TCU Equestrian 2022-23 Season Recap

The 2022-23 season was another successful campaign for the TCU equestrian team, which finished with a 13-4 overall record and advanced to the semifinal round of the NCEA National Championship tournament. With several riders eligible to return across multiple disciplines, TCU will have another opportunity to perform at a high level during the 2023-24 season, which will begin this coming September with an exhibition meet against Tarleton.

Entering the 2022-23 season as the No. 3 ranked equestrian team in the nation, TCU made a statement after traveling to College Station and edging No. 2 Texas A&M on a tiebreaker. With the meet score tied at 10-10, the Horned Frogs secured the match victory with a cumulative total of 1,630.5, outpacing the Aggies who finished with 1,622.75. TCU followed with another top-10 ranked victory on Oct. 13, defeating No. 9 UT-Martin 9-6 and sweeping a doubleheader in Dover, Delaware that featured a 12-8 win over unranked Delaware State.

The Horned Frogs started the season with a 3-0 record and reached No. 1 in the NCEA Rankings before suffering their first loss of the season against No. 9 Baylor on Oct. 21. TCU responded with an outstanding performance in its home opener, beating No. 2 Oklahoma State 12-6 and notching its second victory over a top-2 opponent in four meets. The Horned Frogs dominated each of their two contests in November, cruising over Fresno State 16-1 and downing No. 9 UC Davis 15-5. TCU concluded 2022 with a 5-1 record and returned to action in January 2023, outclassing South Dakota State 16-3 at the John Justin Arena.

February 2023 presented several challenges for the Horned Frogs, who were tasked with rematching three ranked opponents including Fresno State, Texas A&M and Oklahoma State. TCU emerged victorious in two of those three contests, defeating the No. 9 ranked Bulldogs 15-4 before adding a second 15-4 victory against the No. 3 ranked Aggies. The Horned Frogs, who also took down UC Davis 11-9 in early February, conceded a tough 11-9 loss to the Cowboys on Feb. 25 to end a seven-meet winning streak.

Prior to beginning the Big 12 Conference Championship tournament in March, TCU exacted its revenge against Baylor, winning 12-7 over the No. 9 ranked Bears. The Horned Frogs reached the championship round of the conference tournament, defeating Fresno State for a third time this season before falling 12-8 against Oklahoma State in the finals. TCU topped the No. 8 ranked Bulldogs 15-5 to clinch its spot in the conference championship meet.

The Horned Frogs earned the No. 4 seed in the NCEA National Championship tournament in Ocala, Florida, where TCU started strong with a 13-8 victory against No. 5 seed Texas A&M on April 13. It was the third time this season that TCU defeated the Aggies, who became the second team to fall against the Horned Frogs on three separate occasions. TCU’s season came to a close on April 14, when the Horned Frogs suffered a 14-6 loss against No. 1 seed SMU in the semifinal round. It was the second consecutive season that TCU finished as a NCEA National Championship semifinalist in the program’s 17-year history.

Three TCU athletes received NCEA All-American honors in fences including Sydney Berube (First Team), Ashleigh Scully (First Team) and Isabella Baxter (Second Team). Scully also earned NCEA All-American First Team honors in flat and five TCU athletes garnered NCEA All-American honors in horsemanship including Jessica McAllister (First Team), Giorgia Medows (First Team), Mattie Dukes (Second Team), Shea Graham (Honorable Mention) and Payton Boutelle (Honorable Mention). Dukes and McAllister each took home NCEA All-American First Team honors in reining, while Medows received Second Team honors.

The Horned Frogs also collected several end-of-season awards from the NCEA. Melissa Dukes was named the NCEA Dual Discipline Western Coach of the Year and Scully was named NCEA Co-Flat Rider of the Year. Mattie Dukes was named the NCEA Reining Rider of the Year and McAllister was named the NCEA Horsemanship Rider of the Year. In total, TCU produced 12 All-American accolades this season and there could be more to come next season, as a large chunk of the 39 student-athletes on the 2022-23 roster are eligible to return for the 2023-24 campaign. Of the eight riders who earned All-American honors this season, graduate student Isabella Baxter is the only rider with no eligibility remaining.

Mattie Dukes willl return as a graduate student for the 2023-24 season, while Berube, Boutelle, Graham, McAllister, Medows and Scully are all back for their senior seasons. TCU will welcome 10 new freshmen into the equestrian program for the upcoming campaign, which begins with an exhibition contest against Tarleton State on Sept. 14, 2023.