Saturday was a long day for the Red as the team suffered from sleep deprivation and was plagued by questionable judging. Despite these factors, Cornell through a tireless effort, was able to salvage a second place finish at the Skidmore show with 35 points.
“It was a tough day for us at Skidmore, yet I am extremely proud of the team, even after the lack of recognition. They kept coming back and fighting and in the end brought this team to second place on the day,” remarked head coach Chris Mitchell.
Skidmore won on its own turf with 47 points, giving the Thoroughbreds a 29-point lead in the division. With three shows left in the season, Cornell will be hard-pressed to catch up.
“We can still overcome the lead if we ride well at our own show and for the rest of the season,” Mitchell said.
Colgate came in third in the show with 25-points followed by Morrisville with 23, Hartwick and Cobleskill with 22, Binghamton with 20, Ithaca with 17, RPI with 13, and Siena with 6.
The night before the show was perhaps portentous of the next day. The team did not arrive at its hotel until 11:30 after getting lost for two hours. The Red had to get up early the next day as the show started at 6 am. The morning also did not bode well for the Red as the team was consistently given questionable marks despite what many considered solid riding.
“We rode extremely well in the morning. The consistency of the team was I felt, the best I had seen. The placing by the judge was bewildering. The results were not an actual projection of the way we rode,” said Mitchell of the dubious judging.
The day started with point rider senior tri-captain Zoe Oreki placing fifth in the open fences. Fellow senior Captains Helen O’Brien and Julie Canter both took a fourth place finish in the open fences. Junior Kate Cornell claimed a second place finish and freshman Kate Jackson placed as a reserve.
The Red’s troubles continued in the open flat. Point rider Canter inexplicably finished seventh.
“I was confident on the horse and in riding. We really don’t know what happened there,” remarked Canter.
Kate Cornell and O’Brien both placed sixth. Oreki and junior Kiva Iscol placed third and fifth, respectively. Freshman Kate Reynolds acted as the point rider placing fourth in intermediate fences while classmate Erica Rosen finished second. The two switched for the intermediate flat with Rosen as the point rider. Both had impressive performances, capturing first place in their respective classes.
The Red’s most successful division was the novice. Sophomore Alaina Hoffman won the novice flat and finished second in the novice fences earning her the right to compete for the High Point rider. Freshman Gillian Pech shared the same honor after winning the novice fences and coming in second in the novice flat.
Sophomores Eva Conant and Emi Knafo rode great, each claiming second place in their Advanced Trot Canter classes while in the Walk-Trot division sophomore point rider Erin Goodrich placed third. Classmate Kim Huppe won her class and freshman Linda Nguyen finished third.
Cornell’s next show is here on Mar. 3 at the Oxley Equestrian Center.
Archived article by Chris Callanan