Sweet Briar fielded a team of five horses and riders for the 2007 American National Riding Commission National Championships April 20-22 at Centenary College in Hackettstown, N.J. Of the 10 athletes who competed, the five that walk upright on two legs all agreed: The ANRC Nationals was an exciting and educational process.
The team — which finished fifth overall — consisted of
Emily Wiley ’07 on Chinook,
Corinne Davies ’07 on Lovingston,
Alison Sims ’09 on Renaissance,
Katie Davilli ’09 on Hatrick and
Heather McPheeters ’10 on Backflash.
The National Championships are a three-phase collegiate competition conducted at the intermediate level. Riders were asked to perform a program ride, medal round and hunter trials course in addition to a written test.
Sweet Briar coach Shelby French prepared her team throughout the semester with early morning lessons three times a week, frequent horse shows and clinics, and Pilates classes twice a week.
The team arrived in New Jersey the Wednesday before the competition to school the courses. After a few days of schooling, the University of the South had lost two riders to injury. In a true act of sportsmanship, first-year Heather McPheeters agreed to ride for their team score so they could continue to compete as a team.
On Friday, team members completed the written exam. Each year it covers a particular knowledge base; this year it was grooming and tack. Wiley led the Sweet Briar team with a 96, the competition’s highest overall score. Davilli was third with an 89 and McPheeters was seventh with a score of 84.025. The Sweet Briar team ended up first overall in the written portion of the competition.
The riding competition began on Saturday. The Program Ride, or Dressage Sportif, is the main flatwork component. Each individual’s score was worth 40 percent of his or her overall score. Sims tied for third with a total score of 201 and helped lead the team to a fourth-place finish for that segment of the competition. Davies placed eighth as an individual with a score of 198.
The jumping competition was held on Sunday, when Davies got Sweet Briar off to an excellent start with a score of 77. Davilli also had a strong showing with a score of 89. Sweet Briar finished sixth in the team portion of this competition.
Next, was the Hunter Trials phase, which SBC team members said proved to be an exciting and beautiful course. Davilli took fourth place overall with 84 points. Sweet Briar finished third in the trials.
The team ended up fifth overall at the National Championships, and Davilli secured a sixth-place finish in the overall individual standings.
According to its Web site, the ANRC’s goal is to promote a “systematic approach to riding, training and teaching that is appropriate for horses as well as riders at various stages of learning in college and university settings. Emphasis is placed on developing a cooperative effort between horse and rider, and ultimately achieving a quality level of performance.”
That message is not lost on McPheeters, who saw competing in the Championships as icing on the cake.
“Going to the ANRC Nationals in New Jersey was great but it was the journey along the way that was truly gratifying,” she said. “We all started the semester with different problems and worked hard on them almost every day of the week. It wasn’t easy, but by the end of the season I bet everyone on the team could say at least one thing that they had really improved.”
Katie Davilli placed sixth in overall individual competition on Hatrick.
Heather McPheeters rounds a corner Backflash.
Alison Sims on Renaissance.
