Ocala, Fla. -- The University of Lynchburg equestrian squad matched up against Sweet Briar in the semifinal round of the NCEA National Championships and stood victorious in a tense meet, tying on team score, 5-5, and winning on raw score, 787.33-774.33.

The No. 1 Hornets advance to the National Championship for the fourth time in five years, having won three consecutive NCEA titles from 2022-2024. In the fences portion of this year's semifinal round against the Vixens, Lynchburg trailed 3-2. Point scorers for the Hornets in the fences were Rebecca Collier riding Asaro for a score of 74.7 and Amaya Bellfield riding Oliver with a score of 80.7.

The remaining three riders for Lynchburg produced impressive scores, but were nipped by their SBC counterparts. Madeline Rubin scored an 84.0 riding Rico but fell to Naomi Dachis, who scored an 84.3. Mary Katherine Ragsdale earned an 82.0 riding Q and lost to Maggie Booth by 3.3 points. Stella Patenaude rounded out Lynchburg performers in the flat with a score of 66.7 riding Bruno.

The Hornets bounced back in the flat, earning three team points to Sweet Briar's two. Abigail Devlin was the top performer in the event, scoring an 86.3 riding Georgie in the last spot that ended up being a crucial point in Lynchburg's victory. Devlin beat out Hallie Nelson by two for the team point.

Bellfield and Abby Zemp each tallied team points for the Hornets as well with stellar rides. Bellfield received an 80.7 riding Eleanor to defeat Booth, who scored an 80.3. Zemp rode to a score of 79.3 on Ethon to out-play Wyette Felton's 75.0. Collier was edged out by .3 against Gracie Robertson after producing a 76.0 on Caprice, and Rubin scored a 77.0 riding Emil, but lost to Abigail Schreiner.

With the narrow victory, the Hornets now prepare for the national-championship meet against No. 3 Charleston tomorrow morning, Saturday, April 18, starting at 9 a.m. with the flat and moving on to the fences at 10:15 a.m. Live stream and live stat links can be found on lynchburgsports.com

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