At right: from left to right, Sunita Pearson-Siegel, Madison Hurley, and Emmie Mirarchi with their awards at the end of the Worcester State Show on Nov. 5, 2022. (Courtesy of Madison Hurley)

RUTLAND, Mass. -- The Mount Holyoke College riding team won High Point College honors for its fifth consecutive show on Saturday, with 33 points at the Worcester State Show at Holiday Acres.

The Lyons scored 33 team points to outdistance runner-up and host Worcester State (28) by five. UMass-Amherst was third (27), followed by Springfield (20), Amherst (13), WPI (13), Smith (9) and Williams (5).

Mount Holyoke junior Emmie Mirarchi (Harvard, Mass.) claimed Champion High Point Intermediate Rider Award, while sophomore Madison Hurley (Portland, Maine) won Champion High Point Novice Rider Award and junior Sunita Pearson-Siegel (Brooklyn, N.Y.) claimed Reserve Champion High Point Limit Rider honors.

The day began with first-year Olivia Simon (Sacramento, Calif.) and seniors Georgia Fish (Baltimore, Md.) and Caroline Sullivan (Groton, Mass.) all posting excellent rides in Open Fences. Simon placed first, Fish second, and Sullivan was just out of the ribbons. Next, Mirarchi entered the ring with a beautiful ride to finish in second place in Intermediate Fences.

Next up were three sections of Limit Fences. In the first, seniors Rachel Banister (San Diego, Calif.) and Kristen Adolf (Moore, S.C.) both had impressive rides, finishing fourth and fifth. The second section saw sophomore Hayley Halloran (Lewes, Del.), senior Acadia Ferrero-Lampron (Denver, Colo.), and senior Daniela Fraser (Vero Beach, Fla.) each with stunning rides to finish third, fourth, and sixth respectively. In the final section, Pearson-Siegel, first-year Charlotte Subak (Brooklyn, N.Y.), and sophomore Olivia Lindo (Harvard, Mass.) each delivered a gorgeous trip over fences. Pearson-Siegel was first, Subak fifth, and Lindo finished just out of the ribbons.

The fences section of the day wrapped up with Alumni Fences, where Maya Brody '20 had a strong ride to finish fifth in her class. Simon returned to the ring with senior Johanna Sullivan (Worcester, Mass.)  to start the Flat portion of the day with Open Flat. Sullivan placed sixth and Simon just out of the ribbons. Mirarchi, Fish, and captain Caroline Sullivan returned to the ring for Intermediate Flat, placing second, third, and fifth, respectively.

Three sections of Limit Flat followed. First, sophomore Cate Bates (Montclair, N.J.) and Subak had wonderful rides leading to a one-two finish. Next, Pearson-Siegel and Banister returned, with Pearson-Siegel placing third and Banister just out of the ribbons. Halloran returned to the ring next with a stunning flat ride to a blue ribbon finish. Brody returned to place third in Alumni Flat.

Juniors Kerina Li (Guangzhou, China) and Alina Yuk (Northvale, N.J.) entered the ring next for the first section of Introductory Flat, both with solid rides. Li finished first in her class and qualified for spring regionals in the event, while Yuk finished third. In the second section, senior Azuna Sawada and junior Lingdang Zhang both had excellent rides, finishing second and fourth, respectively. Next, after a skillful ride in the Pre-Novice division, senior Piper Kilgore (Deerfield, N.H.) placed fourth in their class.

The day ended with two sections of Novice Flat. First-year Charlie May (Stockton, N.J.) and sophomore True Usiatynski (Fayetteville, N.Y.) each had stunning rides, with Usiatynski finishing fifth, and May finishing first in their IHSA debut. Finally, Hurley and sophomore Anna Kuffler (Glenside, Pa.) finished the day strong with incredible rides, finishing first and sixth, respectively.

At the end of the day, Halloran and Pearson-Siegel were called back for a ride-off for Overall Reserve High Point for the day. Mirarchi won a quiz bowl to be declared Intermediate High Point Rider, and Pearson-Siegel won their own quiz bowl for Limit Reserve High Point Rider.

For the first time in the region, there was also a quiz bowl for the winners of the non-jumping flat classes. Li, Hurley, and May were all called in for a quiz bowl of IHSA rules and horsemanship questions. At the end of the day, Hurley was named Novice High Point Rider.

The second Mount Holyoke Show of the season takes place Saturday, Nov. 12 at 9am at the MHC Equestrian Center.

-- Reporting by Acadia Ferrero-Lampron '23