WEST TERRE HAUTE, Ind. -- Junior Helena Weiss and senior Emmie Mirarchi both placed among the top six riders in the high medal standings, leading the Mount Holyoke College equestrian team to an impressive third-place showing among 13 teams Saturday at the Pre-Season Tournament of Champions, held Saturday at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College.
The show was the first in a series of four competitions in the fall and spring that feature top equestrian teams from around the country.
Saturday morning's action started off with Mirarchi (Harvard, Mass.) making her debut in Open fences, where she had a tremendous round, winning the class. Sophomore Hallie Phillips (Santa Rosa, Calif.) was next up in Intermediate Fences, laying down a great trip for another blue ribbon.
Mirarchi returned to the ring with a beautiful ride in section A of the ToC Collegiate High Medal and waited for callbacks. The competition moved on to Open flat, where Weiss (Clifton, N.J.) entered the ring and put in a wonderful ride for a third place finish. She returned for another great ride in section B of the ToC Collegiate High Medal, after which both Weiss and Mirarchi were called back for the fences portion. Mirarchi reentered the ring for Intermediate flat, where she had a lovely ride for a third-place finish.
To finish the morning section, Weiss and Mirarchi both had excellent rounds in the fences portion of the High Medal and waited until the end of the day for results.
After a short schooling break, junior Cate Bates (Montclair, N.J.) entered the ring for Limit Fences and delivered a flawless ride for another blue ribbon, making it a clean sweep over fences for the team.
First year Eliza Mutz (Stanford, Calif.) then entered the ring with a fabulous ride in her collegiate debut in section A of the ToC Collegiate Low Medal and waited for callbacks. Next, sophomore Kate Smith (Wells, Vt.) rode in Novice flat with a strong ride to secure a fifth place ribbon. Bates returned to the ring for a great ride in section B of the Low Medal. Mutz then reentered the ring for Limit flat, having a beautiful ride for a fourth place finish. Phillips had a lovely ride in section C to finish out the Low Medal flat phases. To finish out the day, senior Lingdang Zhang (Chengdu, China) had a lovely ride the Introductory class to secure a fifth place ribbon.
At the end of the day, it was announced that Weiss and Mirarchi placed fifth and sixth in the High Medal. Mount Holyoke College finished in third place overall, with 36 points.
The Lyons will start off its fall regular IHSA show season on Oct. 14 at Bonnie Lea Farm, hosted by Williams College.
Final College Results
1. Savannah College of Art and Design - 48 points
2. Purdue University - Gold - 40 points
3. Mount Holyoke College - 36 points
4. University of Massachusetts Amherst - 33 points
5. University of Findlay - 30 points
6. Albion College - 28 points
7. Purdue University - Black – 25 points
8. Otterbein University - 24 points
9. Goucher College - 21 points
10. Miami University- Brick - 20 points
11. Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College - 18 points
12. Miami University- Ivy - 16 points
13. Butler University - 13 points
High Medal Results
1. Alex Alston- SCAD
2. Raelyn Palladino- Findlay
3. Elizabeth Orosz- Otterbein
4. Kellen Sullivan- Goucher
5. Helena Weiss- MHC
6. Emmie Mirarchi- MHC
7. Celia Cram- SCAD
8. Emma Begley- UMASS
Low Medal Results
1. Cordelia Edwards- Goucher
2. Kate Lantzer- Miami
3. Hayley Anderson- Goucher
4. Abby Talcott- Purdue
5. Marie Hollertz- Otterbein
6. Ella Luhn- SCAD
7. Hope Gillespie- SMWC
8. Chloe Hall- Butler
-- Reporting by Emmie Mirarchi
