Day 5 IHSA by Kali Cram

IHSA Blog Day 5

And that's a wrap! 2013 IHSA Nationals is officially over. What a crazy week! It was full of ups and downs for sure but my teammates are incredible and the support we give each other is amazing!

The western team had a rider in almost every one of the remaining classes today and we ALL finished in Top 10 in the Nation in our respectable classes. We had Pre and post class celebrations that kept our team spirit up no matter where everyone finished.

The team brought home a very strong finish- ending up 2013 RESERVE NATIONAL CHAMPIONS!!!! I am so incredibly proud of this team and beyond blessed to have been a part of it for the last 3 years!

This weekend we laughed, we cried and we celebrated. We not only celebrated our amazing results but we celebrated the graduation of 5 seniors and the time we have all been able to spend together as friends, as teammates and as fellow St.Andrews Knights!!

We are all loaded onto our bus now and headed back to North Carolina. Several are already sound asleep.

It was great blogging for you all this week!

Xx

-Kali

Full Results:

Brittany: 3rd Team Advanced Horsemanship

Brittany: 2nd Individual Novice Horsemanship

Logan: 3rd Team Intermediate Horsemanship

Kali: 8th Individual Advanced Horsemanship

Katie Mosca: 7th Individual Intermediate Horsemanship

Dugan: 2nd Individual Beginner Horsemanship

Michelle Hustad: 4th Team Open Horsemanship

As posted on the IHSA facebook page;
Reserve AQHA High Point Team Champions St. Andrews flex their new muscle. "This group worked really hard," said coach Carla Wennberg. "It's like life, you work hard to reap the benefits. This has truly been a team together."

IHSA Day 4 by Kali Cram

IHSA Blog Day 4

It was such a fun day today with so many amazing things happening. Of course it was fun watching everyone show today.

But the biggest part was the fact that as of now, Me, Sami, Brittany, Katie and Kim are all St. Andrews Graduates. Peggy organized a beautiful graduation ceremony for us after the last class of the day where we received our diplomas, heard speeches from our classmates and shed many tears. And what better place to hold a ceremony for equestrian graduates than in the Ring at the Pennsylvania Farm Complex? It was amazing sitting next to 4 other girls who have walked beside me in our St. Andrews journey and to receive my diploma from two of the most influential people in my life; Carla and Peggy.

We may have missed our graduation at SAU but we didn't miss out on a St. Andrews graduation. It was a special day shared with family, friends and teammates and I couldn't think of a better way to spend the day.
Our hunt seat team is done with 2013 IHSA Nationals, finishing in 8th and our Western Team is headed into tomorrow tied for the lead!!!!!
Xx
-Kali

Full Results:
Sami: Honorable Mention in Team Open Flat
Katie: 7th Team Open Fences
Michelle: 8th Individual Open Horsemanship
Ella: 8th Individual Reining
Vicky: 3rd Team Walk/Jog

IHSA Day 3 by Kali Cram

Just received this from Kali, so a little late posting about Friday's activities. There are gremlins in cyber space!

IHSA Blog Day 3

It was another long day at IHSA Nationals. There were a lot of classes and A TON of re-rides. We restarted the final class of the day three different times before we got to the pattern. Sami brought home another Reserve Champion in the Team Novice Horsemanship and added 5 more points to our western score card, adding to Ella's 3 points earned earlier that day in the team Reining. 

It's 10:00 now and we are just getting back to our hotel from getting dinner with our parents. Going to get some sleep and do it all again tomorrow. 

Full Results:

Sami: team intermediate o/f: 3rd

Sami: team novice horsemanship: 2nd

Ella: Team Reining : 4th

Jake: Team walk-trot: 10th

Madison: Team WTC: honorable mention

Shiloh: individual w/t: 6th 

Kim: scored a 71 in Cacchione o/f 

Day 2, IHSA Nationals by Kali Cram

IHSA Blog Day 2

Wow!!!! What a longggg day for an IHSA show!! The show started close to 2 hours late so we knew it would be a long day. It's 7:30 now and we're on the bus, headed back to the hotel for the night.
I woke up this morning to several snapchats from my teammates with various forms of 'Day 2- lets goooo!'  And 'first day of showinggggg!' We're ready to get this competition rolling!

It's no secret that our team can find fun wherever we go! We're a group of St. Androids and weird is our middle name.  It was an entertaining breakfast filled with quotes from "Always Sunny" and various Collegehumor videos. Cami, Sami and Kim left with the Peggy Shuttle around 7:00 to get to the course walk and the rest of us slept in and left around 8:30 to meet them at the coliseum.

When we arrived, the first three to go were ready to get the showing started. The day was fun with some great ribbons and amazing team support and dynamics. One of my favorite parts of IHSA is getting to know riders from other teams. When we all get to see each other it's so fun and to receive congratulations from other teams feels great! It's such a fun experience!

Sami brought home the Reserve Championship in her individual class and Cami matched those results in her Team over fences class. Cami, Kim and myself brought home top 10 placings in our respectable classes. The horses were getting a bit snarky toward the end of the day and I don't blame them. It was way past their dinner time and some had been showing all day. They're all wonderful. I drew a fun draw from Centenary college who was a bit over the day  but a blast to ride.

It was a good first day if showing. Hunt Seat continues in the morning and Western starts tomorrow afternoon.

Xx
-Kali

Full Results from Day 1 of Competition
Cami Glaff: 2nd Team Novice O/F
Cami Glaff: 9th Team Novice Flat
Kali Cram: 10th Team Int Flat
Sami Cram: 2nd Individual Novice O/F
Kim Graves: 10th Individual Open O/F
Kim Graves: Honorable Mention Individual Open Flat

IHSA National Championships - Guest Blogger!

I am very excited to announce a guest blogger for the duration of IHSA Nationals 2013 in Harrisburg, PA. Senior Kali Cram is representing St. Andrews in both western and hunter seat and asked if she could blog about the experience – of course I said yes! Sit back and enjoy Kali’s reports!

IHSA Blog Day 1 by Kali Cram

It's been a fun, fairly uneventful first full day here in PA. The hunter seat team met for breakfast in the lobby at 6:30 while the western team slept in before their trip to Hershey park for the day. We headed to the coliseum to watch all the horses school. As we watched what felt like eleventy hundred rounds at 2'9" we began to find things to further our entertainment. As veterans to these long schooling days, seniors Katie Hansen, Sami Cram and myself brought things to keep us busy. Katie supplied two GameBoys (and yes she brought Pokemon), I brought a deck of cards that doubled roles as a game of headbandz as well as a normal deck and Sami brought the ever entertaining Harry Potter Jelly Beans. Our coach, Matt successfully picked almost every bad one: Canned Dog Food, Moldy Cheese and Skunk Spray. His expressions were priceless.

Around 11:00 a few of us began to get Hangry ( for those who have never been there that's Hungry+Angry) and its not an enjoyable place when our team has made it to that point. So knowing how we get,  Madison and Matt ordered us a few pizzas from a local restaurant. It was phenomenal. I'm not sure if it was really that good or we were all really just that hungry.

After lunch we all took turns taking naps in the chairs and a few of us went shopping. Personally I spent way too much but I'm graduating so that's a good enough excuse, right?

Once the hunterseat horses were done schooling, the rest of the team left to the hotel and me and Sami stayed with the western team (who were now back from Hershey) to watch the western horses school. Even though it was a long day, we both feel so blessed to be a part of two amazing teams.

Once back at the hotel, me and Sami told stories for a few hours to Cami's mom, Barb and their friend Holly. I HAD to tell the story of getting lost in England, driving a stick shift, turning a 7 minute drive into almost 2 hours. It's a classic at this point. It's so great to have family and friends here to cheer us on. Can't wait to see my mom tomorrow and Dad and DJ (stepmom) on Saturday!

Our first huge team dinner of the trip was to Ruby Tuesdays (always one of Peggy's top picks).
Unfortunately for the waiter he forgot to ask us about the shrimp fondue before he asked our drink borders and Sami didn't let that slip. So we got a free order of that and passed it around the table.

We're now back at the hotel for the evening- all settled in, watching NCIS! We're ready for the first day of competition tomorrow. Kim, Sami, Cami and myself will kick it off all with classes tomorrow.

What a great first day! My cheeks literally hurt from laughing so much!
Xx
-Kali

IDA National Championships!

We had a lovely weekend in MA with good weather, wonderful people and time to renew our acquaintance with old friends that we only see once a year. The IDA is made up of volunteers who work for colleges or work for themselves in the horse industry, who all come together to provide a competitive forum for student athletes interested in the sport of dressage. I have friends from New England, Virginia, Florida, the mid-west and California who all met up at Mt. Holyoke this weekend for our annual meetings and National Championships. This year was all the more special as my Dad who came to visit us in NC to see the spring flowers traveled with me to support the riders and see a part of my life that he has never experienced before. To sum up the competitive side of the weekend I sent this email to the faculty and staff. For complete results of the National Championships click here.

Please congratulate Lindsey Agaliotis and Kristen Parker on a very successful weekend at the Intercollegiate Dressage Association National Championships held this weekend at Mt. Holyoke College in South Hadley MA. Lindsey placed third in the First Level division which was a great end to her intercollegiate riding career as she will be graduating this weekend and Kristen placed seventh in the Introductory division. As we waited for our flight last night I asked Lindsey to give me a few words about her experience with the equestrian program. I would like to share her response with you. 

 “Riding for and representing St. Andrews these past four years has been such a privilege. To be part of such a great team with great instructors has really shaped me as a rider and prepared me for my future in the equine industry. I could not think of a better way to end such a wonderful four years as a St. Andrews equestrian.” 

Both Lindsey and Kristen were wonderful representatives for St. Andrews and I am very proud of both of them for working hard to qualify for the National Championships this year. Thank you to all the faculty who were willing to work with these girls to make this opportunity possible, I very much appreciate your flexibility!

RLAK Show, Alumni Weekend, and Open House

The RLAK horse show was a hit for all concerned this Saturday. Four members of the dressage team started off the show with a drill team ride to the theme from Indiana Jones. The horses were great and the riders put on a good display for the audience. The RLAK show followed with all riders winning a blue ribbon for completing the obstacle course set in the covered arena. Kate Sorgenfrei serving as judge and announcer awarded blue ribbons “for sitting in the middle”, “keeping heels down”, “2-point position” and a myriad of other accomplishments demonstrated by the riders. The RLAK community was well represented covering the ages of around 5 to 55.


Alumni weekend was in full swing on campus and many folks came back to celebrate their 10 year anniversary. Pebbles, Peggy and I enjoyed visiting with the class of 2003 (plus a few from 2002). At lunch time ten of them set off on a guided trail ride of the Equestrian Center followed by 3 more on Peggy’s golf cart. With a couple of exceptions many of these folks have not been on a horse in many years so it was really fun to see them warming up in the covered arena before heading out with Carla and Andrew as their escorts.

Once the trail ride had departed the participants of Open House arrived to talk about the program, meet the staff and tour the facility. Lots of great questions were asked and we enjoyed meeting these future students and their families.

In other news our colleague Heather Wile Lee had her baby this weekend. Baby Jase is doing well but Heather suffered complications following delivery and is now in ICU at Moore Regional Hospital. Her husband Philip and both their families are with her at the hospital staying at the Clara McQueen house in Pinehurst. We are keeping Heather, Philip, Jase and the families in our prayers and hoping for a complete recovery.

The ANRC competed for the National Championship this weekend finishing in 6th place. I'll have more information on that in a later post.

Volunteers and Instructors at the RLAK Show

The Drill Team; Bridget on Corky, Kristen on Jake, Elizabethe on Chico and Claire on Windsong

Special and his rider with Morgan, and Spenser



Big John with is rider and Hallie, Megan and Stephanie



Before the Alumni trail rider

Enjoying the facility!

Alumni, ANRC, and RLAK Show

Meg Donahue, Frank Bria, Jennifer James & Howard Morrison were the National Championship team winning riders in 2002. Debbie White and Peggy McElveen coached. The gray horse on the left is Peter and the liver chestnut 3rd from left is JC both of who are retired at the Equestrian Center.

This weekend is Alumni weekend. We are excited to welcome the class of 2003 back to campus. The photo is of the 2002 ANRC National Championship team, many of who will be here this weekend. Click here for the schedule of Alumni events. These events include the annual Ride-Like-A-Knight horse show which starts at 10:30 on Saturday with demonstrations by the equestrain team followed by classes for participants in the program.  

Josh Dazey, Red Ted and Philip Radford at the 2012 RLAK show.

Meanwhile this year's ANRC team is competing in Baltimore at the 2013 National Championships in both the Open and Novice divisions. Good luck to all our riders, coaches and horses.

Don’t forget to support the 2013 Nationals teams by eating at Jersey Mikes in Lbg. tomorrow between 4 & 9 p.m. or shopping at our online store .

Spring Stuff!

With the end of the semester looming we are busy wrapping up classes, practicing our teams for Nationals and enjoying the traditional end of semester activities. Yesterday the RLAK club held their spring picnic. Everyone enjoyed great food, fun games and an opportunity to let loose before the start of a busy academic week.


Riders on all of the intercollegiate teams are busy with practices. The ANRC team leaves on Wednesday for the drive to Baltimore for their National Championships. Coach Kelsi Peterson will be traveling with five riders. Kim Graves, Katie Hansen, Abigail Skillman, Alexandra Fullerton and Keli van den Heuvel will be representing St. Andrews at this four phase equitation competition. They will be competing in the written test, program ride, cross country course and medal course all phases are judged on equitation apart from the written test of course which is judged on knowledge of horse care including basic veterinary care. Good luck to these riders, their horses and Coach Peterson.

We are still busy with fund raising. Our Queensboro store sends a commission on every item of clothing sold and this Friday from 4 – 9 p.m. Jersey Mikes in Laurinburg will be contributing 15% of all proceeds to the Equestrian Team. Please support these stores if you can.

TH Seniors & Ice-Cream!

Saturday the St. Andrews Hunter Seat Team won the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association Zone 4 Championship for the first time in school history!

by Equestrian Program Director Peggy McElveen

Having clinched the Regional Championship in March, St. Andrews moved forward in post-season competition to the IHSA Zone Finals which were hosted today at the SAU Equestrian Center. The top riders from Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina as well as the Regional Champion Teams from each of the four regions in Zone 4 competed today for the right to move forward to the National Championship in May.


The St. Andrews team competed against Goucher College from Region 1, the University of Virginia from Region 2, and Drexel University from Region 4 (St. Andrews was the representative of the Region 3 conference). These four teams were the teams that won each of their Regional Championships. Our team riders - Katie Hansen, Sami Cram, Kali Cram, Cami Glaff, Madison Edwards, and Jake Hobson won a total of 46 points to best second place Goucher College (42 points); third place University of Virginia (40 points) and fourth place Drexel University (21 points). The top three teams battled throughout the day with the lead changing several times. It all came down to the final class of the day which had veteran team rider Kali Cram representing St. Andrews. When Kali was announced as the winner, the rafters of the arena shook with the excitement. St. Andrews had won their first Zone Championship!

Senior Kim Graves who already had secured her place at IHSA Nationals by winning the Regional Cacchione Cup punched her ticket today for two more classes. Kim will be competing in Open Flat and Open Fences as well as in the multi-phase Cacchione Cup.

Junior Shiloh Kozlowski and Senior Sami Cram will be repeat competitors at Nationals for the third year in a row. Shiloh qualified in the Walk, Trot class and Sami in Novice Fences.

IHSA Hunter Seat Zones on Saturday!

Look who is coming to our house this weekend to compete for slots for the IHSA National Championships!

Goucher College
University of Richmond
Hollins University
St. Andrews University
University of Pennsylvania
Drexel University
Christopher Newport University
Bridgewater College
Lynchburg College
University of North Carolina
University of Pennsylvania
University of Delaware
North Carolina State University
Washington College
Temple University
George Washington University
Sweet Briar College
Duke University
Salisbury University
Randolph College
University of Virginia
East Carolina University
Towson University
University of Mary Washington

Sarah Lawrence College - Alumni
Longwood University - Alumni
Burlington County College - Alumni
Virginia Tech - Alumni

Our First Annual Easter Egg Hunt!

We hosted the first Annual Easter Egg Hunt at the Equestrian Center yesterday. It all started 3 or 4 years ago when Barn Manager Kellie Garrabrant did a small event for the barn staff and students that stayed to help with horse care over the Easter Break. Equestrian Program Director Peggy McElveen took the event to the next level, inviting all members of the St. Andrews community to participate in the fun. Eggs were hidden all around the courtyard outside of the TH building, in the covered and indoor, in the back schooling field and the dressage arena. Two classes were offered 11 and under and over 11. Kids, college students and adults raced to retrieve their eggs. Eventual winners in both divisions collected over 60 eggs a piece!

Counting the loot!

Winner of the 11 and under division

Lauren Gunther winner of the 11 and over division

Hurry get more eggs Kelsey!

Western IHSA Team Qualifies for National Championships!

Congratulations to the IHSA Western team qualifying for the National Championships by winning at Semi-Finals. The following report was written by Peggy McElveen, Equestrian Program Director

The 27 teams from across the country who won their regional championships were split among three National Semi-Finals sites to compete this weekend. The top six teams are seeded according to their finish in IHSA Nationals the prior year. Our team was seeded second in our bracket in Kentucky behind Berry College. Only nine teams advance from the Semi-Finals - top three from each Semi-Finals site - to the National Championship.

The final team placings from the Kentucky National Semi-Finals were:

1st St. Andrews University with 27 points
Team riders are Ella Brave, Michelle Hustad, Brittany Powell, Sami Cram, Logan Teeter, and Vickie Wiese
2nd Middle Tennessee State University with 22 points
3rd University of Kentucky with 18 points
4th North Dakota State University with 16 points
5th Berry College with 15 points
6th West Virginia University with 10 points
7th College of the Sequoias with 9 points
8th Utah State University with 8 points
9th Delaware Valley with 7 points

Individual St. Andrews students advancing to Nationals were:
Michelle Hustad in Open Horsemanship
Ella Brave in Reining
Kali Cram in Advanced Horsemanship
Brittany Powell in Novice Horsemanship
Katie Mosca in Intermediate Horsemanship
Dugan McDermott in Beginner Horsemanship

Congratulations to all these students and Coach Carla Wennberg for bringing this Championship to St. Andrews.

The 2013 Semi-Finals Championship Team!

Congratulations to the Zone 4, Region 3 IHSA Zone Qualifiers

Our regional IHSA hunter seat show ran smoothly today with representatives from nearly all of the 12 membership colleges present. Regionals is similar to a playoff game in a ball sport with the purpose of recognizing qualified riders and to determine who moves onto the Zones which is the final stepping stone before the National Championships. Team qualification is determined from cumulative points at the regular season shows with St. Andrews as Regional Champions for 2013 and already preparing for Zones in a couple of weeks. Today is all about individual qualifiers and St. Andrews students came through showing off their equitation skills and advancing to the next round. Congratulations to everyone who qualified for regionals!

Sami Cram - Intermediate Flat & Novice Fences

Kim Graves - Open Over Fences & Open Flat
Katie Hansen – Open Over Fences
Alexandra Fullerton - Novice Flat & Novice Fences
Shiloh Kozlowski – Walk Trot
Cami Glaff – Walk, Trot, Canter

Cacchione Cup

1^st Kim Graves
2^nd Katie Hansen

 

Showing today but not advancing to Zones
Catherine McDowell – Honorable Mention in Novice Flat
Park Hoey – 3^rd in Novice Flat
Kali Cram – 3^rd Intermediate Fences and 3^rd Novice Flat
Tori Burkey – Honorable Mention Walk, Trot, Canter

During the awards lunch Equestrian Program Director Peggy McElveen recognized her staff for their help with the 14 intercollegiate shows hosted at the equestrian center in 2012-2013. The Zone Chair awards selected by the Zone Chair (Peggy) went to Jenny Rollins from Duke for all her help and support during the year, and the Coach of the Year was Laura Underhill Norment from ECU, who previously coached and taught at St. Andrews.

 Awards voted on by the coaches in the region.

Horse of the Year

Reagan belonging to St. Andrews who participates in hunter seat, western and dressage intercollegiate shows.

Student Leadership

Senior Kathryn Hall of ECU who has above and beyond as a student leader.

Team Placings 2012 – 2013

1.      St. Andrews
2.      UNC – Chapel Hill
3.      East Carolina
4.      North Carolina State
5.      UNC – Charlotte
6.      UNC – Wilmington
7.      Duke
8.      Virginia Commonwealth
9.      Coastal Carolina University
10.   Campbell University

The Seniors on the IHSA Hunter Seat Team accepting the Regional Trophy!

 

Spring Break is Over!

Spring break is over and we are ready to take on the remainder of the semester. This Friday we have IHSA Hunter Seat Regionals at home. Thursday Carla and the IHSA Western team leave for Semi-Finals in Kentucky this weekend and Scot Evans will be doing a clinic Saturday and Sunday.


Over break I connected with Kate McAlinn from Sun Chaser Farm in Raleigh and she now has Marcus and Nikitta at her barn for her lesson program. These horses have worked hard for us and will now be great teachers for the kids that ride with Kate. We are still looking to place some of our horses who have served us so well, but are now ready for an easier life. If you are interested in any of these drop me an email.

Please contact Jackie Dwelle dwellejm@sapc.edu 910-277-5217 for more information and pictures.

Smudge - 1987 FB Grey TB Gelding 16.2h. Used in the St. Andrews and the CCCC lesson programs.

Robbie - Dk Bay gelding 15.3 h. Used in St. Andrews dressage program and therapeutic riding program and summer camp in Brevard, NC. Great at camp, loves small children and TH, not sure how old this one is.

Ben - 1989 Bay WB/xx Gelding 16.3h. Can be mean in stall but fine on crossties. Must be ridden in a hackamore or halter because he has TMJ. Would make a good trail/weekend horse.

Happy - 1988 Bay Swedish WB Mare 16.2h. Worked in the St. Andrews hunter seat program and been to camp several summers. This special lady deserves an excellent retirement home.

***Several others that cannot be ridden are also available as companions or pasture ornaments!***

New Baby for Jeremy and Jennifer!

Congratulations to Jennifer and Jeremy Sansbury on the birth of their son Greer who arrived on Friday.

Freshman Wins USEF Equestrians in Action Award!

Congratulations to Alexis Conover for winning the USEF Equestrians in Action Award with more than 1,800 volunteer hours. This award tracks youth volunteer hours in areas that improve horse welfare or positively promote equestrian sports. Some of Alexis' volunteer time was spent in our own Ride-Like-A-Knight Therapeutic Horsemanship Program.

For the full report click here.

Path International Region 3 Conference

Pebbles, Liz and ten students from St. Andrews attended the Region 3 conference in Hilton Head, SC this weekend. They were joined by 10 alumni who work in different areas of the therapeutic horsemanship industry. Sessions included information on managing not for profit businesses and creative lesson plans as well as lots of opportunities for networking. “I learned a lot,” said Megan White, “can’t wait to try some of this out with my lessons. It was also a lot of fun!”



Current students and Alumni at Region 3 conference

ANRC Warm Up Competition & Logo Wear For Sale!

The ANRC team travelled to Cottonwood Farm in Vanceboro to compete in the 3^rd annual Horsemanship Competition sanctioned by the USHJA and ANRC. Click here for a full report.

We are very excited to report that after many requests we have an online store where you can purchase St. Andrews Equestrian logo wear. There is a large selection of polo shirts, T-shirts, button downs, fleeces, and hats etc. Currently the only logo available at the online store is with a jumping horse, but we hope to open new stores with logos for western, dressage and Ride-Like-A-Knight in the future. The neat part of this program is that with every purchase a portion comes back to the Equestrian program. A win-win for everyone that has been asking about where to buy logo wear and for the program! Happy Shopping click here.

 

Fabulous Weekend for All Equestrian Team Members!

“Intense” is one word to describe our weekend in the Equestrian Program with all three disciplines competing at their final regular season shows. There are many individual successes and stories to share but for this post I’ll focus on the results. My team (dressage) fought hard at a double header hosted by Averett University. Lindsey Agaliotis and Kristen Parker qualified for Nationals in First Level and Intro respectively. After a lot of ties were broken Averett beat us by 4 points.


At home on Friday the western team led by Coach Carla Wennberg won the IHSA Regional Championship advancing them to Semi-Finals in Kentucky in March. Ella Brave earned the title of Reserve Champion AQHA High Point Rider. On Saturday Ella Brave, Michelle Hustad, Dugan McDermott, Brittany Powell, Jake Nix, Kali Cram and Katie Mosca all qualified as individuals for Semi-Finals.

On to Hunter Seat! Sunday this team travelled to ECU. This team placed third overall but held onto their regional lead with 248 points to UNC-Chapel Hill’s 213 points. Individually Senior Kim Graves won the Cacchione Cup (high point rider) for the region and advances to Nationals. The team will compete at Zones hosted by St. Andrews in early April. Individual riders who qualified for Regionals at this show were Tori Burkey and Kim Graves who join several St. Andrews students already qualified.

Reserve Regional Champion IDA Team

Regional Champion Western IHSA Team

Snow Last Weekend; This Weekend Rain

After last weekend’s snow we are looking forward to a wet weekend coming up and once again it is busy! Friday the western team hosts the last regular show of their competitive season at the equestrian center. They are looking to hold on to their lead 18 point lead over NCSU and qualify for Semi-Finals in Kentucky in March. Saturday is IHSA Western Regionals which qualifies individuals for Semi-Finals. Friday evening the team is holding a dinner on campus for the region. The year-end awards for western will be given out at this event.


Saturday the dressage team heads to Danville, VA for a double header show at Averett University to decide the regional winners in intercollegiate competition. The dressage team trails Averett by one point. With riders in contention in three of the four IDA divisions, this weekend’s shows should be intense.

Sunday the IHSA hunter seat team will travel to Eastern Carolina for the last regular show of their season. The hunter seat team has a 29 point lead over UNC-Chapel Hill with ECU just a few points back. This weekend will decide who takes the title of Regional Champion for all three disciplines and advances to the next level.

At home Saturday is Admitted Students Open House. We are looking forward to welcoming many future students and their families to the campus and the equestrian center.

Riding in a Snow Globe!

The St. Andrews Equestrian Program hosted our spring semester dressage show Saturday.  Being in the covered with the snow coming down we felt like we were in a snow globe! The snow did not stop the almost military precision of the show organization and certainly enhanced the atmosphere of the show! (Have you ever watched snow fall to Rhapsody in Blue? Thanks to Eq. staff member Andrew Michael we had a superb movie sound track all day long.) Riders from all disciplines worked together to prepare the horses, time warm up rides and run tests between the judge and the scoring office. If you have never attended an event at the equestrian center you have not witnessed the “events management machine” in action; our students rise to the occasion magnificently. Sophomore Claire Pollard served as Horse Show Chair to organize and coordinate the workforce.

The St. Andrews dressage team ended the day in third place. Senior Lindsey Agaliotis (who drew the first ride of the day) had an outstanding ride earning 78.108% and the high point rider award for the day. Although a 78% in academia earns a grade of a “C”; in dressage this is considered an outstanding score. (Dressage riders are usually very happy with scores around 65%.) Lindsey had several scores of 9 out of 10 for various movements on her test which was also the most advanced test that was offered in today’s competition. The dressage team travels to Averett University next weekend for a double header to end the 12/13 competitive season.

Dressage Seat Equitation has been added successfully in other IDA regions so we decided to try it out. It is currently not a recognized class but we hope to have a national championship division in the near future. The format is the same as any equitation class where riders are judged on their position and effectiveness. (The horse is not judged just the rider.)

 

First Level Lindsey Agaliotis stands in second place with 18 points one point behind the regional leader with 4 riders chasing them with 13 points. At Upper Training Brianna Carter is tied for second place with 12 points trailing a 20 point lead. At Lower Training Sarah Jones leads the region with a one point lead of 16 points. At Intro Kristen Parker maintains her commanding lead of 21 points with the closest challenger at 12 points. Our last two shows are next weekend and will decide who goes to Nationals at Mount Holyoke College in April.
 

Regional Points

Averett 23
St. Andrews 22
NCSU 18
Elon 10
Longwood 2

Results Feb. 16th
First Level Test 2
1^st Lindsey Agaliotis 78.108% High Point Rider – her best score ever!
5^th Abigail Skillman 62.837%

Training Level Test 3

3^rd Hannah Firth 66.2%
6^th Brianna Carter 61.4%

Training Level Test 1

3^rd Sarah Jones 72.291%
4^th Megan Pustarfi 68.541%
6^th Bridget Newman 63.958%

Introductory Level Test B

5^th Logan Teeter
 

Dressage Seat Equitation

Class 1.

2^nd Claire Pollard
4^th Elizabethe Weeks

Class 2.

1^st Kristen Parker
2^nd Logan Teeter

Dressage Home Show Sat.

This Saturday’s dressage show is an important one for the St. Andrews dressage team. We currently have a 2 point lead over Averett. The Intercollegiate Dressage Association (IDA) scores each team’s win with 7 points while 5 points goes to the second placed team. Unlike the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA) which accumulates points earned at each show throughout the competitive season. Mathematically it is easy to see that our two point lead is easily lost. After this weekend’s home show we travel to Averett the following weekend for a double header Saturday and Sunday. These last two shows of the year gives them a significant home team advantage. We are practicing hard and trying to be smart about who rides at which shows.


Also at Saturday’s show we will be hosting a couple of Dressage Seat Equitation classes. This will be a first for our region. Other IDA regions have hosted them and they have been well received. Our show on Saturday is a relatively small one, so we decided to give dressage seat eq. a go and offer more opportunities to compete to our member teams. The team is ready to compete and we hope to host a well organized show. Good luck to all the IDA team members and many thanks to the hunter seat and western teams who are helping with horse holding and show organization.

Success for Dressage and Western Teams !

The Equestrian program had a busy weekend hosting western shows at home and sending the dressage team to NCSU on Saturday. Students and coaches enjoyed much success at both shows. At NCSU the dressage team won first place honors with Sarah Jones winning high point rider in lower training and Kristen Parker continuing her winning streak in Intro B to accumulate 21 division points, almost certainly guaranteeing her an individual slot at Nationals. “Assistant Coach Lindsey and I are struggling with our strategy for the last three shows,” said Coach Jackie Dwelle. “We host next Saturday and Averett has significant home team advantage Feb. 23 & 24 with a double header to close out the regular season. Kristen will point out with one more win and then it will be up to our other riders to step in and earn the points. It is going to be a couple of busy and exciting weeks!”

Junior Sarah Jones who scored 67.5% for the Reserve High Point Rider for the day said, “Hard work really does pay off! And having a great team to help and support me throughout the day makes everything a lot easier.”

Regional Standings after 3 shows

St. Andrews 18pts.
Averett University 16 pts
NCSU 13 pts.
Elon 10 pts.
Longwood University 2 pts.

First Level 1
4th Lindsey Agaliotis 62.4%

Training Level 2
2nd Brianna Carter 66.057

Intro Level C
2nd Sarah Jones 67.5% - Reserve High Point Rider

Intro Level B
1st Kristen Parker 64.375%
4th Claire Pollard 61.250%

For a complete report of the western team success click here.

Lindsey Agaliotis, Jackie Dwelle, Claire Pollard, Sarah Jones, Brianna Carter, Kristen Parker

Sarah Jones on her way to earning the Reserve High Point title.

Just Another Weekend at the Barn!

February is going to be one of those busy months with shows and events happening at home and away. Take this weekend for example. We are hosting back to back western shows Saturday and Sunday at the Equestrian Center to help out our friends from NCSU who were planning to host but ran into difficulties. The Ride-Like-A-Knight Therapeutic Horsemanship program is hosting a PATH Int. Mentor Training Workshop led by Pebbles Turbeville and Sandy Webster. As if that was not enough for one weekend, the dressage team travel to Buckhorn Farm in Apex, NC to compete in an IDA show hosted by the NCSU dressage team. Social Media Kim Graves and myself will be working hard to report results from the two shows and share the experiences of the students participating in the TH workshop.

IHSA Hunter Seat 2-2-2013

Saturday was cold as is the norm in early February, however it did not dampen the enthusiasm of the St. Andrews Equestrian Team as they pulled together to host our first IHSA show on the new footing in the Dansby Arena. The addition of tons of sand and the recycled sneaker footing made the arena visually lighter as well as springier for the horses. Several of the older equines showed their delight with the shock absorbing surface with very forward gaits!


Coach Arrigon led the team to a clear victory earning 43 points to UNC – Chapel Hill’s 37. Matt’s comment, “Yes, we had a good day…” summed up the event for all concerned. For Seniors Sami and Kali Cram this was the last IHSA home show and they ended it in style with a three way tie with Junior Abi Skillman for high point rider. The ride off was bareback on western horses and Sami came out ahead of Kali and Abi.

RESULTS
Open Flat Section A
2nd Kim Graves

Novice Flat Section A
3rd Nikki Napoleone

Novice Flat B
1st Caitlin Karolak
2nd Tara Algieri

Open Flat C
4th Katie Hansen

Novice Flat C
2nd Anastasia MacNaught

Novice Flat D
6th Chandalyn Chrzanowski

Open Fences
A 1st Katie Hansen

Open Fences B
2nd Kim Graves

Novice Flat E
1st Cami Glaff

Intermediate Flat A
1st Kali Cram
3rd Keli Van Den Heuvel


Novice Flat F
1st Rachaell Dockery

Beginning WTC
2nd Lacy Burke

Intermediate Flat
4th Alexandra Fullerton

Novice Flat G
4th Michelle Eld

Beginning WTC – C
1st Shiloh Kozlowski

Intermediate Flat C
1st Sami Cram

Novice Flat H
1st Abi Skillman

Intermediate Flat D
5th Park Hoey

Intermediate Fences A
1st Sami Cram

Intermediate Fences B
1st Nikki Napoleone

Intermediate Fences C
1st Kali Cram

Novice Fences B
2nd Cami Glaff

Novice Fences C
1st Abi Skillman

Novice Fences D
1st Alexandra Fullerton

Walk Trot A
2nd Amanda Rucker

Advanced WTC A
1st Madison Edwards

Walk Trot B
1st Jake Hobson

Advanced WTC B
4th Heather Moch

Advanced WTC C
1st Tori Burkey

Advanced WTC D
3rd Sam Taylor

Advanced WTC F
1st Julie Griffin
3rd Kirsten Farley

Year to Date IHSA Standings

St. Andrews University          208

UNC-Chapel Hill                    179

East Carolina University           171

North Carolina State                 155

UNC-Charlotte                         154

UNC-Wilmington                      139

Duke University                       127

Virginia Commonwealth           122

Coastal Carolina University     92

Martin Community College       28

Campbell University                  23

Davidson College                      0