The 2026 ECAC Conference Championship in Harrington, Delaware, marked the end of the UC Davis Division I Women’s Equestrian Team’s season, where they finished as the undefeated Conference Champions. Despite record-breaking success, the team faces being cut in July as a result of the Athletic Department’s financial malfeasance — a distinction supporters say demands urgent scrutiny.
Parents, alumni, students, industry leaders, and supporters across California and beyond continue to call on UC Davis to reverse its decision to eliminate the Division I women’s equestrian program. Those calls have intensified following the disclosure of internal university records revealing budget inflation and manipulation, documented Title IX funding discrepancies, and evidence that the decision to eliminate the team was made more than a year ago while the university continued recruiting athletes and soliciting donations.
Recruited athletes turned down other collegiate opportunities based on UC Davis commitments only to learn — after application deadlines — that the team would no longer exist, nor would their scholarships. This sequence permanently altered academic and athletic trajectories and raises serious questions about material misrepresentation.
UC Davis publicly characterizes the decision as financially necessary. However, internal financial records show that equestrian expenses were inflated by more than $1 million through accounting distortions, including:
Misrepresenting operating expenses as operating budgets. Removing legitimate revenue such as fundraising and tuition impact. Counting a fictional offset for in-kind donations as a real expense, contrary to standard accounting practices.
These inflated figures were later used in an “independent” consultant report referenced publicly by the university — despite metadata confirming the report was completed after the decision was already made. Internal emails further show consultants were asked to “confirm this approach” rather than independently evaluate the data.
The consultant’s analysis, therefore, was used to justify a predetermined decision, not to inform it.
The internal records also reveal systemic Title IX funding disparities within UC Davis Athletics. Scholarship allocation data shows women’s programs receiving significantly less financial aid than required relative to participation rates — in some years by approximately $400,000.
Notably, the women’s equestrian program was originally elevated to Division I status during a settlement period to address prior Title IX compliance issues, only to be eliminated after delivering unmatched competitive success. In fact, the team posted a higher win percentage than UC Davis Men’s Baseball, Men’s Soccer, and Men’s Basketball.
Eliminating a championship women’s team while funneling disproportionate resources to men’s programs does not advance equity — it undermines it.
Parents and supporters have offered UC Davis a clear alternative: a privately funded endowment to fully support the equestrian program for multiple years, eliminating any short-term financial concern and allowing time for independent review. The university rejected the offer.
Additionally, UC Davis continues to refuse meetings with parents, donors, elected officials, and independent experts — despite no pending litigation that would prevent engagement. Requests for a temporary pause to independently review data discrepancies were ignored, and even state legislators have been denied meetings.
Supporters say this refusal further erodes trust and raises serious concerns about governance and transparency within the larger UC system.
While the season concludes, the effort to reinstate the UC Davis Division I Women’s Equestrian Team continues. The issue transcends a single sport and speaks directly to institutional accountability, gender equity, ethical governance, and how public universities treat their students.
These student-athletes did everything asked of them. UC Davis did not.
Calls for reinstatement, legislative oversight, and independent review will continue until UC Davis addresses the documented discrepancies and restores the program.
About Reinstate UC Davis Equestrian
Reinstate UC Davis Equestrian is a coalition of past and present team members, parents, and community supporters advocating for the reinstatement of the UC Davis D1 NCEA Equestrian Team. The coalition seeks to preserve valuable opportunities for current and future student-athletes and uphold UC Davis’s longstanding equestrian legacy.
The team has long advanced gender equity in sports, supported academic excellence, and fostered meaningful engagement with animal welfare and environmental stewardship — core values aligned with UC Davis’s mission and leadership in veterinary and agricultural sciences. For more information, visit keepdavisriding.com, and follow our Instagram @savedaviseq.