PLANTATION, Fla. - The College of Charleston equestrian team closed the gap in the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association Zone 5 Region 3 standings with second and first place finishes at the University of Miami and Florida International University Shows, respectively, at the Plantation Equestrian Center.

Savannah College of Art and Design edged the Cougars at Miami on Saturday but CofC surged back to win convincingly at FIU on Sunday to pull within nine points of standings-leading SCAD.

The results of Saturday's show hinged all the way to the final event before SCAD notched the win with 39 points to CofC's 38 and University of Central Florida's 37.

The Cougars got best-in-class performances out of Eliza Hay in the Open Fences (section B), McKenzie Armour in the Open Flat (section B), Sophie Gotwald in the Intermediate Fences (section B), Emily McKee in the Intermediate Flat (section B), Danielle Huntsman in the Novice Fences (section A), Trudy Noll in the Novice Flat (section F) and Janie Goodwin in the Advanced Walk Trot Canter (section A).

The Cougars finished six points ahead of second-place UCF on Sunday and benefited in the overall standings from SCAD slipping to third place on the day.

CofC was led by high-point rider of the day Danielle Huntsman who was best-in-class in both the Novice Fences (section B) and the Intermediate Flat (section A). McKenzie Armour championed the Open Flat (section B) and Kat Inkley took the crown in the Advanced Walk Trot Canter (section B) as well.

The Cougars will now break briefly before a Sunday, Feb. 26 show at Georgia Southern.