NORTHAMPTON, Mass. (Mar. 30, 2013) – The Mount Holyoke College Equestrian team returned to action on Saturday, competing in the Zone I, Region III finals, hosted by Smith College. There were a number of solid finishes on the day as the top two riders from each division, which included a fair amount of Lyons riders, advance to Zones.
MHC got things going right off the bat as junior Felicia Harrsch won Open Fences to advance. Senior Allison O'Neill and junior Alexa Lohrer were fifth and sixth, respectively. Junior Ella Pittman then rode to fourth overall in Intermediate Fences.
The Lyons earned both Zones spots in Novice Fences as senior Morgan Cooley took the blue ribbon and sophomore Abby Raucher was a close second. Taking fifth in the event was sophomore Madeline Shortt.
After numerous classes and rounds of testing Open Flat was pinned with Harrsch in third and Lohrer fourth. Continuing their strong performances, Mount Holyoke swept Walk Trot as junior Olivia Chance received first place and senior So Jin Lee was second. In a very competitive class the Lyons took the top four spots in Novice Flat with first place going to senior Clara Tate, second to Cooley, third to sophomore Anne Waldo, and fourth to senior Isabelle McGovern.
The top spots in Intermediate Flat were decided after a particularly difficult testing situation which saw junior Flynn Vickowski take second and sophomore Maura Zaldonis place third. In another multi-round class, senior Jessica Law received third place in Walk Trot Canter.
At the show's conclusion, the season's overall high point fences rider and overall high point flat rider were announced and Mount Holyoke's Lexie Lohrer took both honors. Additionally, it was announced that during the Lyons previous show, hosted by Westfield State and Hampshire, Flynn Vickowski was high point intermediate rider and Morgan Cooley was reserve high point intermediate rider.
The Lyons Zone qualifiers included Olivia Chance and So Jin Lee (Walk Trot), Clara Tate and Morgan Cooley (Novice Flat), Morgan Cooley and Abby Raucher (Novice Fences), Flynn Vickowski (Intermediate Flat) and Felicia Harrsch (Open Fences).
Mount Holyoke returns to action next Saturday when its hosts the Zone I Championships at the MHC Equestrian Center. The Lyons team and individual riders will both be competing.
All Photos courtesy of the IHSA.
