DANBURY, Conn. – The awards keep rolling in for the University of Tennessee at Martin equestrian program as the 10th ranked Skyhawks won all four Eastern College Athletic Conference Rider of the Week awards for October, the league announced today.
Sydney Hott (fences), Sophia Sundem (flat), Kate Davis (horsemanship) and Emma Schaefer (reining) are winners of the ECAC monthly accolade in their respective events.
Today’s announcement marks the second career ECAC Rider of the Month honor for Hott (also won flat in October 2022) and Davis (also won horsemanship in October 2022). Overall, UT Martin has now accounted for 16 ECAC Rider of the Week or Rider of the Month honorees during the 2023-24 campaign.
The Skyhawks faced four opponents in the month of October, three of which were nationally ranked in the top-five. UT Martin topped ECAC rival South Dakota State by a 15-5 margin on Oct. 12 before falling to No. 2 Auburn (11-9 on Oct. 13), No. 1 TCU (12-7 on Oct. 27) and No. 5 Georgia (14-5 on Oct. 28).
A senior from Defiance, Mo., Hott compiled an 85.1 fences scoring average for the month – good enough for three victories and one MOP (against South Dakota State). She achieved a career-high score of 88 points against Auburn, winning her head-to-head matchup in that meet as well as against TCU.
Sundem was responsible for three victories in flat to go along with one MOP and an 84.3 scoring average. The senior out of Carlsbad, Calif. set a career-high with 88 points against Auburn, winning MOP status in the process. Additionally, she secured points for the Skyhawks via victories over South Dakota State and TCU.
Hailing from Williamston, Mich., Davis earned a pair of victories last month – besting her opposition from South Dakota State and Auburn. The junior’s October scoring average was 73.6 thanks to remarkably consistent tallies of 74 against South Dakota State, 73 against Auburn, 73 against TCU and a season-high 74.5 against Georgia.
Schaefer went undefeated in October, strolling through for a 4-0 record that included a pair of MOP medals – racking up top honors against South Dakota State (69.5 points) and Georgia (season-high 70.5 points). She pieced together a 69.4 scoring average, posting wins over Auburn and TCU with scores of 69 and 68.5, respectively.
The Skyhawks are back in action in a little over two weeks as they will travel to Felton, Del. for a neutral-site matchup against No. 8 Baylor (Nov. 17) and Delaware State (Nov. 18).
