The Daily O’Collegian

Jake Duncan/O’Collegian

Sophomore Rachell Shobe had 11 wins for the Cowgirl Western team last season, which was the second most on the team.

At least one group is excited for the Cowgirl equestrian team to leave home.

The Oklahoma State horses.

Five of the Cowgirls’ seven shows have been at home, and coach Larry Sanchez said the number of competitions has been taxing on the horses.

“Our horses are definitely ready for us to go on the road,” Sanchez said. “They’ve given us their heart, and we’re proud of them for that.”

The horses will have a break as the Cowgirls (7-0) hit the road for their next four shows, starting with a pair of competitions this weekend against Georgia and Auburn.

Although the horses may be relieved to have a break, the Cowgirl riders face a more difficult task.

Because the home team supplies the horses for each show, the Cowgirls will be riding animals they are not familiar with.

Freshman Marguax Tucker, who is coming off a horsemanship MVP against Kansas State, said the practice the Cowgirls have had with OSU horses has prepared the team.

“The horses we have rode have given us the proper amount of challenges for us to be able to take on what we’re given,” Tucker said. “We are all very confident in our skills that we’ve learned with coach. He’s prepared us really well.”

OSU finished off its fall schedule with a pair of road shows on back-to-back days, beating Stephen F. Austin, 11-4, and Baylor, 12-8, in November.

The Cowgirls, the only undefeated varsity team in the nation, will fly to Atlanta and take a bus to Athens, Ga., to take on the Bulldogs (5-2) on Saturday at 2 p.m. Georgia hasn’t had a show since a Nov. 11 victory against Auburn.

The Cowgirls then get back on a bus to head to Alabama that night, going up against Auburn on Sunday at 1 p.m.

Auburn (6-2) is coming off a 14-5 loss at South Carolina, a team the Cowgirls beat 16-3 in late October.

“Both of them are national-caliber teams,” Sanchez said. “Auburn ended up winning the overall national championship [two years ago]. Georgia has won the overall championship a couple of times.

“They’re good programs, and we’re going to have to go riding our best in order to come out of there with a win.”

Sophomore Ally Blais said the team is looking forward to the challenge of shows in back-to-back days.

“They’re really strong teams, but it’ll be exciting,” Blais said. “It’s going to be difficult, but I think all of us can do it. I think we’re in the right state of mind right now, and our team is really unified. We have all these team functions, and I think we’re just really strong right now.”

Sanchez agreed that his team is ready.

“The girls are good riders,” he said. “They feel the horses very well, so even unfamiliar horses I think they’re going to handle well. We’re ready; the girls are ready to go out. You’ve got to take care of business at home, which we’ve been able to do to this point, so hopefully we can continue our success on the road as well.”