The fall season is coming to a close for K-State equestrian. The Wildcats have a busy weekend as they travel on Saturday to Dover, Delaware, where they will face No. 4 Texas A&M today and Delaware State.
K-State is coming off a 10-9 win over No. 6 TCU. The Wildcats enter the weekend with a 2-2 record and have jumped into the No. 9 spot in the NCEA poll.
“We made some great improvements against TCU last weekend,” head coach Casie Maxwell told K-State Sports. “We just need to be able to take those performances on the road on unfamiliar horses.”
K-State has several riders looking to lead the way this weekend. For the Hunt Seat team, juniors Henley Adkins, Christina Martinelli and Taylor Schmidt will take charge for the Wildcats. Martinelli is building off of her first career Most Outstanding Performer honor against TCU.
In Western, K-State seniors Danielle Kemper, Kara Guy and Nicolle Hatton look to ride strong. Hatton holds a 4-0 record and looks to stay unbeaten this weekend. Kemper is coming off a strong ride in the AQHA Collegiate Horsemanship Challenge on Nov. 15. Also leading the Wildcats in the Western arena for Horsemanship is October Big 12 Rider of the Month Alyssa Lombardi.
On Friday, K-State will challenge a red hot Texas A&M team. The Aggies have won their last four meets and are 4-1 this season. Texas A&M’s latest 11-8 win over No. 2 Auburn on Nov. 6 helped bump the Aggies into the No. 3 spot before they dropped back down to No. 4 this week. Texas A&M is no stranger to close matchups. In their last meet, the Aggies were tied with Auburn at 7-7 after three events going into reining, where they dominated the Tigers 4-1.
On Saturday, K-State will compete against Delaware State. The Hornets were last in action on Nov. 7, where they earned victories over New Mexico State and South Dakota State. Delaware state defeated New Mexico State 11-5 and rode past SDSU 8-7.
Competition will start for the Wildcats at 9:30 a.m. on Friday against Texas A&M and at 12 p.m. on Saturday against Delaware State.
“We are really hoping to take our confidence from home on the road this weekend for a strong fall finish,” Maxwell said to K-State Sports.
