UMC Western Equestrian Earns Reserve High Point Team Saturday
Skyla Knudtson rides during Saturday’s home show
CROOKSTON, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Crookston western equestrian team officially opened up the 2016-17 season with a pair of home shows Oct. 22 and 23 at University Teaching and Outreach Center (UTOC) in Crookston, Minn. The Golden Eagles claimed the Reserve High Point team title on Saturday, only missing the High Point title by one point. In addition, senior and western captain Cathy Ackroyd won her Open Horsemanship class and placed second in her Reining class in order to take High Point Rider for the day.
In addition to Ackroyd’s great rides on Saturday which earned her High Point rider, the Golden Eagles also had several strong showings from their other competitors. Katelynn Warner came away with a fourth-place finish in Advanced Horsemanship amid a tough class. Katelynn Robertson had a flawless ride on a challenging horse to win her section of Novice Horsemanship. Hannah Van Dyke also had a very successful showing in her section of Novice Horsemanship as she came away with a second-place finish.
Sarah Zellmer and Anna Johnson rode to fifth-place finishes in Intermediate Horsemanship. Madeline Drayna pulled out a third-place finish in Intermediate Horsemanship Saturday, while Whitney Weidenborder rode confidently to take home the first win of her career in Intermediate Horsemanship. Shayla Marthaler and EmmaRae Nelson rolled out to strong second-place finishes in Intermediate Horsemanship on Saturday.
Skyla Knudtson had a fabulous ride in her class of Beginner Intermediate riders as she swept away the competition to bring home her first win in a loping class. Jayde Proffitt worked hard with her Beginner Walk-Trot Horsemanship to also finish a solid second-place. All of UMC’s riders worked together to deliver a Reserve High Point Championship during the show.
On Sunday, the Golden Eagles faced more challenging draws, as well as a handful of hiccups. Ackroyd finished fifth in both her Reining and Open Horsemanship classes. Warner earned a third-place finish in Advanced Horsemanship. Robertson continued her streak from the day before to claim another win in her section of Novice Horsemanship. Robertson is flying through the Novice class and will soon be an Advanced rider.
Van Dyke also came out successful to finish with a strong second-place finish in her Novice Horsemanship section on Sunday. Johnson pointed out from Intermediate during Saturday’s competition and enter the Novice division effortlessly. Johnson would ride to a second-place finish. Drayna found her rhythm to claim her first win within her Intermediate Horsemanship section. Nelson also continued her successful streak to claim another win in her Intermediate Horsemanship class.
Marthaler continued to find her stride to earn a third-place finish, while Zellmer came in a strong fourth. Knudtson pulled out yet another strong finish to claim second in Beginner Intermediate, while Proffitt finished a well fought third-place within her Beginner Walk Trot class.
“Even though the Golden Eagles were unable to claim a High Point or Reserve title on Sunday, I could not have been happier with the way all athletes rode,” said Head Coach Kayla Krueger. “Our freshmen stepped up to the plate taking what we worked diligently on in practice the last couple of weeks and applying it where it really mattered. Points managed to stay very close during Sunday’s show allowing UMC to remain extremely competitive within the region. NDSU will be our next competition and I can guarantee that these riders will be bringing their “A” game.”
