WACO, TX – Head Coach Carol Gwin and Western Coach TR Potts have been named Coach of the Year in their respective disciplines, as announced by the National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) on Monday. This is the third Dual Discipline Coach of the Year nod for Gwin (first at South Carolin a), and the first for Potts. The three Coach of the Year honors mark the most for a coach in NCEA history. Gwin’s championship at South Carolina also marked the first time in NCEA history that a coach won at multiple schools. “Congratulations to Carol for being named the 2026 NCEA Dual Discipline Coach of the Year and to TR for being named NCEA Western Coach of the Year,” said South Carolina Athletics Director Jeremiah Donati.  “These are well-deserved and well-earned awards. We are incredibly proud of the work they have done and equally fortunate to have world-class coaches like Carol leading our program and TR alongside her, building and developing our student-athletes. They have done a tremendous job guiding our equestrian team to a national championship and coaching multiple NCEA All-Americans and All-SEC selections this year.” Gwin led the Gamecock Equestrian team to its fourth National Championship this season, defeating SEC foe Texas AM in a 10-10 raw score tie breaker to bring home the title. Just in her second season at South Carolina, Gwin is no stranger to National Championships, having won three of the last four after leading SMU to back-to-back titles in 2023 and 2024. This season, the Gamecocks finished 13-5 for their most wins since 2013-14 (15) and defeated the No. 1 program in the country three times, including a win over No. 1 Auburn in the NCEA semi-finals to advance to the National Championship. South Carolina previously took down the top-ranked teams in back-to-back weekends (Auburn, 2/7/26, and Georgia, 2/14/26) for the first time in program history. Nine of the Gamecocks’ wins came against top-10 ranked opponents, with seven of those victories being against those in the top five. South Carolina then racked up postseason awards, highlighted by a program record of eight NCEA All-Americans. The Gamecocks picked up an NCEA Rider of the Year in Alexis Potts (Horsemanship), and took three of four available MOPs in the championship meet from Natalie Jayne (Flat), Emily Patton (Reining), and Potts (Horsemanship). Vanessa McCaughley (Flat), Amira Kettaneh (Fences), Olivia Cardi (Reining), Jayne, Patton, and Potts were then each named to the NCEA All-Championship team, marking another program record of six selections. On the conference side, the Gamecocks received seven All-SEC selections and three SEC Rider of the Year nods. Potts picked up Rider of the Year for Horsemanship, Grace Rabb earned Fences Rider of the Year honors, and UT Martin transfer Lillian Laney received the Newcomer of the Year award in Horsemanship. South Carolina finished with 43 MOPs across all four disciplines, with two athletes leading the way for the most in the NCEA this season – Amira Kettaneh (Flat, 6) and Alexis Potts (Horsemanship, 7). Under Gwin, South Carolina also excelled in the classroom, with a program best 12 athletes earning NCEA All-Academic First Team honors. 32 Gamecocks were named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll. Potts, in his second season with the Gamecocks, brought the Western crew to new heights, highlighted by an NCEA and SEC Horsemanship Rider of the Year in Alexis Potts. The NCEA Rider of the Year nod was just the second-ever in program history, and the first for a Gamecock Horsemanship rider. “Coach Potts is well spoken, kind, and an amazing mentor for the student athletes,” head coach Carol Gwin said. “His level of dedication is extremely impressive. The student athletes have always felt comfortable talking with him about their goals, meeting with concerns, and he has worked very hard to create a program that will not only win once but will continue to win championships.” Under his leadership, Potts coached the Western squad to 11 regular season wins with another two coming en route to the program’s fourth National Championship. In addition to the Horsemanship Rider of the Year, Potts oversaw three NCEA All-American selections, the SEC Newcomer of the Year in Horsemanship, and four All-SEC selections. Potts helped guide the Western team to five sweeps in the regular season across Horsemanship and Reining, including the program’s first-ever 5-0 Horsemanship sweep against Auburn (Feb. 7) in program history to help the Gamecocks defeat the No. 1 Tigers at home. The Reining crew then followed things up with a 4-0 sweep against No. 1 Georgia (Feb. 14) the following week to give South Carolina the 16-3 win for the most points ever scored against the Bulldogs in series history, and their second win over the No. 1-ranked team in the country. At Nationals, Potts’ athletes swept the two available MOPs, with Alexis Potts receiving the honor for Horsemanship and freshman Emily Patton getting the nod in Reining. Categories: Sports, USC Gamecocks ...read more read less