With the last two Varsity National Equestrian championship titles to their name, the Georgia Bulldogs were favored to win again this year, April 15-17 in Santa Fe, N.M. But South Carolina’s Gamecocks had won the Southern Equestrian Championships in March, and Georgia’s riders felt the pressure.

When Kristen Terebesi won her second of two classes, she clinched the NCAA title for the University of South Carolina, over the University of Georgia. Terebesi took first place in the first class, the over fences equitation on Friday. And in the last class on Saturday, on the flat, she managed to earn the blue again, despite a rocky start in the individual test.

Her mount, Celestino, decided he wouldn’t leave the lineup. Terebesi demonstrated her skill and patience by persisting in her request to trot the centerline–and the gelding did move forward instead of sideways.

“Apparently he’s pretty young and not used to all the waiting around,” said the freshman from Glenmoore, Pa. Other than what she called “his drama,” she said, “It was pretty easy to ride him up between your legs and your hands. He went right up on the bit.”

Megan Richardson, a senior from Atlanta, was Georgia’s star rider, earning her blue ribbons in section 2 on the flat and section 4 over fences. But at the competition’s end, Georgia’s score was 29, and South Carolina had tallied 40 points.

After her flat class win on the first day, Richardson admitted, “We’re scared. We won the last two years, and we’re undefeated this season. Today has been a rough day–but last year we were also frustrated the first day and came out and won the second day.”

“We had good horses, and the girls were a particularly close group this weekend,” said Boo Duncan, South Carolina’s head coach. “We’ve been close before–always the bridesmaid, never the bride. We came here knowing we could win, and the girls rode to the best of their abilities this weekend.”

Stronger Each Year

This year was the first contest for the NCAA title. The Varsity National Equestrian Championships began in 2002, and 2005 marked its fourth year and the first held in the West.

In hunt seat, 60 riders competed across four sections each of the two equitation classes. Besides the top two teams, entries represented Auburn University (Ala.), Fresno State University (Calif.), Kansas State University, New Mexico State University, Oklahoma State University, Pace University (N.Y.), Sacred Heart University (Conn.), Southern Methodist University (Texas), Texas A&M University, and West Texas A&M University.

Each school’s coach drew a horse’s name for each of the eight sections. Horses were loaned by New Mexico riders, New Mexico State University and Colorado State University. Each rider had only a four-minute warm-up to figure out a horse’s attitude and ability.

Judges Nancy Nordstrom of California and Jeffrey Ayers of Pennsylvania, both R-rated, chose the top six riders in each section to perform an individual test, based on the USEF hunt seat equitation tests. (The championship was a USEF-sanctioned show.) Over fences, each course included a halt halfway through the course and an in-and-out to be trotted.

“I tried to think about the halt right after the sixth jump,” said Ciearra Vinson of West Texas A&M University, winner of hunt seat equitation over fences, section 2. The senior from Grapevine, Texas, added, “On the trot, I knew my horse and kept my leg on him.”

In each over fences section, judges called back the top four riders for a test. Besides a trot fence, the last fence required dropping the irons and hand-galloping to the last fence. Riders had to switch horses for the test, so they had no warm-up on the new horse.

Terebesi first jumped the smaller Frankie and then switched to 18-hand Alexander. “With Frankie, I put him in a package–he was really adjustable. In the second round, on Alexander, I had to float the reins to him,” she said. “It was a lot like switching horses in the medal finals. You have to learn by watching. I wish we did it more on the regular circuit.”

Plenty Of Experience

Top riders from both Georgia and South Carolina developed their skills on the A-rated circuit. Terebesi, a veteran of USEF and USET medal finals, has trained with Frank Madden. Logan Fiorentino has ridden with Scott Stewart and Frank Madden. Tara Brothers, who won the blue in section 1 of the flat class for South Carolina, rode with Jeff and Shelley Campf of Canby, Ore.

Fiorentino, a sophomore from Bayville, N.Y., won hunt seat equitation over fences, section 3. She was recruited from Adelphi University (N.Y.) to the University of Georgia. “There’s a considerable amount of pressure, but you can’t let it affect you,” she said. “You go out and ride one fence at a time.”

In the second round, she rode Ralph. “He was absolutely awesome,” she said. “He was smooth and just made my job so much easier. He did everything I asked him to do.”

Kate Janczak from Sacred Heart won the flat class, section 3, riding Hugo. “He was quite fidgety and didn’t want to walk,” she said. “He had a nice canter, and he moved forward and came back when I asked him to. In the test, he listened to everything I said.”

The flat class used USEF Tests 3 and 4, of figure eights and posting trot and canter with a simple lead change. In section 1, the judges told riders they expected to see closure to the figure eight. The test description in the rulebook doesn’t spell it out, but equitation riders should understand the unspoken instruction to halt after the final figure.

Teammates spread the word, and the later sections showed more polished tests. Some riders even added a turn on the forehand or haunches, and then a brisk trot back to the lineup.

A Sport In The Making

The NCAA considers equestrian an “emerging” sport, with 17 Division I schools and four Division II. Georgia’s head coach, Meghan Boenig, said, “[The riders] work in the weight room, and also it’s riding, riding, riding. We compete in a proposed NCAA format and work on accuracy to put down good trips.”

Megan McGee, head coach at South Dakota State University, described training programs for the rider’s core strength. “You need some physical strength to maintain your position, especially when you are riding 30 minutes in a flat class. We use Pilates, yoga and water aerobics.”

She recalled how the university’s strength coaches first dismissed riding as “easy,” and they couldn’t understand why riders needed to be strong. “We got them to come out and ride, and then they said, ‘This is a lot more work than it looks’ .”

Those coaches help riders with exercises for the inner thigh, back, and groin. McGee added that calf stretches and toe lifts also improve their equitation skills.

South Dakota coaches plan to enter the NCAA ranks next season. This school and Baylor University (Texas) are both starting equestrian teams just for varsity competition, bypassing Intercollegiate Horse Show Association shows.

“We’re new, but being affiliated with NCAA elevates the equestrian sport to a new level,” said McGee. After starting in October 2004, she already has 25 riders, and the university’s foundation is building an 80-stall facility.