It was a memorable day all around for the UTM equestrian program, which saw nine seniors make their final regular-season appearance at the Ned McWherter Agricultural Pavilion in a 13-6 victory over Delaware State.
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Honored during a pregame ceremony as part of Senior Day, Tess Baumann, Lucy Eier, Abbie Hopkins, Hannah McDonald, Noel Meadows, Bailey Newlin, Quinn Reed, Grace Rogers and Devon Woods were all in action today, sending the Skyhawks home a winner in what was the most complete team victory of the 2020-21 campaign.
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UTM dominated the Western discipline, taking nine of the 10 head-to-head matchups – including a clean 5-0 sweep in horsemanship. The Skyhawks also produced three MOP’s today, including Mahalia Alascio (fences), Hopkins (flat) and Paige Benson (horsemanship).
In horsemanship, Benson garnered her first career MOP after a career-best 75.5 point-performance. The senior trio of Woods (73.5), Newlin (72.5) and Eier (72.5) each registered their team-best fourth win in the event while Baumann had the largest margin of victory (73.5-60) out of any UTM representative.
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McDonald ran her unbeaten streak to six meets today in reining, as the Ridgefield, Washington native scored a team-high 74 points. Meadows accrued 73.5 points on her way to a win and was followed by victorious efforts out of Erin Bledsoe (career-best 72.5) and Maggie Malone (72.5). Baumann also took part in reining for the Skyhawks, posting a score of 71 points.
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UTM came away with a pair of wins and a tie-in flat, paced by Hopkins’ seventh career MOP in that event. The Seekonk, Massachusetts native dialed up 87 points, a score that was matched by Reed – resulting in a career-high tally for the senior out of Batavia, Ohio. Haley Kane’s 84 points equaled her head-to-head competitor while Julia Gilman (77 points) and Alascio (no score) completed the Skyhawk lineup.
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Alascio showed out in fences, receiving her first career MOP honor after a career-high 83 points. Gilman gave UTM its second winner in the event, capturing her team-best third victory of the season with a score of 81. Rogers (73), Hopkins (68) and Reed (40) also took part in the event.
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The Skyhawks will now turn their attention to the Eastern College Athletic Conference Championship event, which will be held on the UTM campus on March 25-27.
