Mount Holyoke College head coach C.J. Law (center) is seen here with Francesca "Franny" Eremeeva (on left) and Mollie Kowalchik (on right) following the awarding of ribbons in the High Medal Division at the 2016 Pre-Season Tournament of Champions in Towson, Maryland on September 17th. Eremeeva won the division in what was her first IHSA-related show while Kowalchik was fourth. The 2016 IHSA Reserve National Champions had two teams in the tournament, with "Hello" placing fourth and "Adele" placing seventh.

DEFENDING NATIONAL CHAMPIONS TAKE FIRST LEG OF TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS SERIES

Towson, MD - If you have a team of eight riders, with one rider entered in each division, and four of them win blue ribbons the chances are you are going to win. But what if two teams at the same show accomplish this feat?

This was the case at the Pre-Season Tournament of Champions invitational on the campus of Goucher College in Towson, Maryland on September 17th, as both Savannah College of Art & Design and Randolph College were quadruple blue ribbon winners.

Maddie Albano (in intermediate flat), Mikayla Colson (walk-trot), Tess Mroczka (novice fences) and Lillian Hilgers (novice flat) won first place ribbons for SCAD, whose most recent IHSA-related event prior to this day was to win IHSA Nationals for the second consecutive season.

Eliza Gretok (intermediate fences), Caroline Houston (novice flat), Michelle Smith (walk-trot-canter) and Madeline Davis (novice fences) won classes for Randolph, whose 38 points may be their highest team score at a Tournament of Champions event.

However thanks to a pair of seconds, one third and one fourth SCAD was high point team, just as they were in Lexington, Kentucky over four months earlier when they won their second consecutive National Championship. Back on May 7th the Bees were National Champions with 36 points. Today they were nine better with 45.

And this is only half the story, as the 45 points were earned by their "Gold Team." Three schools had two teams participating and SCAD also had a second team (known as the "Black" team) which scored 24 points for sixth place. Kyle Regenye (pronounced 'Rej-en-knee'), a freshman from Tewksbury, New Jersey, won the first class of the day (intermediate flat) while Erika Brown (senior, Panama City Beach, Florida) won her walk-trot class to bring the combined Gold and Black teams blue ribbon total to six. With two sections of each division held their were a total of 16 blue ribbons to be won in the team classes. SCAD and Randolph combined to win ten of them.

Bridgewater College scored 30 points for third place, with 12 of those points earned by Zellie Wothers (center). A junior from Sykesville, Maryland, Wothers is seen here with her parents following a second place showing in intermediate flat. Wothers later won her intermediate fences.

Bridgewater College was third with 30 points. Zellie Wothers led the way for the Eagles, winning her intermediate over fences while placing second to Albano in intermediate flat. Two schools scored 27 points. Mount Holyoke College won the tiebreaker with host Goucher College. While Sarah Lummis won her walk-trot-canter for the Gopher's only blue ribbon of the day the Mount Holyoke College team called "Hello" captured two blue ribbons. Franny Eremeeva (pronounced "Yeh-reh-may-eh-vah") won the second section of open fences while Mollie Kowalchik won the first section of open flat. "Most Blue Ribbons" was the first tiebreaker, which meant fourth place for Mount Holyoke "Hello" and fifth for Goucher.

Eremeeva, from Moscow, Russia, was appearing in her first IHSA-related show and she would go undefeated. There were two medal classes, with one being a "High Medal" and the other a "Low Medal." Eremeeva, an open rider, was one of 16 entries to show in the high medal. The field was narrowed to eight and then from that number Eremeeva edged out Cary Hundley of Goucher to win the High Medal. However Hundley's teammate Lummis also went undefeated. A senior from Westminster, Maryland, Lummis went through the same process as Eremeeva to win the Low Medal. Madison Bonner of Emory and Henry College was the red ribbon-winner in the Low Medal.

Two others were blue ribbon winners. University of Delaware senior Abby Johnston won the first section of open fences to help the Fighting Hens reach 18 points while Juliette Silvain won the second section of open flat to help George Washington University score 14. A freshman from Boston, Massachusetts, Silvain was one of many riders appearing in an IHSA-related show for the first time, and in this case it was the first Tournament of Champions series show for the Colonials.

George Washington and Liberty University had not appeared in any Tournament of Champions competitions prior to today's contest. With Tournament of Champions series co-founder Jim Arrigon now in his second season as Executive Director of Riding at Liberty it was not too surprising that the vastly-improved Flames would appear at a tournament event at some point. A pair of freshmen, Amber Gayheart (intermediate over fences) and Bailey Boan (walk-trot-canter) won red ribbons for Liberty to account for half of the Flame's 20 points. Team ribbons were awarded to eighth place, which is where Liberty finished in their tournament debut.

If the year ends in an even number the chances are very good that the pre-season tournament will be held on the campus of Goucher College. The host Gophers were fifth with 27 points while Sarah Lummis (pictured) won the Low Medal Division. Lummis went undefeated for the day, also winning her walk-trot-canter class.

Rumor has it: Mount Holyoke chose the most interesting names to differentiate their two teams. Almost a year ago when singer Adele put out her third album "25" a song off that album, "Hello", struck a nerve with the public worldwide. Without going into great detail the song has become near and dear to many at Mount Holyoke and their teams at today's show were named for the song "Hello" and for the singer "Adele." Team Adele finished one point ahead of Liberty with 21 points and seventh place. With everyone staying on their horses today no one was rolling in the deep!

Way to go Ohio: The second of four 2016-17 Tournament of Champions series events will be the Holiday Tournament of Champions on December 3rd in Coolville, Ohio. This show will take place at Stonegate Farm, home to the Ohio University equestrian team and a structure with indoor heating to boot. Those who attend may find more than the usual amount of High School riders in the bleechers, for on December 4th there will be a Equestrian Talent Search prep Tournament event involving many IEA teams. However non-IEA riders may form their own "Prep Team" and compete in the December 4th show.

As was the case in recent seasons there will be two Winter Tournament of Champions events a week apart in January 2017. On Saturday, January 21st Bridgewater College will host while on January 28th Emory and Henry College will do the same. It is not clear at this early date if schools will be allowed to compete in both January events, as the goal is to get as many schools into at least one of the two events as possible.

Three schools had two teams in attendance: Penn State, Mount Holyoke and defending National Champion Savannah College of Art & Design. Named for the school colors, SCAD "Black" was sixth while SCAD Gold was the 2016 Pre-Season Champion. Coached by Ashley Henry (on far left), the Gold Team is seen here with their ribbons and the team banner. Four firsts, two seconds, a third and a fourth brought their total to 45 points, seven more than runner-up Randolph College.

Today's show program even listed the 2017-18 Tournament event locations. Randolph College will host the Pre-Season tourney next year while Centenary College will continue their pattern of alternating with Ohio University by hosting another odd year Holiday Tournament show. The University of Mary Washington will host the first of the two January 2018 Winter Tournaments while the following week Stonegate Farm will do the honors. One can only hope the weather at Hazelwild Farm where Mary Washington hosts will better than average for January, as last season two feet of snow fell on Fredericksburg forcing the only outright cancelation of a Tournament of Champions event in the 25 year history of the competitions. It is worth noting that in January of 2012 temps were so nice on January 28th that riders mounted up outdoors before entering the Hazelwild Farm indoor ring, which made for one of the nicest weather days ever for a January Tournament show.

--Steve Maxwell

Show Incidentals: Overcast skies, with temperatures reaching the low 80's. Start time: 9:31AM. Finish: 3:29PM. Judge: Laura Norment, Raleigh, North Carolina. Stewards: Debra Fields/West Virginia University; Chris Mitchell/Randolph College and Jerry Schurink/Bridgewater College. This show was Hunter Seat or English only.

Team Totals: Savannah College of Art & Design - Team Gold (High Point Team) 45; Randolph College (Reserve) 38; Bridgewater College 30; Mount Holyoke College - Team Hello 27; Goucher College 27; Savannah College of Art & Design - Team Black 24; Mount Holyoke College - Team Adele 21; Liberty University 20; University of Delaware 18; Penn State University (State College) - Team Blue 17; Penn State University (State College) - Team White 17; Wake Forest University 16; University of Connecticut 16; Emory & Henry College 15; George Washington University 14 and West Virginia University 7.

Class-by-class results, in the order in which they were held:

Intermediate equitation on the flat - Section A: 1. Kyle Regenye, Savannah College of Art & Design - Team Black. 2. Katie Groomes, Penn State University - Team Blue. 3. Kathryn Maharis, Emory & Henry College. 4. Alle Platanitis, Mount Holyoke College - Team Hello. 5. Amanda Sakwa, University of Delaware. 6. Kendall Burdette, Liberty University.

Open equitation over fences - Section A: 1. Abby Johnston, University of Delaware. 2. Margaret Collins, Wake Forest University. 3. John Porter, Goucher College. 4. Samantha Van Winter, Bridgewater College. 5. Tess Lee, Penn State University - Team Blue. 6. Rebecca Haber, George Washington University.

Intermediate equitation on the flat - Section B: 1. Maddie Albano, Savannah College of Art & Design. 2. Zellie Wothers, Bridgewater College. 3. Sam Hurley, Penn State University - Team White. 4. Samantha Calzone, University of Connecticut. 5. Sean Muir, Wake Forest University. 6. Eliza Gretok, Randolph College.

Open equitation over fences - Section B: 1. Franny Eremeeva, Mount Holyoke College - Team Hello. 2. Chipper Smith, Savannah College of Art & Design - Team Gold. 3. Morgan Hoke, Randolph College. 4. Samantha Prusak, University of Connecticut. 5. Sarah Echevarria, Penn State University - Team White. 6. Kendall Burdette, Liberty University.

Intermediate equitation over fences - Section A: 1. Eliza Gretok, Randolph College. 2. Meredith Denny, Savannah College of Art & Design - Team Gold. 3. Alison Radgowski, Goucher College. 4. Emma Recchi, Mount Holyoke College - Team Adele. 5. Marina Coleman, University of Connecticut. 6. Jaclyn Cacale, Penn State University - Team Blue.

Walk-trot-canter equitation on the flat - Section A: 1. Sarah Lummis, Goucher College. 2. Bailey Boan, Liberty University. 3. Sarah Etzel, Mount Holyoke College - Team Hello. 4. Peter Werner, Savannah College of Art & Design - Team Gold. 5. Christine Ruffin, Penn State University - Team White. 6. Victoria Lustig, Emory & Henry College.

Intermediate equitation over fences - Section B: 1. Zellie Wothers, Bridgewater College. 2. Amber Gayheart, Liberty University. 3. Melissa Stecklow, Penn State University - Team White. 4. Grace Crawford, Savannah College of Art & Design. 5. Abby Trombley, Wake Forest University. 6. Charlotte Cilio, University of Delaware.

If today's show is an indication then the class of 2020 will be special. Four freshmen won classes for their teams including Caroline Houston of Randolph College (on right). Seen here with the Wildcats' new assistant coach (and former St. Lawrence University rider) Lauryn Tannenhaus, Houston's first IHSA-related ride of any kind resulted in first place in the first of two sections of novice flat.

Novice equitation on the flat - Section A: 1. Caroline Houston, Randolph College. 2. Megan Escobar, Bridgewater College. 3. Miquela Allen, Savannah College of Art & Design - Team Black. 4. Lexie Lobdell, Mount Holyoke College - Team Hello. 5. Clea Lerner, Goucher College. 6. Amber Gayheart, Liberty University.

Walk-trot equitation on the flat - Section A: 1. Mikayla Colson, Savannah College of Art & Design - Team Gold. 2. Abigail Carpenter, Randolph College. 3. Sophia Benjamin, George Washington University. 4. Ari Schlossberg, Goucher College. 5. Rebecca Scoggin, Bridgewater College. 6. Eliza Baker, University of Connecticut.

Open equitation on the flat - Section A: 1. Mollie Kowalchik, Mount Holyoke College - Team Hello. 2. Marina Coleman, University of Connecticut. 3. Tatum Tatreau, Savannah College of Art & Design - Team Gold. 4. John Porter, Goucher College. 5. Margaret Collins, Wake Forest University. 6. Tess Lee, Penn State University - Team Blue.

Walk-trot-canter equitation on the flat - Section B: 1. Michelle Smith, Randolph College. 2. Hannah Engle, Bridgewater College. 3. Cat Lamond, Mount Holyoke College - Team Adele. 4. Gabby Woods, Penn State University - Team Blue. 5. Sarabeth Benusa, West Virginia University. 6. Tara McAllister, George Washington University.

Novice equitation over fences - Section A: 1. Tess Mroczka, Savannah College of Art & Design - Team Gold. 2. Megan Perdew, Penn State University - Team White. 3. Rena DiPaula, Goucher College. 4. Harriet Thompson, Mount Holyoke College - Team Hello. 5. Caroline Shipe, Bridgewater College. 6. Victoria Latham, Wake Forest University.

Walk-trot equitation on the flat - Section B: 1. Erika Brown, Savannah College of Art & Design - Team Black. 2. Alexandra Friedman, Mount Holyoke College - Team Adele. 3. Julia Carter, West Virginia University. 4. Anna Davidson, Liberty University. 5. Anna Belen Gomez, Emory & Henry College. 6. Carolyn Hernandez, Wake Forest University.

Novice equitation over fences - Section B: 1. Madeline Davis, Randolph College. 2. Kristie Stamatis, Penn State University - Team Blue. 3. Alyssa Kelly, University of Delaware. 4. Odessa Thacker, Emory & Henry College. 5. Zoe Leppke, Liberty University. 6. Alex Davidson, West Virginia University.

Open equitation on the flat - Section B: 1. Juliette Silvain, George Washington University. 2. Bridget Finnerty, Mount Holyoke College - Team Adele. 3. Abby Johnston, University of Delaware. 4. Caydee Dickensheets, Savannah College of Art & Design - Team Black. 5. Elizabeth Chenelle, Liberty University. 6. Samantha Van Winter, Bridgewater College.

Novice equitation on the flat - Section B: 1. Lillian Hilgers, Savannah College of Art & Design - Team Gold. 2. Bobbie Jo Adsit, Emory & Henry College. 3. Sabrina Fox, Mount Holyoke College - Team Adele. 4. Victoria Latham, Wake Forest University. 5. Lisa Russon, University of Connecticut. 6. Elizabeth Dawahare, George Washington University.

Low Medal Division: 1. Sarah Lummis, Goucher College. 2. Madison Bonner, Emory & Henry College. 3. Madeline Davis, Randolph College. 4. Grace Crawford, Savannah College of Art & Design. 5. Camden Carter, Mount Holyoke College. 6. Billie Henard, Emory & Henry College. 7. Olivia Durkin, Penn State University (State College). 8. Megan Escobar, Bridgewater College.

High Medal Division: 1. Franny Eremeeva, Mount Holyoke College. 2. Cary Hundley, Goucher College. 3. Tatum Tatreau, Savannah College of Art & Design. 4. Mollie Kowalchik, Mount Holyoke College. 5. John Porter, Goucher College. 6. Samantha Prusak, University of Connecticut. 7. Samantha Powers, Savannah College of Art & Design. 8. Eryn Linder, University of Delaware.