Grab a horse, saddle up, and trot into the ring.  All noises cease to exist outside senior Heather Scampton’s mind as she enters the ring with her horse in hope of receiving a medal.  Scampton and the other Equestrian team members have different strategies on focusing before a show.

On Saturday, Nov. 12, the equestrian team held their home show at Hunting Ground Farm.  They competed against 81 riders from eight different teams and placed sixth. For the seniors, it was their last home show, and the pressure was on for those riders to
make their mark in the ring.

In the varsity open, Scampton placed first in fences and fifth in the flat, which is a class with no jumps.  Riders must instruct their horses to walk, trot, and canter each direction as the judge tests the rider on many different skills such as a sitting trot, halt, or hand gallop.

“It always feels good to win in an open fences class.  It takes a great amount of practice, and winning it helps to get me one step closer to qualifying for zones, which has already successfully been done,” Scampton said.

Along with Scampton, seniors Adrienne Clark, Megan Foard, and Kelsey Lebuhn also placed in the competition.  Foard was right behind Scampton in both events, placing second in fences and sixth in the flat.  Other teammates competed in the JV portion of the show and helped the team to place sixth overall.

When the team was not competing in the show, they were handling the horses, working in the barn, or talking up the benefits of riding to Principal Madelyn Ball. The competition was also attended by many spectators who came out to support the equestrian team.

“Our team worked very well as a group to make sure the show went off smoothly. Everyone did fantastic individually, even if we did not get the team results we had wanted,” Clark said.

While the team cheered with excitement about individual wins, seniors shed tears when they realized that their last home show was coming to an end.

“It was sad because this is my last year having the privilege to ride with my team.  I’ve grown as a rider with this team and I will greatly miss them,” Scampton said.

Megan Battaglia is a Multimedia Editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com.