SIMSBURY, Conn. -- The Mount Holyoke hunt seat riding team finished in a three-way tie for second place among nine teams competing at the Trinity College Show, held at Folly Farm on Sunday.
The first class of the day was Open Fences with senior Hallie Phillips (Santa Rosa, Calif.), earning first place. Intermediate Fences followed: in Section A, sophomore Emi Graf (Belmont, Mass.) earned fourth place, and senior captain Charlie May (Stockton, N.J.) placed sixth. In Section B, junior Eliza Mutz (Stanford, Calif.) rode to a fifth-place finish.
Next up was Limit Fences. In Section A, Sophia Bull (Lumberton, N.J.) earned third place, and Lainey Nibbio (Glen Ellyn, Ill.) placed fifth in her Limit Fences debut. In Section B, senior Kate Smith (Wells, Vt.) took home third place, and sophomore Bessie Huggins (New Providence, N.J.) placed sixth.
After the morning fences wrapped up, the flat classes got underway. Phillips returned to the ring for Open Flat, earning second place, and senior Lili Evans (Groton, Mass.) placed third. In Intermediate Flat, Mutz placed fifth in Section A, and Graf earned fourth in Section B.
In the Limit Flat division, Huggins placed sixth in Section A, and Nibbio took the win in Section B in her Limit Flat debut, earning first place. Smith competed in Section C, placing just out of ribbons after a strong ride.
First up in the Novice division, first-year Maddie Bradley-Burns (Oak Bluffs, Mass.) and sophomore Em Jablonka (Westfield, N.J.) respectively placed third and fifth. Sophomore Az Reading (San Luis Obispo, Calif.) rode to a second-place finish in Section B, and senior Nora Tripp (Westford, Mass.) placed third in Section C, qualifying for Regionals.
In the Pre-Novice division, first-year Amy Shen (Nanjing, China) earned a second-place ribbon in Section A, and sophomore Cloe Hinck (Norwich, Vt.) placed third in Section B.
Finally came the Introductory division, where junior Kenny Yang (Nantong, China) placed first in Section A, and sophomore Gaile Hao (Beijing, China) placed fourth in Section B. After a quiz bowl, Yang won High Point Introductory Rider honors.
Mount Holyoke College ended the day tied for Reserve Champion team with Smith College and Bentley University.
Final Team Results:
1) University of Massachusetts - 41 points
2) Mount Holyoke College, Bentley University, & Smith College tie - 28 points
5) Amherst College - 24 points
6) Worcester State University - 11 points
7) Trinity College & Worcester Polytechnic Institute tie - 10 points
9) Springfield College - 8 points
-- Reporting by Grace Neumuth
