In the months since UC Davis first announced it would cut its NCAA Division I varsity equestrian team at the end of the 2026 season, the women on the team have not stopped fighting to reinstate their roster.
Fresh off their undefeated season and conference championship win, the women on the team are speaking out for the first time.
Graduating team members Mylea Trimble and Katya Dundas say they were devastated to learn the program they have poured blood, sweat, and tears into will simply no longer exist.
"It really is terrible to kind of get that ripped out from underneath you without anybody giving you any warning or even getting to pitch in your voice in a position like that," said Trimble. "You're just no longer an athlete," Dundas added.
The women say the data used by the university to justify cutting the program is 'fundamentally flawed.'
In March, as CBS Sacramento reported, the team hosted its final meet on campus.
"It's heartbreaking," said Trimble. "You create a family with these girls, and they become more than just your teammates. They're your best friends. You spend day in and day out with them."
Outside of the human bonds formed are the unbreakable ones they develop with the nearly 30 horses on the team, which have all been donated to the equestrian program by community members for their use.
"You learn them like the back of your hand," said Trimble of the horses.
It is why saying goodbye to the program has been so hard, the teammates say.
"I was absolutely shocked. None of us knew that this is what they were planning, even though it seems like it had been in the works for a while. It didn't make any sense to any of us," said Dundas.
The teammates found out mid-season in January when a last-minute, mandatory meeting was called. They were told that their program was being cut in favor of elevating a women's STUNT club on campus to DI varsity status.
"When we got the news, our athletic director told us that this decision was final and not to fight it," said Trimble.
But for women who have worked their entire lives to be on a DI equestrian team, they say dropping the reigns and giving up was not an option. They have organized an effort to reinstate the team that has drawn national attention. "Riding is the only thing that makes me feel like I'm not stressed about everything else in life," Trimble said from atop her favorite horse in one of the university's on-campus arenas. UC Davis says it based its decision to cut the team primarily on finances and released a third party report justifying it.
But the team fought back, arguing there was no way their program cost more than $1 million to run.
The team paid for a new independent audit to be done, which alleges the initial report's findings, "over-estimated the true operating expense by over 120% or by over $850,000."
They call the data UC Davis used to justify cutting the team both 'mathematical fiction.'
"It's really imbalanced the way that it was represented," said Dundas. "It seemed like money was probably the easiest scapegoat." The findings of the new audit also suggest the team is actually a net benefit to the university and is not losing money. "Arguably, we're one of the most successful teams on campus. We've won three conference championships in the last four years," said Trimble.
Several team members right now are preparing to pursue a sex discrimination class action federal lawsuit against UC Davis.
A letter sent by attorney Arthur Bryant, representing the team, to the university alleges it is, "...depriving its female intercollegiate student athletes of equal athletic financial aid and equal treatment and benefits in violation of Title IX."
Bryant confirms he is actively in talks with the university to try and resolve the issue and avoid filing the lawsuit.
"We are hopeful that the team gets reinstated. But I think that regardless of whether or not it does, I hope that this just makes a big enough impact that people start asking questions and stop ignoring situations like this," said Trimble.
UC Davis points to the fact that there is still a coed club equestrian team on campus that the women can join.
Trimble and Dundas say it is unfair for dozens of varsity athletes to suddenly overtake the existing club team.
"It's not realistic. And so to have them say that to us, it was kind of just like a slap in the face," said Trimble. "It's not the same type of competition; there are systematic differences between the programs. You couldn't absorb an entire team Division I roster. It's just not possible."
As for what happens to the team's horses who live right on campus, that was the first concern of the women when they heard their program was being cut. "He's my best friend," Trimble said of her favorite horse. "It would break my heart to have him go anywhere where he wouldn't be treated like he deserves."
"They've given so much to these girls in the sport to see them have a retirement that's anything less than what we would want for them is heartbreaking," Dundas added through tears. You might say the horses are off to greener pastures. Most of the current teammates are taking a horse with them and as of now, all horses have found a home. Still, these riders hold out hope for a revival of their champion team.
"The only way that the sport is going to continue to grow and be successful is if people continue to believe in it and see it as a dream that they decide to chase," said Dundas.
A UC Davis spokesperson told CBS Sacramento they would not comment on the conflicting financial analyses between the two audits.
However, they stood by a statement released in April, saying that, "UC Davis audit and management advisory services has initiated a review to evaluate financial records and reporting practices to determine whether expenses were accurately represented to decision-makers and other appropriate authorities."
A federal lawsuit on behalf of four team members alleging the university recruited them under false pretenses was thrown out but is expected to be reintroduced in state court.
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