Tori Smolinski (front row, third from right) won her walk-trot-canter. Cecelia Langley (front row, fourth from right) won her walk-trot. Quinn Lowsky (back row on far left, mostly hidden) won his novice flat. Savannah College of Art & Design head coach Ashley Henry (on far left) is happy these people ride for her team as the Bees won the Winter Tournament of Champions and earned the tournament series trophy as a bonus! (Photo courtesy Jim Arrigon)

SAVANNAH COLLEGE OF ART & DESIGN MAKES IT TWO OF THREE, WINS 2013-14 TOURNAMENT SERIES TROPHY

(Jim Arrigon, the IHSA National Secretary and former coach of no less than four IHSA teams including his alma matter, Miami University of Ohio, wrote a press release following the January 25th Winter Tournament of Champions invitational. Arrigon created the tournament series over 22 years ago and with wife Gwen has put on each undergraduate tournament event in that time. It is estimated that over 40 tournament events have take place since 1992, with the Winter Tournament the youngest entry in the field for the moment - Editor.)

Fredericksburg, VA - If you follow collegiate riding even a little you’ve probably heard the name “SCAD” although until this year few would have thought of them as THE TOP collegiate team in the South. Those who follow collegiate riding for a living will at this point tell you...Savannah College of Art & Design is the best team in the South. Their win at the Tournament of Champions Winter Classic on January 25th hosted by the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia was their second Tournament win this season, having also won the Pre-season Classic in Lynchburg, Virginia in September. Having never previously won a single Tournament event, SCAD won two of three this year and easily won the Tournament Series Championship for the first time. Repeating myself from the September press release, "...I believe we’re seeing the beginning of the next IHSA Southern dynasty."

(Early in the show) They won two classes – Tori Smolinski won in Walk-Trot-Canter and Cecilia Langley won for the second time this Tournament season in Walk-Trot – quickly establishing a decisive lead. Bridgewater’s only lead occurred after Michaela Bragg won the first class of the show – Intermediate Flat - over SCAD’s second place Ryan Genn. Michael Kocher took a third Place in the second class, Open Fences, to give SCAD a lead they would hold the rest of the day. When Bridgewater lingered a little too near for a little too long, SCAD scored two final blows in the last two classes to put their championship on ice, when Lydia Todd took third place in open flat and Quinn Lowsky won the Novice flat (Lowsky brought the Bee's blue ribbon total to three).

The 2013-14 Series Championship finished exactly the same way, with SCAD Coach Ashley Henry taking the Series Championship trophy home to Savannah, Georgia for the first time ever. Bridgewater College ended up as Reserve Champion for the Series Championship for the second year in a row.

The field of teams was one of the most competitive ever and the scores reflected that competitiveness with all 20 teams scoring in double digits. Predictably Goucher and Mount Holyoke finished in the top team ribbons but there were some real surprises. Virginia Tech rode extremely well, taking the third Place team ribbon. Mary Washington had a slight home team advantage, claiming sixth Place and Kentucky and Findlay took the seventh and eighth places in a renewal of an old Zone 6 rivalry but with two new coaches.

Virginia Tech won the most blue ribbons (three) and their two blues over fences tied them with Mary Washington for the most jumping points, with Bridgewater and Mount Holyoke close behind. Interestingly SCAD scored only 6 points over fences but led with 30 points on the flat. Bridgewater was second best in flat points with 22 (a very consistent day for Jerry Schurink’s Bridgewater team) and Goucher had 21. Goucher and Rutgers were tied for dependability in terms of the least goose eggs, as each had only one class without putting points on the board. Nobody scored in all their classes. We were looking forward to a cousin vs. cousin faceoff, but St. Andrews Kelsey Kocher and SCAD’s Michael Kocher never appeared in the same section. Kelsey’s father Kerry Kocher was the Course Designer for the 2013 IHSA National Championships and is the brother of Michael’s father, Kelly Kocher, also a well known show horse professional in North Carolina.

We admit it. This photo is from the Holiday Tournament of Champions in December but it remains relevant through the Winter tournament. Chase Boggio of Tufts University (on left) is seen here with Jumbos coach Katie Schaaf and Tournament Series creator Jim Arrigon (on right) after winning his open fences. On January 25th Boggio won the Collegiate Medal Class. The Tufts sophomore has yet to lose a class in which he was entered at a Tournament of Champions event.

The field included 15 teams currently first place in their respective regions but among the four second place teams were three who contributed important highlights to this Tournament. Virginia Tech is always among top Tournament teams but has the distinct misfortune of living down the road from perennial favorites Virginia Intermont. Bridgewater is currently 2nd place behind Sweet Briar in that super tough central Virginia region but Bridgewater has taken up residency in the Reserve Champion spot in the Tournament standings the past two years. Tufts is a close second place behind Boston University (in Zone 1, Region 4) but Tufts has what nobody else has: Chase Boggio.

One of the real highlights of the Winter Classic was the Tournament of Champions Medal. No fewer than seven of the 24 entries had finished in Champion or Reserve Champion in the Tournament Medal previously, including three of the last four winners – Chelsea Koerper of Del Val, Goucher’s Joey Fink and Brendan Weiss of Penn State. Mount Holyoke’s Lexie Lohrer is also a former Tournament Medal Champion but gave up that spot so a teammate could have a chance. Virginia Intermont’s Blake Roberts and Madeline Reich of Middle Tennessee State had finished third and fourth in the national Cacchione Cup last Spring and Bridgewater’s Taylor Rose had come so close to winning the Tournament Medal several times before. Even so, all eyes were on Boggio, riding for Tufts University in Boston. Chase is well known in national level equitation circles, and in his first appearance as a collegiate rider back in December he had won the Open Fences for his Tufts team, but this was his first shot at the Tournament of Champions Medal.

Judge Tom Brennan watched two groups of flat riders, calling back half to jump on a random horse. Boggio, Rose, Roberts and Kaitlan Parker of Bridgewater College were called back a second time to test additionally on a horse that Brennan had hand picked for them. In the end Boggio lived up to his billing and won the final Tournament of Champions Medal of the season, with Rose and Roberts – both seniors - coming up short one final time. Parker, a freshman, finished in third place. Interestingly Tufts Coach Katie Schaaf had her second straight Medal winner, also having coached Nanu Mehta, the winner of the Medal at the Prep Tournament of Champions the previous weekend.

In the Equestrian Talent Search Medal Veronica Woodson won in her first try. In fact Woodson had just been entered into the ETS Medal – sponsored by Delaware Valley College – when she earned the “Most Improved” award at the ETS clinic at Mount Holyoke College the previous weekend. Woodson was admitted into the clinic at the last second when someone else had scratched. Woodson is a high school junior from Mason, Ohio and rides mostly in the quarter horse circuit and in IEA. Among other prizes Woodson won a $8,000.00 scholarship to Delaware Valley College in Pennsylvania.

This photo goes all the way back to the December 2011 Holiday Tournament of Champions. Alex Echevarria (on left) and Sara Echevarria (on right) pose with their Mother Denise prior to competing in the Equestrian Talent Search Medal Division. Alex later joined the Penn State team while current high school senior Sara was second in the ETS Medal class on January 25th.

Judge Brennan (of Charles Town, West Virginia) is best known for riding Gramercy Park to the 2012 World Champion Hunter Horse of the Year, working out of his Winter Hill Farm in Northern Virginia. Brennan had a personal connection to the show as he himself previously had competed in the Tournament of Champions as a student at Stonehill College. Brennon was a member of the 2003 IHSA National Championship Stonehill team.

The announcer was a regular to Tournament – Ariadne Paxton of Lexington, Virginia. Stewards were Chris Mitchell of Randolph College, Cory Kieschnick of Delaware Valley College and Schaaf of Tufts. The weather was cold, uncharacteristic of Fredericksburg but characteristic of Tournament. Temperatures began the day at about 20 degrees and rose to the upper 30’s. The show was held indoors at the Hazelwild Farm complex, home to Mary Washington varsity equestrian. The Show Manager was head coach Teresa Seay of Mary Washington. Additional horses were provided by Bridgewater College and Goucher College.

Sadly many of the same coaches met in Blacksburg, Virginia the next day to attend the funeral of Teresa “T” McDonald, who had served as Head Coach of Virginia Tech’s equestrian team for 20 years. McDonald succumbed after a long fight with cancer at the age of 58. "T" served on the IHSA Board of Directors for nearly two decades and was honored in 2009 with the IHSA’s Lifetime Achievement Award for excellence as an IHSA rider, coach and Director.

Next on the Tournament of Champions schedule is the third and final Prep Tournament of that series, March 29 at Otterbein University near Columbus, Ohio. The Prep Tournament uses the same format but for younger riders including prep school teams, IEA teams, etc. The next collegiate Tournament will be the 2014 Preseason Classic, hosted September 20th at Goucher College in Towson, Maryland near Baltimore. Teams interested in becoming involved in Tournament of Champions should contact JimArrigon@hotmail.com.

--Jim Arrigon

Team Totals: Savannah College of Art & Design (High Point Team) 36; Bridgewater College (Reserve) 33; Virginia Tech 31; Goucher College 27; Mount Holyoke College 23; University of Mary Washington 22; University of Kentucky 21; University of Findlay 20; Penn State University (State College) 17; Boston University 16; St. Andrews University 16; Rutgers University 16; Tufts University 15; Virginia Intermont College 15; Delaware Valley College 12; University of Delaware 12; University of Massachusetts at Amherst 11; Randolph College 11; University of Mary Washington Grey Team 10 and Dartmouth College 10.

Results of Medal Division: 1. Chase Boggio, Tufts University. 2. Taylor Rose, Bridgewater College. 3. Kaitlan Parker, Bridgewater College. 4. Blake Roberts, Virginia Intermont College. 5. Molly Banfield, University of Mary Washington. 6. Michael Kocher, Savannah College of Art & Design. 7. Emily Allard, Mount Holyoke College. 8. Chelsea Koerper, Delaware Valley College. 9. Bridgit Finnerty, Mount Holyoke College. 10. Joey Fink, Goucher College.

Results of Equestrian Talent Search Medal Division: 1. Veronica Woodson, Mason, Ohio. 2. Sara Echevarria, Neshanic Station, New Jersey. 3. Erin Vieau, Syracuse, New York. 4. Mary Madison Lafitte, Estill, South Carolina. 5. Elizabeth McKim, Wilmington, North Carolina. 6. Madeline Pierce, Columbus, Ohio. 7. Sydney Barnett, Crystal Lake, Illinois. 8. Mackenzie Russ, Sayville, New York.

2013-14 Tournament Series Championship (top ten): 1. Savannah College of Art & Design (Champion) 67; Bridgewater College (Reserve) 61; Randolph College 54; Mount Holyoke College 50; Goucher College 50; Virginia Tech 49; St. Andrews University 43; Boston University 40; Virginia Intermont College 40 and University of Massachusetts at Amherst 40 (officially Mount Holyoke and Goucher tied for fourth while Boston University, VI and UMass-Amherst tied for eighth).

For more info about the Tournament of Champions series or the Equestrian Talent Search, please e-mail JimArrigon@hotmail.com or visit www.BeckettRunRiding.com or visit the Equestrian Talent Search page on Facebook.