The Southern Methodist and New Mexico State teams opened their seasons on Thursday at SMU’s home field, BuckBranch Farm. It was SMU’s first ever competition with a western team, and that squad held its own. SMU took horsemanship 3-2 while the Aggies earned a 4-1 win in reining. The four points that they earned helped the Mustangs earn a season opening 10-9 win.

"The win means a lot in our debut as a united team (with western and hunt seat),"said interim SMU head coach Natalie Burton. "We did what we had to do. Our hunt seat team did what they had to do, and the western squad turned in a phenomenal effort to win horsemanship over a seasoned team.

On Sunday, the Mustangs earned a decisive win over the No.10 ranked University of Tennessee Martin Skyhawks. The Mustangs won all four events. The hunter team won 8-1 and the western team continued to look good in earning a 5-3 overall win.

"We (the coaches and the team) are excited about how good our western team has been this fast," Burton said after Sunday's win. "This start is a great benchmark for them this early in the year. They've worked very hard, and I know they will continue to improve."

SMU will be back in action next Saturday in Dover, Delaware. They’ll face a tough South Carolina team on neutral ground in the morning, and follow up with a dual at Delaware State in the afternoon.

Full recaps of the both SMU wins are available at www.smumustangs.com.