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<a name="_Hlk490052374"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS –
</span></b></a><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">July 8, 2021<br>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:16.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">EQ Introduces Bridges as Assistant Coach<br>
</span></b><i><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">Decorated former Georgia student-athlete joins BUEQ staff as Jumping Seat coach<br>
</span></i><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">For more information contact:</span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black"> Max Calderone, 254-265-1639,
</span><a href="mailto:Max_Calderone@Baylor.edu"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">Max_Calderone@Baylor.edu</span></a><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">
</span><b><span style="font-size:16.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black"> </span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black"><br>
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</span><b><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt">WACO, Texas –</span></b><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt"> Baylor equestrian has hired Grace
Bridges as the program’s Assistant Jumping Seat Coach, as announced Thursday by head coach Casie Maxwell.<br>
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Bridges, a former standout equestrian student-athlete at Georgia, leaves her post as a show rider at Beaver River Farm to join Maxwell and the rest of the BUEQ staff, made up of Abbi Demel (Assistant Coach for Horsemanship) and Blayne Pomfret (Director of Operations),
each of whom were collegiate equestrian riders.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt">“I am thrilled to have Grace joining our program here at Baylor. Her energy and competitive spirit are going to be great additions to our staff,”
said Maxwell. “Grace has had great experience and success in both the collegiate arena and professional industry which I believe will elevate our team even more. We are truly excited to have her on board and can’t wait to get started.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt">A two-time All-SEC First Team selection in Flat, Bridges was a two-time SEC champion with the Bulldogs and compiled five Most Outstanding Performer
rides over the course of her career. She was twice honored as an NCEA All-America Honorable Mention in Flat during the 2017-18 and 2019-20 seasons.
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt">“I can’t express how excited I am to join the Baylor Family. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to jump back into the world of collegiate equestrian
and work with Coach Maxwell and Coach Demel. They make a fantastic team that I feel very humbled to be a part of,” said Bridges.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt">Bridges also excelled in the classroom as a three-time NCEA All-Academic First Team member, graduating from Georgia with a cumulative 3.9 GPA
in 2020 with a degree in business administration and concentrations in management and sports management.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt">Since 2014, Bridges has been responsible for schooling horses, facilitating exercises, providing care, grooming and horse preparation in addition
to her training and riding duties at Four Season Farm, Carly Anthony Showjumping and Beaver River Farm. She has also participated in course setting and designing, as well as time and barn management at various horse shows.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt">“I’m honored I get the chance to help grow this program and help these student-athletes perform at the highest level, inside and outside of the
arena,” said Bridges. “Collegiate coaching is a dream come true for me and the Baylor athletics department already feels like home. I cannot wait to get started.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt">Bridges joins the coaching staff following BU’s 2020-21 campaign that included a trip to the NCEA Semifinals after an upset of No. 1 seed Auburn,
snapping the Tigers’ 42-meet win streak which dated back to 2018.<br>
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To stay up to date throughout the season on all thing Baylor equestrian, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @BaylorEQ.<br>
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<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><i><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif">-BaylorBears.com-<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:9.0pt;color:black">__________________________________</span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:6.5pt;color:black"> </span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color:#154734">Max Calderone</span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:black"> | Associate Director of Athletics Communications (VB, MTEN, EQ)</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:black">Department of Athletics | Baylor University</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:black">O: 254-710-3073 | C: 254-265-1639</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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