April 18, 2007

WACO, Texas - Baylor's equestrian team started its bye round action Wednesday evening at the Varsity Equestrian National Championships hosted at the Heart O' Texas Fair Complex in Waco, Texas. The Western team split four points with Texas A&M going 2-2 in Horsemanship while the English team dropped four points to Georgia in Equitation on the Flat.

Bye round action continues Thursday morning when BU and UGA riders compete in their Equitation over Fences patterns at 8:30 a.m. In the Western bracket, Baylor and Texas A&M riders will compete in Reining at 10:00 a.m.

For the Bears' Horsemanship rides, Allison Orosz and Lindsey Tomko earned points against Texas A&M with 143.5- and 141-point rides, respectively. The Aggies earned the remaining one point previous to Amanda Graber's reride. Graber was granted a reride on Jake, a horse on loan by Missy Gonzalez, after unruly behavior. Graber lost to TAMU's Sibyl Parsons by half a point giving Texas A&M the tying point.

"It's a good start. We were competitive with Texas A&M and to tie them in Horsemanship is great. They have beat us a number of times in Horsemanship in the past but in Reining, it comes down to the draw. But our riders know what they need to do. They can do it but really need to be correct," said assistant coach Trista Armstrong.

In Baylor's Hunter Seat bye round competition, Georgia swept Baylor on the Flat giving the Bulldogs a 4-0 lead heading into Fences rides tomorrow. In two rides, the Bears lost by four or less points narrowly giving up the point.

"We had great rides and the girls did well. Georgia is known for being a strong flat team; they're a strong team overall, but we're not giving them the victory yet. We are both strong Fences teams, but when we ride our best, we can win," said head coach Ellen White.

Baylor's complete Wednesday bye round scores are available at www.baylorbears.com. Full tournament news and scores are also available at baylorbears.com.