Georgia Western Champion .................................... Oklahoma State

2005 Overall Champion......................................... South Carolina Jumping Seat Champion.............................. South Carolina Western Champion ............................................Texas A&M

2006 Overall Champion......................................................Auburn Reserve Champion ....................................... South Carolina Jumping Seat Champion.............................. South Carolina Western Champion .................................... Oklahoma State

2007 Overall Champion......................................... South Carolina Reserve Champion ...................................................Georgia Jumping Seat Champion............................. South Carolina Western Champion ............................................Texas A&M

2008 Overall Champion.....................................................Georgia Reserve Champion .............................................Texas A&M Jumping Seat Champion...........................................Auburn Western Champion ............................................Texas A&M

2009 Overall Champion.....................................................Georgia Reserve Champion .............................................Texas A&M Jumping Seat Champion..........................................Georgia Western Champion ............................................Texas A&M INDIVIDUAL CHAMPIONS Fences ..............................................Haylie Jayne (Georgia) Flat............................................ Ally Blais (Oklahoma State) Horsemanship................................Caroline Gunn (Texas A&M) Reining .............................................. Carrie Von Uhlit (TCU)

2010 Overall Champion.....................................................Georgia Reserve Champion .............................................Texas A&M Jumping Seat Champion..........................................Georgia Western Champion ............................................Texas A&M

INDIVIDUAL CHAMPIONS Fences ............................................Emma Lipman (Georgia) Flat...............................................Michelle Morris (Georgia) Horsemanship................................Caroline Gunn (Texas A&M) Reining ................................... Maggie Gratny (Texas A&M)

2011 Overall Champion......................................................Auburn Reserve Champion ...................................................Georgia Jumping Seat Champion...........................................Auburn Western Champion ............................................Texas A&M 2012 Overall Champion...............................................Texas A&M Reserve Champion ...................................................Georgia Jumping Seat Champion............................................ Baylor Western Champion ............................................Texas A&M

2013 Overall Champion......................................................Auburn Reserve Champion ...................................................Georgia Jumping Seat Champion...........................................Auburn Western Champion .................................... Oklahoma State

2014 Overall Champion.....................................................Georgia Reserve Champion ....................................... South Carolina

2015 Overall Champion......................................... South Carolina Reserve Champion ...................................................Georgia 2016 Overall Champion......................................................Auburn Reserve Champion .........................................................TCU

2017 Overall Champion...............................................Texas A&M Reserve Champion ...................................................Georgia

2018 Overall Champion......................................................Auburn Reserve Champion ...................................................Georgia

INDIVIDUAL CHAMPIONS Jumping Seat ...........................................................Auburn Western ....................................................................Auburn Flat ...........................................................................Georgia Fences ......................................................................Auburn Horsemanship ...........................................................Auburn Reining ...............................................................Texas A&M

2019 Overall Champion......................................................Auburn Reserve Champion ...................................................Georgia

INDIVIDUAL CHAMPIONS Jumping Seat ...........................................................Auburn Western ...................................................................Georgia Flat ............................................................................Auburn Fences .....................................................................Georgia Horsemanship ..........................................................Georgia Reining .....................................................................Georgia

2020 *Canceled due to Covid-19*

2021 DUAL DISCIPLINE CHAMPIONS Overall Champion.....................................................Georgia Reserve Champion ....................................................... SMU

SINGLE DISCIPLINE CHAMPIONS Overall Champion.............................................. Sweet Briar Reserve Champion ...............................................Lynchburg

ABOUT SEC EQUESTRIAN

The Southeastern Conference (SEC) adopted the sport of equestrian during the 2012-13 academic year. The four programs that currently comprise the SEC have a rich history of elite success in the sport. Since the National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) began contesting a national championship in 2002, the only four programs to win a national championship include the four members of the SEC: Auburn, Georgia, South Carolina and Texas A&M. The annual NCEA Championship is held in Waco, Texas, each year. Georgia has tallied a league-leading six overall national championships, including three consecutive from 2008-10 and most recently in 2014. Auburn and South Carolina both have three national titles, while Texas A&M each has two overall national titles.

The three schools of the formerly 12-member SEC have been contesting a yearly Southern Equestrian Championship since 2003, which in 2012-13 was replaced by the first-ever SEC Championship, involving all four schools. The Southern Equestrian Championships were held on campus sites on a rotating basis. Georgia won a league-leading six Southern Equestrian Championship titles, while Auburn captured three and South Carolina one. The first-ever SEC equestrian meet was held on September 9, 2012 when Georgia hosted Texas A&M in Bishop, Ga. In March of 2013, the first-ever SEC Championship in the sport of equestrian was held in Auburn, Ala., with South Carolina taking home the inaugural trophy.

SEC CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY

SOUTHERN EQUESTRIAN CHAMPIONSHIP WINNERS 2003.............................................................................................Georgia 2004..............................................................................................Auburn 2005.............................................................................................Georgia 2006.............................................................................................Georgia 2007.............................................................................................Georgia 2008.............................................................................................Georgia 2009.............................................................................................Georgia 2010..............................................................................................Auburn 2011..............................................................................................Auburn 2012..................................................................................South Carolina

SEC CHAMPIONSHIP WINNERS 2013..................................................................................South Carolina 2014..................................................................................South Carolina 2015.............................................................................................Georgia 2016..............................................................................................Auburn 2017.............................................................................................Georgia 2018.............................................................................................Georgia 2019..............................................................................................Auburn 2020.......................................................... *Canceled due to COVID-19* 2021..............................................................................................Auburn