The Dartmouth equestrian team took home the Reserve Championship at both the Bates-Bowdoin meet held March 6, and at the Mt. Ida meet March 28. At both shows they placed second out of nine teams with the University of Vermont winning Bates/Bowdoin and UVM and Mt. Ida tying for first at Mt. Ida.
Coach Sally Batton said, "I'm especially proud of our Reserve High Point Team Championships at Bates/Bowdoin and Mt Ida because they came in the winter while the team was in a lighter training schedule!"
Strong first-place finishes by Janelle Moerlein '06 in novice flat and Katherine Brill '06 in walk/trot helped the team win the Reserve Championship at the show held at Bates/Bowdoin.
Batton said, "Janelle and Katherine really pulled out all the stops and rode their best at the Bates/Bowdoin show. Our team points had been running in the middle of the pack but their back-to-back blue ribbons put us as Reserve High Point Team."
Brill added, "The Bates/Bowdoin show was particularly exciting, since we edged out the third place team at the last moment, with a win in the last class of the day."
At Mt. Ida last Sunday, Dartmouth had a strong showing with Sara Glazer '04 placing first in open fences, Lizzie Rauner '06 placing first in intermediate fences and Tim Malone '07 taking second in open flat.
Both Malone and Glazer have qualified for postseason competition in the Cacchione Cup by being among the top 10 open riders in the region.
"Both Tim and Sara have had great seasons and are high in the Cacchione Cup standings," Batton said. "They have both qualified for Regionals and I feel will present a strong showing for Dartmouth."
Malone and Glazer are among 10 Dartmouth equestrian riders who have accumulated enough points to advance to regionals next Sunday at Dartmouth's Morton Farm. Riders who place first or second in their classes at regionals will advance to zones later in April.
The team is looking forward to the final show of the season at Colby-Sawyer College next Saturday and to the postseason regionals competition at Morton Farm on Sunday.
Brill said, "I expect that the team overall will continue with the strong performances we've had so far, and we are also looking for a few more individuals to qualify for regionals on Saturday."
