EQUESTRIAN SEASON STARTS WITH HOME COMPETITIONS

Friday, October 3

Brookings, S.D.

9 a.m.

South Dakota State University

Minnesota Crookston

Photo by: SDSU Athletics

10/2/2025 4:53:00 PM | Equestrian

EQUESTRIAN: South Dakota State vs. Minnesota Crookston/vs. #10 UT Martin

When	Friday-Saturday, Oct. 3-4 Friday: vs. Minnesota Crookston, 9 a.m. Saturday: vs. UT Martin, 12:30 p.m.
Where	DeHaan Equestrian Center \| Brookings, S.D.
Live Video	SDSU YouTube Channel Friday: Indoor Arena \| Outdoor Arena Saturday: Indoor Arena \| Outdoor Arena
Live Results	vs. Minnesota Crookston vs. UT Martin Minnesota-Crookston vs. UT Martin
Social Media	Twitter \| Instagram \| #GoJacks

South Dakota State opens the 2025-26 equestrian season with a pair of home head-to-head competitions this weekend against ECAC opponents at the DeHaan Equestrian Center.

The Jackrabbits, who compiled a 4-9 record in head-to-head competition a season ago, will take on Minnesota Crookston at 9 a.m. Friday, followed by a 12:30 p.m. matchup Saturday against 10^th-ranked UT Martin. Minnesota Crookston and UT Martin also will square off, with the first two events slated for Friday afternoon and the final two events set for Saturday morning.

Both indoor and outdoor arenas will be utilized for this weekend's competitions. Video links can be found at the SDSU Athletics You Tube page (@GoJacksSDSU).

SEASON PREVIEW: The Jackrabbits return several key contributors from last year's squad and are expected to sprinkle some newcomers into the lineup during the opening weekend of competition.

Western
The Western squad is under new leadership with the addition of former Oklahoma State standout Claire McDowall to the coaching staff.

South Dakota natives Adisyn Kuxhaus (Pierre) and Emma Riggs (Alexandria) return to lead the reining crew. Both riders turned in 4-6-2 head-to-head records a season ago, with Riggs notching a pair of Most Outstanding Performer awards.

Lillie Wallis (2-4 record) and Maryn Mead (1-3 record) also are penciled into the opening day lineup in reining, while Hailey Hanson, a transfer from Minnesota Crookston, is expected to compete in both reining and horsemanship this weekend.

The remainder of this weekend's horsemanship lineup for the Jackrabbits is expected to consist of returning riders Avery Bergan, Grace Gerbus, Brighton McBride and Anna Minich. McBride and Gerbus are seniors, while Minich and Bergan are sophomores.

Junior Hannah Dutton, who led the Jackrabbits with a 5-4-1 record in horsemanship last season, also is expected to further bolster the lineup.

Jumping Seat
The Jackrabbits return two of their top three performers in both fences and flat from a year ago.

In fences, Juliana Gullo compiled a team-best 8-4-1 record during her first season in the SDSU lineup while averaging 76.9 points per ride. Sarah Gould ranked second in scoring average (78.4) en route to a 6-7 mark in head-to-head competition.

Brooke Borges also was a regular in the fences lineup during the 2024-25 campaign, posting a 3-8 record.

Kayla Scherer and Elizabeth Wagner each tied for second on the team in head-to-head victories in flat a season ago with four. Sierra Elliott (three wins) and Kendyl Rudolf (two wins) also were regular contributors in the flat lineup last season.

A group of incoming freshmen will add depth in the jumping seat events, including Reagan Gehm, Lucy Puhalla and Heidi White.

A LOOK AHEAD: The Jackrabbits are schedule to compete on back-to-back days in California next weekend. SDSU is slated to take on Fresno State on Oct. 10 before moving north to UC Davis on Oct. 11.

-GoJacks.com-