The American Quarter Horse Journal, April 18, 2009 -- At the end of the third day of competition at the Varsity Equestrian National Championships, some familiar schools were on top.
The University of Georgia repeated its overall national championship with a first-place finish in the English bracket and a fourth-place finish in western.
Texas A&M University was overall reserve champion, while Oklahoma State University finished third.
In the western bracket, Texas A&M had tough competition in Texas Christian University, which finished second. In the English bracket, No. 1 seed the University of Georgia and No. 2 seed the University of Auburn matched head-to-head, with Georgia taking the title.
“A little bit of luck and some great riding” led to the win, head coach Meghan Boenig said. “I think the goals are always the same: Be consistent and be a contender for the national championship every single time.”
The championship tournament for Varsity Equestrian, an emerging NCAA sport, began Thursday in Waco, Texas, with 12 colleges. In the English division, teams compete in equitation on the flat and equitation over fences. In the western division, teams compete in horsemanship and reining. An exhibitor from each team rides the same horse, unfamiliar to both of them. The athlete with the better score wins the match, and the college with the most matches advances to the next round.
“AQHA works in cooperation with the U.S. Equestrian Federation to promote and advance the sport of equestrian at the collegiate level,” said Leman Wall, AQHA director of corporate and affiliate partnerships. “The competition is good for our industry. Strong collegiate programs offer academic and athletic opportunities for young riders as well as good homes and good jobs for accomplished show horses.”
Several former AQHYA exhibitors were part of the Varsity competition, including as part of the individual competition.
In the western division, Caroline Gunn represented Texas A&M University in a head-to-head duel with TCU’s Courtney Chown in horsemanship. Chown rode first on Confirmed Legacy, aka “Bubba,” scoring a stunning 151. Gunn, riding second, scored a round high of 154.5 on Bubba to claim the individual horsemanship title in her head-to-head with Chown. Gunn also won the individual horsemanship title in 2008.
“We’ve been looking all season for a clean sweep in horsemanship,” said A&M’s horsemanship coach, Beth Bass. “We went 13-0 here at nationals (as a team). We didn’t lose a match. I don’t know whether that can be topped.”
In the reining individual competition, Carrie von Uhlit, riding for TCU, matched up against Bri Parnell for Oklahoma State University and snatched the victory by half a point. Lil Ruff McCue, an American Quarter Horse owned by Oklahoma State University, was named most valuable reining horse in the competition.
“This year’s contest is marked by strong teams and strong riders,” said Wall, as the competition began. “We look forward to some excellent horsemanship and a worthy national champion.”
Two AQHA judges, Bonnie Miller and Andrea Simons, judged the western events.
To learn more about the Varsity Equestrian National Championships and see results and complete placings, go to www.varsityequestrian.com.
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