Lexington, KY — May in Kentucky was all about the catch-ride. One ride. One horse. One shot at history.
At Louisville, it meant a late-replacement jockey, John Velazquez, would win his first Kentucky Derby with Animal Kingdom. At Lexington’s Kentucky Horse Park that same weekend, it meant students facing their own last-minute leg-ups, with just minutes to assess a horse before entering the Alltech Arena and their date with destiny at the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association National Championships.
Unlike horse racing, no odds are wagered on IHSA team or individual competitors qualifying for one of America’s oldest and largest college equestrian competitions, but by the time this year’s May 5-8 event had ended, high point team titles were going back to the athletic departments of a favorite -- the undefeated hunter seat team of coaches Michael Dowling and Heather Clark at Centenary College in Hackettstown, NJ -- and a long shot -- coach Margaret Knight’s western team from Berry College of Mount Berry, GA.
A Berry College First
“It’s better than I ever imagined,” coach Knight told reporters after her little (10-15 students) western team proved it could win big. “They (the students) are so hard-working. I give them all the credit.” It was the first time in the 32-year history of the IHSA Western High Point team title that the Berry College Vikings had emerged as national champions, and by a decisive 10-point margin ahead of the reserve Oregon State University Beavers, under coach Dawn Salazar.
Berry riders exemplified resilient horsemanship, finishing third or higher in every team class, and anchored by Animal Science senior, Alexandra (“Ally”) Jones, who was fourth or better in each of her classes before capping her IHSA athletic career with a win in Open Western Horsemanship for the AQHA trophy.
Jones, a transplanted cowgirl who came to the U.S. seven years ago from the United Kingdom, brushed a tear from her eye as she accepted her award and closed her college riding experience. But not her relationship with Berry: she will start as an assistant coach with the team this fall.
“I had amazing horses,” Jones said. “This has been a wonderful experience. I’m looking forward to what’s next.”
“This has been a great show, with horses and riders of the caliber I expected,” praised western judge, Chris Kozlowski, of Galt, CA, who has judged AQHA Worlds and Congresses, and NRHA Derbies and Futurities.
International AQHA judge and World Cup coach, Holly Hover, of Scottsdale, AZ, shared scoring duties with Kozlowski and agreed: “We like what the show committee and Bob Cacchione have done with these National Championships. It was very impressive. We enjoyed the horses, and it was interesting to see rider strategies.”
Cyclones and Cacchione Cup
Winning one’s way through Regional and Zone qualifiers may be the most direct strategy to a national title but it’s not the easiest. Still, that didn’t stop the Centenary College Cyclones, who came to Lexington determined to win back the hunter seat team title they lost in 2010 to Cindy Ford and her Skidmore College Thoroughbreds. Skidmore College and St. Lawrence University ultimately tied for reserve team honors at this year’s championship.
“We were thrilled,” said Dowling and Centenary coaching partner, Heather Clark. “Four of the six students on this team were first-year students. We had a huge pool of talent dedicated to the cause.”
For Centenary, reclaiming its coveted crown came down to the final class, Open Hunter Seat Equitation, where 2010 USHJA Emerging Athletes Program winner, Kathryn Haley, clinched the team victory.
“She’s an exceptional individual, as a rider and a person. She’s a freshman and came to us with all of the raw talent,” said Dowling. “We’ve just helped her develop.”
When the Cyclones won their last IHSA national title in 2009, it came with winning the Cacchione Cup, too, thanks to teammate Lindsay Clark. This year, Centenary packed a similar one-two punch, again bringing the Cacchione Cup home thanks to solid riding by its team captain, Marissa Cohen, of West Chester, PA. Cohen was among the top three called back by “R” judges Robert Crandall and Kim Dorfman. (New York University’s Shelby Wakeman ultimately took reserve, with St. Andrews Presbyterian College (NC) student Robert Jacobs third.)
“The winner rode very well and consistently,” said Crandall. “Sometimes it’s the luck of the draw, but whatever horse she drew, she was a stand-out.”
For the final work-off, the judges selected each of the three riders’ mounts. For Cohen, the choice was Skidmore’s Warmblood gelding, Best Boy.
“He is a big equitation horse, so I knew I had to go in there and get him on his game, and he took care of me,” Cohen said. “He knew where everything was, and we clicked really well. I rode him at Zones in 2008 at Skidmore in Intermediate Fences, and he felt just as incredible today.”
Cohen, 22, is graduating with an MBA, and has risen through the ranks from Intermediate to Cacchione Cup level with numerous national titles along the way. Although thrilled with her own achievement, she also pleased with the camaraderie: “Everyone has been so supportive of everyone. As team captain, that’s the most rewarding aspect.”
“I chose IHSA rather than NCAA so I could grow as a rider. NCAA would have limited riding to an Open division. Instead, I could start at Intermediate and have seen my riding improve so much. Winning the Cacchione Cup is a tribute to my team and how, through their support, I can really compete at this level.”
USHJA President Bill Moroney, on hand to observe the show and support the USHJA/IHSA partnership which began in 2010, added, “The IHSA Nationals are a tremendous success due to the dedication of Bob Cacchione and support of its volunteers, coaches, riders and parents. IHSA allows riders to continue experiencing the sport in their collegiate years, and provides a continued educational platform for the sport’s future professionals, amateurs and owners.”
As a Cacchione Cup champion, Cohen receives an USHJA Emerging Athletes Program Level I training session, and Bernie Traurig, owner of EquestrianCoach.com (a USHJA educational partner), has offered a significant discount to his online video training resource.
Veteran Cacchione Cup mount, Monty, generously loaned by Virginia Intermont College, was recognized as the show’s outstanding hunter seat horse. Monty has developed a large fan base during his VIC career, being named 2011 Zone 5, Region 4 Horse of the Year, and participating in six IHSA National Championships, including serving the 2010 Cacchione Cup and Walk-Trot winners.
Other High Points
Black Hawk College had the AQHA Western High Point Rider champion, Rebekah Irish. Irish, 26, returned to college, after working in the California cutting horse industry, to pursue a degree in Agricultural Business. While riding for Black Hawk, she also sported the championship buckle earned at the AQHA World Championships as a member of the college’s horse judging team.
“I drew phenomenal horses. IHSA has allowed me to ride and show while pursuing my degree. I’m taking advantage of everything I can and we’ll see where it goes,” said Irish, who transfers to Middle Tennessee State University next semester.
A good eye for a horse may help, now that Irish has three new TexTan saddles from AQHA, thanks to also winning the Open Individual Western Horsemanship and Open (Individual) Reining Pattern for the NRHA Morrison Bronze.
“First, I need a horse,” she joked. Irish might want to consider a horse like Flip Flop, the 13 year-old sorrel gelding from the University of Findlay named top western horse at Nationals. Flip Flop went through Findlay’s training program as a three year-old reiner, serving the IHSA Region 4 Championships, and winning 2008 Novice Youth and Youth Reining classes.
“He’s a neat horse,” said Findlay coach, Clark Bradley, an AQHA Professional Horseman and NRHA Hall of Fame inductee, of the Doctor Boon-bred American Quarter Horse. “He’s easy to get along with. We’re proud of him.”
Irish has a cutting horse background, but reining is in her future. Her next goal: “The NRHA Derby. I’m not ready yet but I will be.” She and her top three fellow finalists in the Open (Individual) Reining Pattern have earned NRHA Derby berths: reserve Kaitlin Hoffman (Cazenovia College), Alissa Trucco (Ohio University), and Jason Romney (Utah State University).
Special Highlights
Some future plans were more unexpected than others. University of Findlay rider Elijah Darnell surprised everyone, including girlfriend and Findlay graduate, Kelly Harmon, by getting down on one knee and proposing to her after the Beginner Western Horsemanship class. (Of course, she said, “Yes!”)
Former volleyball player (6’1”), Leah Davison, of Saint Andrews Presbyterian College, who hopes to design her own western wear after graduation, will have dependable transportation. The Davison family, including Leah’s grandmother, left the Beginner Western Horsemanship reserve champion speechless after surprising her with a new Ford F150 pickup truck, parked outside the arena, as a graduation gift.
Lifetime Achievement Award
Looking back on a lifetime of service to riding and horsemanship, the IHSA National Championships also honored Skidmore College (Saratoga Springs, NY) Thoroughbreds coach, Cindy Ford, with its distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award.
Her name has been synonymous with upstate New York’s horse world, from 19 years at Dutch Manor Stables in Albany, to her service since 1988 as Skidmore’s Director of Riding and IHSA coach since 1990. Walking the talk behind the “Built Ford Tough” credo embroidered on her jacket collar, Ford has coached five IHSA national champion hunter seat teams and two reserve champions.
Previous student and 1999 Cacchione Cup winner Lindsey Phibbs said, “(Cindy) was always able to bring the best out of any horse or rider, regardless of ability or experience. Her fierce competitive edge mixed with her strong work ethic makes her hard to beat. And when her riders didn’t win, she was always a role model sportsman.”
Ford’s modest good nature was evident when learning about the IHSA honor: “I’m not old enough to win this! I’m still just a kid!”
Previous IHSA Lifetime Achievement Award recipients include inaugural recipient, Joan Johnson (1993), and U.S. Military Academy at West Point (NY) team coach, Peter Cashman (2010).
For two years, the IHSA National Championships have called the Kentucky Horse Park home, demonstrating how an organization serving more than 380 colleges and universities, and 8,800 students in the U.S. and parts of Canada, can present riders, coaches and horses of a caliber befitting this 2010 World Equestrian Games venue.
In 2012, look for the IHSA Nationals, May 3-6, to be presented at the Hunt Horse Complex in Raleigh, NC.
For complete results from the 2011 IHSA National Championships and more information about the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association, please visit www.ihsainc.com, its official Facebook page, and Twitter, @IHSAinc.