We’re here in Lexington, Kentucky, yet again for the ASPCA Maclay Final, where 178 of the country’s top junior riders aspire to win one of the most elusive equitation titles.

We’ll try and post every 10 riders or so, with updates on how the course is riding, who has done well, who hasn’t, etc. Please don’t expect an account of every rider’s trip, but we’ll try to keep you up-to-date! Scroll down to see the most recent posting.

Disclaimer:  We’re providing this as a service to those who are interested, and we’re just recording our observations. We’re not judges, just reporters who have watched the Maclay Finals in their entirety for the past 19 years. You may not agree with our notes, and that’s fine—we’re not putting them out there as the authoritative word, but as information for those interested. That said, read on!

The Results

1. Zayna Rizvi (Finnick)
2. Catalina Peralta (Clover)
3. Audrey Schulze (Mac One III)
4. Tessa P. Brown (Davide)
5. Hannah Hoch (Simply Stated)
6. Mimi Gochman (Andretti BH)
7. Natalie Jayne (Charisma)
8. Christian Dominguez (Iwan)
9. Cody Rego (Tanzanite de Semilly)
10. Avery Glynn (Cocon 4)

Round 1

Riders 1-10

Audrey Schulze gets us started. She’s had some top equitation finishes this year and sets the bar high with a smooth and lovely round!

Jackie Stary has the rail down at jump one, and her horse is sticky off the ground to jumps 3 and 4a. They unfortunately part ways at 6B.

Ansley Wright enters the ring, and her horse seems impressed by the fences. She gets long to 6A-B and a little tight to 8. Her horse gets a bit bold, but she finishes nicely to the triple.

Hannah Hoch and her lovely gray Simply Stated are foot-perfect to start the course. They have a rail at 5, but she should be thrilled with her ride.

Ella McCaw has the oxer down at 3 and jumps into the line from 7 to 8 a bit slow, adding up 6 to the pink wall.

Lauren Reid doesn’t quite get down the first line and adds a stride, taking down the rail. She circles and take a couple of jumps to get back on the pace, but finishes well over the last 5 fences.

Austin Krawitt has a pretty smooth trip, just pulling a rail at 5 and jumping the far right side of the ASPCA wood pile.

Aedan Mooney has the rail down at 2 and gets tight to 4AB but pulls it off. She catches the flier to the pink wall but wraps up her trip nicely.

Bella Primavera has to ride aggressively to the jumps, as her horse peeks at the first few and has two rails. He has to stretch to jump out of 6AB, which is proving to require a forward ride.

 

Riders 11-20

Madison Rauschenbach gets tight to 5 and has a swap at the pink wall. She has an otherwise consistent round.

Maggie Jacobs chips out of the first line and takes a few trot steps after to recover. She doesn’t get the forward distance she wants to 6B, and her horse refuses the out. They finish the course with no other major errors.

Christian Dominguez has a great forward pace and is nailing those bending lines. Nice trip.

Campbell L. Hudkins is laying down a consistent round. She should be happy with her ride.

Caroline Anderson’s mare is lovely but she’s looking hard at these jumps. They have a rail at 2, and she has to ride aggressively throughout.

Christopher Coberly is a bit weak through the first two lines and has a late change after 3. He gets back on the pace and has a particularly nice ride from 10AB to 12.

Isabella David’s horse swaps from 1 to 2 and really stretches to get out of 6AB but has no major errors.

Stella Buckingham is a tad tight to 2, but it works out. She really hand gallops the last oxer! Nice ride.

Skylar Wireman strikes up a good pace from the start and stays on it for a consistent trip. They’re just a bit weak jumping out of that long 6AB.

Taylor Landstrom doesn’t get the ride she wants into 6AB and has to chip out. That’s unfortunate, because the rest of her trip was quite smooth.

Riders 21-30

Victoria Rotsaert has a funky second jump and takes the rail. Her horse has two refusals at 6AB, and they call it a day.

Grace Rabb’s horse takes a very hard look at fence 3, and they’re excused after two refusals.

Mimi Gochman trots into the ring on Andretti BH. She nails the forward distance into 6AB and across the middle of the ring to the pink wall. That was a beautiful trip.

Cadence Kueker’s horse is naughty upon entering the ring and refuses to go forward. She elects to retire.

Alexandra Lipacis is tighter than she’d probably like to a few fences. Her horse really catches some air over 8 and 9! They find the gap to the last oxer, but it works out.

Sofia Cady is riding the flashy chestnut Konfessions. They take down the hedge at 4B and are a touch long to the pink wall. She rides the rest of the round nicely.

Sterling Malnik has an unfortunate rail at 3 but rides boldly around the remainder of the course.

Sofia Moskowitz’s horse spooks abruptly after the first jump, and they have to circle and regroup. They find some tight spots on course, but she keeps her composure.

Emma Quigley’s horse doesn’t want to get near that hogsback, and they’re excused before the first jump.

Alexa Leong’s horse stumbles after fence 2, forcing her to add to 3. She has an otherwise lovely round.

 

Riders 31-40

Celia Cram has a swap out of 4AB and cross-canters from 5 to 6A. She finds all the jumps consistently.

Zayna Rizvi has a bold ride to the first fence and lays down a fantastic trip. She makes this tricky course look effortless.

Augusta Iwasaki nails 1 to 3, then finds the tight spot to 4AB. Her horse stutters off the ground of the out. The rest of the round is beautiful.

Jake Endicott’s horse is very impressed by these fences! I hope someone got a photo of that effort over fence 1. He sticks with him, though, and rides well.

McKayla Brombach drifts hard left over 5. Her horse gets stuck cross-cantering into 6AB, and they just make it through. The rest of the round is smooth.

Elisabeth Marek picks up two refusals at fence 3 and retires.

Clara McDanniel has to kick out of 6AB, but her horse makes it work. They get a bit tight to 7 and 8.

Riley Hogan has a rail after finding the long spot to 3. They regroup after 4AB, and she rides the rest of the course well.

Lilly Goldstein takes a wide track from 2 to 3. Her course clips the hedge at 4B, taking it down. 6AB looked like it might become a two-stride, but they jump out in one and finish the round well.

Jessie Rechs has a few rough spots but no major errors.

Riders 41-50

Hugh Turner has a rail at 2 and his horse peeks at a few of the fences. He has to ride aggressively but completes the course well.

Alexa Elle Lignelli’s horse takes down the front rail of the National Horse Show oxer at 3. She has a great ride to 6AB and finishes to big cheers.

Madison Frankel’s horse puts on the brakes to fence 1, and their day ends early.

Layla Kurbanov pulls the rail at fence 2 — several horses have had this very upright vertical down. She’s a little sticky coming out of the turn to 10AB and has a bold, galloping ride to the last oxer.

Natalie Jayne, your USET Finals East winner, has a rail at 2, as well. Her horse swaps at the pink wall. That was a consistent ride.

Clea Caddell is sticky off the ground at 4A and her horse really has to stretch to get out. They circle and regroup, finishing with a respectable ride.

Alexander Alston has a picture-perfect ride to 4AB after a couple of rubs at fences 2 and 3. He looks super poised around course and lays down a lovely round.

Lauren Jorgensen has that pesky fence 2 down. Her horse balks at 6A, and she circles. He peeks at the pink wall, as well, but she gets him over and finishes the course.

Eric Krawitt’s horse takes a hard stumble after 4B, but they continue on, and he puts down a nice, confident ride.

Schuyler Dayner chips out of 4AB, and her horse struggles to exit 6AB as well, taking down the back rail of the oxer. She rides the rest of the course handily.

 

First Standby

15 riders have made the first standby, in this order:

32 – Zayna Rizvi

1 – Audrey Shulze

23 – Mimi Gochman

33 – Augusta Iwasaki

47 – Alexander Alston

49 – Eric Krawitt

5 – Hannah Hoch

44 – Layla Kurbanov

14 – Campbell Hudkins

45 – Natalie Jayne

18 – Stella Buckingham

13 – Christian Dominguez

25 – Alexandra Lipacis

19 – Skylar Wireman

42 – Alexa Elle Lignelli

 

Riders 51-60

Alissa Brandt takes down the rail at 2, but lays down a nice, consistent trip at her National Horse Show debut.

Brooke Lattner has a swap into 4AB and catches a flier to the pink wall at 8. This pair has no major errors though.

Ireland Fravel strikes up a nice gallop to 1 and carries that pace throughout, including a long gallop to the last. That was a consistent ride.

Caroline Nadalin and Canago have a pretty slick round, with no noticeable errors. Lots of applause for this pair.

Penelope Burnham’s horse hangs a leg over the hogsback at 1 but clears it. They chip at 3 and have a run-out at the pink wall. A second refusal at 9 ends their round.

Reilly Gogul has a forward ride aboard the expressive What’s Poppin’. She’s the first rider I’ve noticed has opted for a tight right turn after the last fence. She should be pleased with that smooth round.

Elianna Kirson gets deep to 5, pulling the rail, and can’t quite get back on the pace in time to avoid adding a stride in 6AB.

Tessa P. Brown’s horse Davide has a humongous stride! She fits everything in nicely, including the last oxer off a bold gallop.

Baylee McKeever is gets a little tighter than she’d like to 4A, but it works out. She nails a tough lead change in the bending five-stride from 10AB to 11. That was a lovely trip.

Riders 61-70

Samantha Takacs misses to 5, taking the rail down. She ends up off the pace jumping into 6AB and adds a stride. She and her horse have a few miscommunications going forward, and she circles to regroup before 11.

Mark Leone rides the first half of the course perfectly. His horse pulls a rail at 6A, causing him to add a stride at the out. They have a swap at the pink wall.

Mya Borysiak’s horse is a little hesitant off the ground today, so she’s having to add strides throughout the course, including at 6AB. She gets on a better rhythm from fence 9 onward.

Reese Merna has a rail at the first jump and gets tight to 4A and 6A but makes it out of both. They find the long spot to the pink wall, and the rest of the course has no major errors.

Ainsley Wade’s horse rubs the first two fences hard before taking down the third. They’re a hair tight to 4A and have a swap at fence 8. She ends the round on a  strong note.

Ryan Kenny gets tight to fence 2, and his horse skips of the ground at 3 and 6B. They have a swap at the pink wall — riders have really had to protect that lead going from left to right across the middle of the ring.

Isabelle Ehman is slow and weak to 4A, and her horse questions her at 5, resulting in a refusal. The rest of the round has no major errors.

Cameron Kohls jumps 3 from a near-standstill and drops a rail at 5. Her horse trots for a stride going away from the in-gate to fence 7, but they regain their composure to finish well.

Aya Clear falls victim to jump 2 like so many others, pulling the rail. She picks up another rail at 6A and rides boldly throughout the rest of the course.

Sophia Gremley finds the outs of the first two bending lines tighter than she’d like. She executes 5 to 6AB beautifully. She angles 7 to set her horse up for the pink wall at 8. The rest of the trip is smooth and consistent.

Tessa Downey lays down a fantastic trip. If I were to pick on anything, she was a tad long jumping out of the six-stride to fence 3, but she should be happy with her ride.

Riders 71-80

Katie Triantos is weak exiting 6AB and finds the half stride to the pink wall. The rest of her round was pretty consistent.

Alexandra Ryden adds one too many to 4A but jumps out well. Her horse really has to effort over 6A, then swaps at the pink wall.

Kaitlyn Roman has to ride forward to fence 2, pulling the rail. She makes 6AB look easy but gets a little stuck in the turn going away from the in-gate to 7.

Caroline Signorino’s mount Romeo is lovely. They find 5 on the half-stride and have to stretch to get out of 6AB. A swap at fence 8, the pink wall, adds to an otherwise smooth trip.

Eva Fisherman finds each fence right out of stride. Her horse falls off his lead for a second from 5 to 6AB, but I wouldn’t fault them for much else.

Olivia McAdams is aboard an adorable dapple gray. He ticks the rail at fence 2, then gets to 5 deep. She finds a very forward distance to 7 away from the in-gate and has to reel his stride back in after that.

Erica Felder stays out wide to put seven strides instead of six between 2 and 3. Tight entrances to both in-and-outs mean her horse has to reach to get out of them. The rest of her round has no major errors.

Katie Jorczak has a rail at 3. She chips at 5, losing both stirrups, but continues on! She pauses to get her feet back in the irons before 10AB and finishes the round.

Madison Ramsey adds a stride in the first line, resulting in a rail. She’s finding the tight spot today but gets on a nice rhythm after 6AB.

Ella Kraut is very handy through the first two bending lines and puts together a consistent trip. She gets deeper than she’d like to the last big oxer.

 

Riders 81-90

Gigi Moynihan settles for seven strides from 2 to 3 instead of six. Then she gets on the pace and has a very nice round.

Katrina Shulda chips at 2, pulling a rail. She circles to regroup, but her horse appears to have lost his confidence, refusing fence 3 and ending their day early.

Grace Debney strikes up a nice gallop to the first jump. That forward pace works to her advantage at 6AB, and she lays down a lovely trip.

Addison Reed’s horse is eating up the course with his massive stride. He looks super adjustable, though, and she has a nice, consistent ride.

Abigail Gordon gets a hair tight to 4A and her horse jumps it awkwardly. Otherwise, she has a flowing, forward round.

Lilly Anthes was under the pace to 4A, and her horse couldn’t quite make the out. They part ways, but she’s up and walking out of the ring.

Emma Borders has a rail at 2 and finds 5 on an awkward angle. She recoups to ride well through 6AB and has no major errors.

Gabrielle Sokolow is a hair tight to 2, but her horse jumps it great. They struggle with the long one-stride at 6AB but exit cleanly before tapping a log off the ASPCA jump.

Avery Wegmann rides consistently, with just a tight spot at 7 away from the in-gate.

Cody Rego adds up coming out of the corner to 4A but makes it work. A long, forward ride to 7 sets him up for that five-stride across the middle to the pink wall. He probably gets a bit closer to the last oxer than he’d like.

Riders 91-100

Mackenzie Fitch gets caught wide in the first bending line, and her horse puts on the brakes to the fence 2. She does a great job staying in the irons, but her day ends at fence 8.

Naomi Dachis doesn’t get up the line in time from 5 to 6A, chipping and putting two strides in the one. That’s her only major error.

Emily Clee has a few swaps and gets tight to 5, but she rides the course well.

Hailey Royce picks up a swap and a rail at fence 2, then lays down a very smooth round.

Sarah Rabb has some inconsistent distances and circles around the last oxer to ensure it comes up on a better stride.

Nicole Golia is having a lovely trip. She finds a tight, slow spot to 10A but should otherwise be pleased with that round.

Olivia Sweetnam doesn’t ride forward enough from fence 2 to 3, adding a stride and taking down a rail. She recovers nicely and has no other major errors.

Bennett Kitchens rides a very smooth round, just getting tight to 10A. Several riders coming out of that tight turn to 10AB get lulled into adding a stride.

Emily Dehoff has a rail at 2 but rides an otherwise smooth, consistent round.

Emma Gutstein is excused from the ring after her horse says two hard no’s at the first jump.

 

Second Standby

The updated standby after 100 riders have gone:

32 – Zayna Rizvi

83 – Grace Debney

58 – Tessa Brown

1 – Audrey Schulze

23 – Mimi Gochman

33 – Augusta Iwasaki

54 – Caroline Nadalin

47 – Alexandra Alston

49 – Eric Krawitt

70 – Tessa Downey

5 – Hannah Hoch

44 – Layla Kurbanov

90 – Cody Rego

14 – Campbell L. Hudkins

45 – Natalie Jayne

18 – Stella Buckingham

84 – Addison Reed

13 – Christian Dominguez

81 – Gigi Moynihan

51 – Alissa Brandt

25 – Alexandra Lipacis

19 – Skylar Wireman

 

Riders 101-110

Catalina Peralta gets us started back up after the drag, putting down a stellar round! That should earn her a spot in the second round.

Elizabeth Akey has a smooth trip until she gets tight to 6A, and her horse has to try extra hard to jump out. A swap at the pink wall adds to an otherwise nice round.

Kenner Scalamandre looked like he was going to catch 6AB off-stride but works it out nicely. He just made this course look easy.

Reynolds Cole has to hustle from 1 to 2 and her horse swaps twice. They’re tight to 3 and just a little inconsistent throughout.

Eleanor Rudnicki, fresh off a third-place finish at USEF Medal Finals, is in the ring. Her horse is looking at the jumps very hard today, and they get excused at 4A.

Hensley Humphries has an effortless-looking round. They gallop down over the last oxer to lots of cheers.

Kenna Labeau got tight to 3, and her horse jumped high and hard over it. They swap at the pink wall, and she pulls to the tight one at 10A. Lovely hand gallop to the last.

Julia Nickl chips at 5 and can’t get back on the pace in time to make 6AB work. They take down a rail at the in.

Julia Smirnow is struggling to find the jumps out of stride, and her horse is swapping here and there. Her last four fences are her best.

Cassidy Rein pulls a rail at the second fence. She puts on the gas to the pink wall, and her horse swaps. She really goes for it at the last oxer but it works!

 

Riders 111-120

 

Elisa Broz’s horse has an awkward first jump, but they find their rhythm after that. 6AB is spot-on, and she makes a close distance to 4A work.

Chase Finizio was having a near-flawless trip before her horse ran past the standalone pink wall. That’s too bad.

Elizabeth Cram has a rough lead change between 1 and 2, then drops a rail at 3. Her horse also objects to the pink wall, but she gets him over it.

Avery Schauder’s horse is very impressed by this environment. He spooks hard at 3, but she circles and cowboys up to get him over it. Unfortunately, they get excused at 7.

Carlee McCutcheon’s horse gets a bit lost between 1 and 2, falling off his lead. He swaps at the pink wall, but the rest of their round is smooth.

Emma Blumenkrantz is riding a flowing and forward pace, and her horse is jumping great. They have a nice round.

Mia Frigon approaches 6AB under pace and her horse chips to get out. They also crawl over the ASPCA logs but have no other major errors.

Brooke Brombach has a rail at 2 and some inconsistent distances but no big bobbles.

Caroline Robelen has fence 2 down as well. They get a little stuck in the corner going away from the in-gate toward 7 and find the tight spot at 11.

Ava Strohmeyer has the first jump down after getting a close distance. Her horse jumps awkwardly from the tight spot into 4A, but they find their rhythm in the latter half of the course.

 

Riders 121-130

Cassie Warren presses forward to the first jump, and her horse skips off the ground. He seems to be backing off the jumps just enough to affect the smoothness of her ride.

Kenya Sanders’ horse hesitates at fence 2, then gains confidence throughout the course. He swaps at the pink wall.

Maura Lautenbach gets a forward pace to 1 and keeps going. It’s a great trip and she finishes to lots of whoops.

Cassidy Exner puts an extra stride in both one-strides and has a rail at 5 after finding the deep spot.

Aristea Santoro nails the first jump and doesn’t look back. A little tight into 10AB, but that was a nice trip.

Mackenna Moss caught the long one to 7 away from the in-gate, but it set her horse up for that forward five-stride to fence 8. She’s a hair tight to 9, and her horse clips the side of the hedge at 10B, knocking it over.

McKenzie Clayton is having a smooth round — her horse thinks about spooking at the pink wall, but she rides him forward and finishes nicely.

Isabel Rudaz finds a few long, weak distances and her horse jumps the pink wall awkwardly. They have no major errors.

Kat Fuqua rides the first two lines beautifully, then changes her mind at the last minute to 4AB, nearly trotting the in. They don’t quite get back on their rhythm after that and circle before the final fence.

Victoria Zahorik gallops right into the ring and has a lovely first fence. Her horse jumps 3 hard and plays on the backside, causing her to circle. She really has to ride to stick with him the rest of the course.

 

Riders 131-140

Eve Westfall’s horse is studying the fences hard and jumping them great. She gives him a confident, consistent ride.

Josselyn Mersereau doesn’t move up to get the six from 2 to 3, resulting in an add. She takes the outside track and chooses to add from 7 to 8 as well, finishing with no major errors.

Dylan Bazaar’s pace is a bit inconsistent, slowing in the turns and really moving up to the jumps. She has a swap at the pink wall.

Annalise Manoog get a little tight to 4A but otherwise has a very smooth and lovely round.

Camille Borres’ horse has to try super hard at the B elements of both one-strides. He takes a hard dive left at the pink wall, and Camille lands on her feet.

Ellie Dupuis gives the first fence a nice forward ride, then struggles to get her horse back for 2 and 3. She nails everything else, but her horse swaps two strides out from the last oxer.

Sophie Bluhm is really attacking this course, in a good way. She has a bold, consistent trip and gets lots of cheers.

Blythe Goguen had a super smooth round. Hard to fault her on much!

Madison Smyth is a hair tight into 4AB. She has to hustle to get from 7 to 8 in five strides, and her horse almost jumps the ring decor instead of the pink wall. He drifts hard right over 9, as well.

Morgan Budovsky pulls a rail at 3 and is sticky at 6AB. No major errors though.

 

Riders 141-150

Lillie Parr is bold to 7, then a bit tight to 9. Her horse seems super adjustable though, and they have a respectable round.

Sarah Gretz’s horse second-guesses fence 2, chipping and pulling the rail. They add a stride in 6AB and find a few other deep spots.

Samantha Meyer rides her horse hard away from the in-gate, and he swaps twice before the first jump. He swaps again at the pink wall, and they find the flier to 9.

Isabella Shelton is finding every fence right out of stride. Her horse swaps at the pink wall, but overall she puts in a confident ride.

Brooke Morin scratched.

Agnes Hahn’s horse has a lofty jumping style. She finds a few inconsistent distances but has no major mistakes.

Ellie Aronson says whoa instead of go at 4AB, adding a stride there. The rest of her round was quite lovely.

Amira Kettaneh is riding a great track around this course. She’s a little weak through 6AB, but her horse jumps it well. Big cheers for Amira.

Janet Hedges ticks a rail at 3 and gets to the base of the last oxer but rides an otherwise consistent course.

James Leone starts out bold and accurate. His horse cross-canters after 4B, leading to a chip at 5. They’re also tight jumping into 10AB.

 

Third Standby

After 150 of 178 horses have gone, the standby is as follows:

32 – Zayna Rizvi

83 – Grace Debney

101 – Catalina Peralta

58 – Tessa P. Brown

1 – Audrey Schulze

106 – Hensley Humphries

23 – Mimi Gochman

33 – Augusta Iwasaki

54 – Caroline Nadalin

47 – Alexander Alston

148 – Amira Kettaneh

49 – Eric Krawitt

70 – Tessa Downey

5 – Hannah Hoch

44 – Layla Kurbanov

90 – Cody Rego

14 – Campbell L. Hudkins

125 – Aristea Santoro

45 – Natalie Jayne

18 – Stella Buckingham

84 – Addison Reed

13 – Christian Dominguez

138 – Blythe Goguen

81 – Gigi Moynihan

 

Riders 151-160

Sophia Mitchell has a fantastic ride, really nailing all those bending lines. Lots of applause after this one.

Portia Muenke’s horse balks a stride before the hogsback at fence 1, resulting in a refusal. The pair get on the same page after that, putting in a smooth round.

Kaitlyn Kiely takes the wide track for seven between 2 and 3. They drop a rail there but finish with a solid trip.

Mackenzie Carreras has to steady to fit five strides in between 1 and 2, resulting in a rail. A miscommunication at 7 knocks the ClipMyHorse.TV fence down. The pair regroups, then finishes their round nicely.

Lauren Crawford finds the weak long spot to 3, but her horse clears it. They don’t quite make it down the bending line to the pink wall in five strides, resulting in an add and a swap. She gets plenty of applause for an otherwise smooth round.

Kyla Sullivan’s horse Kenan is very flashy! She gets him a bit deep to 4A, and he loses his form. They have a swap at 10B, and rest of the trip is quite nice.

Eleese Shillingford doesn’t have enough pace to 3, and her horse stops. He doesn’t want to get close to the ClipMyHorse.TV fence away from the in-gate, and the pair is excused.

Angelina Matos’ horse barely touches fence 3 and has a rail. They find tight spots at 5 and 9 and really hand gallop the last oxer.

Lauren McCaulley has a solid, consistent round with no major issues. She should be proud of that.

Avery Glynn rides a near foot-perfect round on a lovely horse. We should see her in the next round.

 

Riders 161-170

Sophia Olivero’s horse swaps between 1 and 2 and is a little sticky off the ground to 2 and 3. He chips and bunny hops over 6A, so she pulls up to regroup before finishing the course.

Zoe Brown scratched.

Caroline Tinsley has a really nice ride — super smooth! Big whoops after that one.

Grace Defoe collects to make the distance to 4A work, and her horse has to put in a big effort out. The rest of her round is well-executed.

Alexis Seiden’s horse is tentative to the fences from the start, putting on the brakes at 3 and again at 7, ending their round.

Aphrodite Papandreou pulled to the base of 4A and 5. Her horse tried to fit an extra stride between 10A and B, knocking the hedge wall pretty hard. Unfortunately, this pair never really found their flow.

Caroline Berg had a respectable round with no major errors.

Francesca Guidi has an awkward jump off the cross-canter to 4A. Her horse is really jumping up and over these fences.

Kendall Dean has a rail at 2, gets deep to 5 and has to work to get through 6AB. A tight distance into 10A has her coming off at B when her horse can’t quite get out in one stride. Both appear to be OK.

Cate Jeschke overrides the second fence and has a rail. Her horse cross-canters into 6AB but jumps it well. No major errors for this pair.

 

Riders 171-178

Claudette Yarbrough has a rail at 3 and a few weak long spots, but her horse maintains his form. That was a consistent round.

Kate Neily crawls into 4A but jumps out well. Her horse has an unfortunate run-out at fence 9, jumps it on the second approach and finishes the course.

Annabele Whitehead has two quick rails at 2 and 3. She doesn’t jump into 6AB just right and adds a stride there. Another rail at 9 rounds out their trip.

Hanna Dolan rides a great track through all these bending lines. She commits to a looong distance to the last oxer, but it works out.

Luke Jensen has a few inconsistent distances but makes them look smooth. Lots of cheers for Luke.

Libbie Gordon briefly picked up the wrong lead, but rode a smart course with little to critique.

Stella Wasserman has a great round with a nice, even pace. These last few riders are strong!

Makena Bloebaum found a tight distance into 4A and had to kick to get out. Her horse stuttered off the ground when faced with a long spot to the pink wall.

 

The riders moving on to the flat phase include:

Group 1

13 – Christian Dominguez

84 – Addison Reed

18 – Stella Buckingham

45 – Natalie Jayne

125 – Aristea Santoro

14 – Campbell Hudkins

90 – Cody Rego

44 – Layla Kurbanov

5 – Hannah Hoch

70 – Tessa Downey

49 – Eric Krawitt

148 – Amira Kettaneh

 

Group 2

32 – Zayna Rizvi

83 – Grace Debney

101 – Catalina Peralta

58 – Tessa Brown

1 – Audrey Schultze

106 – Hensley Humphries

175 – Luke Jensen

23 – Mimi Gochman

33 – Augusta Iwasaki

160 – Avery Glynn

54 – Caroline Nadalin

47 – Alexander Alston

 

The Flat

The flat phase began with the rising trot. The judges asked riders to demonstrate a lengthening of stride, followed by a working walk, then working canter. In front of judges, the riders performed a flying change of lead to the counter canter. The judges then asked for a working trot sitting and a working walk. The riders reversed and demonstrated a work trot rising the opposite direction, a lengthening of stride, working walk, working canter, a flying change to the counter lead, working trot sitting and working walk.

The Second Round Course

Riders start on the right lead cantering down over the National Horse Show vertical. They bend left over a white gate oxer toward the in-gate, then round the end of the ring and ride back up over a diagonal line of green oxer to ASPCA hedge. Then they jump the hedge one-stride off a tight left turn going toward home, bending left to the pink wall, then right to the log pile. Riders turn right up over a hogsback one-stride, bending right over the National Horse Show vertical the opposite direction, then bending immediately left over an NHS white oxer. They roll back left over a square birch oxer in the middle of the ring and gallop for home over the natural hedge triple.

 

Second Round Order of Go (Reverse Order of Preference)

148 – Amira Kettaneh

70 – Tessa Downey

175 – Luke Jensen

13 – Christian Dominguez

84 – Addison Reed

125 – Aristea Santoro

14 – Campbell Hudkins

18 – Stella Buckingham

90 – Cody Rego

44 – Layla Kurbanov

45 – Natalie Jayne

49 – Eric Krawitt

5 – Hannah Hoch

47 – Alexander Alston

54 – Caroline Nadalin

23 – Mimi Gochman

160 – Avery Glyyn

33 – Augusta Iwasaki

106 – Hensley Humphries

83 – Grace Debney

58 – Tessa Brown

1 – Audrey Schulze

101 – Cataline Peralta

32 – Zayna Rizvi

Amira Kettaneh nails each jump right out of stride. She opts for the inside turn to the square oxer at fence 11 and sets a great example for the other riders to follow. Several of the bending lines are shorter this round and going to come up much faster!

Tessa Downey approaches the first jump from the short turn off the left. She too opts for the inside turn to 11 and executes a super smooth round.

Luke Jensen strikes up a great gallop to the first jump but gets tight out of the bending line to 2. He also doesn’t quite make the forward four strides work from 9 to 10, squeezing in a tight five instead.

Christian Dominguez takes his time in the corners, riding a very smooth round. Can’t fault him on much.

Addison Reed gets a hair tight to 5AB, but the following two bending lines work out nicely. She catches a big, lofty gap to the last.

Aristea Santoro also finds the tight distance off the short turn to 5A and really rides forward to get up to the pink wall.

Campbell Hudkins is a little slow to the first fence, and her horse swaps off his lead. Still under pace to the three-stride across the middle, she finds the half-stride on the out. The second half of her course is much more consistent.

Stella Buckingham’s round starts off beautifully. She has to ride forward to the pink wall and then get her horse back for the wood pile, where she gets a bit tight. The white NHS oxer at fence 10 comes up long. Lots of applause!

Cody Rego has a very nice trip. His horse was a little wiggly to the wood pile and through the hogsback one-stride, but the jumps were right out of stride.

Layla Kurbanov is riding a flowing round, with a few tight spots that work out just fine. Big cheers after the last oxer.

Natalie Jayne just had a stunning trip. She might have been a tad long to 10, but her horse jumped it well. Gallop to the last oxer was spot on.

Eric Krawitt could use a bit more pace to start. He has to stretch to get out of the three-stride as well as the bending line to the pink wall. Those last four jumps were lovely though.

Hannah Hoch has a fantastic trip to lots of applause! Her rollback to 11 was wider than most, but it made the distance come up just right.

Alexander Alston finds the long spots to the in of the three-stride, the pink wall and the oxer at 11, but he supports them well and has a smooth round.

Caroline Nadalin might have overridden to fence 2, but it works out. She gets long and gappy jumping out of the three-stride and has a consistent rest of her round.

Mimi Gochman makes easy work of this course. That was a lovely trip.

Avery Glynn could have been smoother from 1 to 2, and she had to hustle to jump out of the three-stride. She’s tight to 11 and executes a fantastic hand gallop to the last.

Augusta Iwasaki floats down to the first fence. Her horse jumps 3 so well, he lands in a bit of a heap and has to gallop to get the three strides, resulting in a swap. They don’t have any major errors.

Hensley Humphries’ horse gives a cute head toss when she strikes up the canter. He swaps to fence 1. She gets a little lost in the bending four from 9 to 10, but her horse’s stride is so big he covers it. Everything else was very smooth.

Grace Debney finds the perfect gap into the long three-stride across the middle. She goes to angle the square oxer at 11, but her horse does a drive-by instead. She circles and finishes nicely.

Tessa Brown pushes her horse to get three strides from 3 to 4, and he just barely makes it. His big stride then eats up the bending lines from 8AB to 10. Lots of whoops for Tessa!

Audrey Schulze is a hair tight to the first two jumps, then opens up her stride and nails the rest of the course. Her horse might have swapped at 9, but it was hard to tell.

Catalina Peralta made the second round look effortless. Her horse really keyed in on the oxer at 11 and might have been ever so slightly tight, but jumped it great.

Zayna Rizvi had a lovely round marred only by a swap at the pink wall. We’ll see how the judges handle it!

 

There will be additional testing for four riders in reverse order of preference: Tessa Brown, Catalina Peralta, Zayna Rizvi, Audrey Schulze.

The test:

Riders will have no stirrups.

Hand galloping directly to fence 3

Canter 10

Halt at the markers

Counter canter fence 11

Counter canter fence 9

Canter fence 5AB

Canter 2

Exit the ring at a walk

Tessa Brown takes a few steps to halt after 10, then picks up a nice counter canter. Has a slow, lofty fence 11 but lands the counter lead and holds it to 9. The remaining jumps are right out of stride.

Catalina Peralta has great pace to start, halts just past the markers. Executes both counter canters and finds a very handy track around 11 to 5AB. The last jump is lovely.

Zayna Rizvi’s leg is motionless! Her first two fences are lovely. She halts right at the markers, picks up the counter lead. After 11, she takes an inside turn the previous two riders haven’t, walks, picks up the counter lead and continues on effortlessly.

Audrey Schulze nails the hand gallop, get her horse back for the NHS fence and the halt, strikes up the counter canter. She doesn’t land the counter lead after the NHS fence, and takes the wide track to do a flying change of leads. She also takes the wide turn from 9 to 5AB, and the rest of the fences are lovely.