SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. (March 13, 2012) – Senior Margaret Swanson has earned the Lyon of the Week Award after leading the riding team to its eighth High Point Championship of the season on Saturday at Sycamore Stables. In the process, the Lyons secured their fourth straight Zone 1, Region 3 Championship. They finished 57 points in front of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in the final regional standings.
Mount Holyoke will face off against the three other regional winners at home in the Zone 1 Championships on April 7. The top two finishers at that event will advance to the National Championships.
With her performance at the event, Swanson secured High Point Rider honors for Region 3. By doing so, she guaranteed herself a spot in the National Championships. The senior finished the year with 86 points, narrowly edging out teammates Alexa Lohrer (2nd place – 81 points) and Hannah Thornton (4th place – 60 points). It was the fourth straight season that a Mount Holyoke rider earned the Cacchione Cup for Region 3. In 2010, Lindsay Sceats took home the crown before winning the national Cacchione Cup.
As a team, the Lyons racked up 42 points on the day to secure the title. They were followed in the top three by Smith College (31) and UMass (27).
Swanson was named High Point Rider for the second week in a row after taking home top honors in her sections of the open flat and open fences divisions. It was her third title this year and sixth of her career.
Photo by Doug Keller
