A sophomore from Mountain Lakes, New Jersey, Emily Odle (on left) was first in intermediate flat to provide Lafayette College with their only blue ribbon on March 6th. Head Coach Erin Githens (on right) still has the Leopards comfortably in first place despite a season-low 15 point effort.

PENN STATE - BERKS WINS MORAVIAN/RUTGERS SHOW

Readington, NJ - (The author of this story decided to try something new when preparing his article on the March 6th Rutgers/Moravian show. Rather than write in past tense, the story observes what was happening every hour at the bottom of the hour until he had to leave for a prior non-IHSA commitment).

7:39AM - I arrive at Briarwood. The Rutgers people have a program waiting for me. Though Drew University is not in Region 4 their Head Coach Karen Sykes is in the office. Sykes is making sure those in attendance wear white ribbons in memory of Jack Benson. Benson passed away of lung cancer on February 25th (A separate story on the passing of this legend is in the works). Sykes also tells me that Peter Cashman will receive the lifetime achievement award when Pace hosts at Briarwood tomorrow. This will mark only the second time the award has been presented at a regular season IHSA show, though because of new IHSA policy this is to become a regular occurance.

8:30AM - The show, scheduled to start at 8:30, hasn't started. Schooling is still taking place. One wonders if they would be closer to starting if Jack were still with us. I am introduced to Sophie Benjamin, a new open rider on the Princeton team who appears to be making her IHSA debut. Before that I chatted with Penn State - Berks Head Coach Chrystal Coffelt about the impending Zone realignment. Her Berks team plus Princeton and Rider would be joining four schools currently in Zone 3, Region 2 and another from Zone 3, Region 1 to create a new region. Coffelt is not happy about it at this time.

From left to right are Alex Neumann, Katie Moulton, Head Coach Marisa Kalmar and Maggie Gordon of Lehigh University. Gordon won her open flat for the Mountain Hawks lone blue ribbon of the day while becoming a Regional Qualifier at the same time.

9:30AM - Alexis Wirth wins 8B for Kutztown, giving the Golden Bears two firsts in as many tries. Andi Heinzman looks like a lock for the Cacchione, as PSU - Berks Larissa Ott was only fourth in 8B while Heinzman won 8A. Benjamin, from San Diego, California, is second in her IHSA debut.

Katie Benson is here! She shares a great story about working for Jack in the seventies. Apparently it was Katie's first job as a teenager and her Mother wanted to make sure that Jack was paying her properly. Looking out for Katie's best interests, her Mother had a conversation with Jack and insisted that Katie be compensated fairly and that her daughter receive minimum wage. Because both Katie and her Mother were at Briarwood at the moment, Jack hollered for Katie who came running to the barn to see what was up. Jack sat Katie down and explained in front of both that her Mother insisted she make minimum wage. Jack said something to the effect of "Therefore you will no longer make $5.00 per hour and instead make the (then current U.S.) minimum wage of $3.95!" "My Mother never interfeared with my affairs again," said Katie.

10:30AM - Winners since 9:30AM are Meredith Bock of Princeton (in open fences), Candice Girandola of ESU (intermediate fences), Kate Felter of Rutgers (intermediate fences) and Samantha Day of Colorado State (alumni fences). Day works nights in the ICU. Bob Cacchione shows up. The IHSA Founder and Executive Director is here to present Peter Cashman with the award tomorrow. Also Sarah Whitley wants to know when the Cedar Crest story will be posted. I feel for Sarah, as she was first both times at the November 1st Cedar Crest show which was also the final meet as an undergraduate for the former East Stroudsburg rider. The story sadly is still unfinished, but I still hope to post it one day.

11:30AM - Due to a delay with a rider falling (and a schooling break) only two classes have been completed since 10:30. Katie Carracappa (from Plainsboro, New Jersey) and Jessica Cavall (from Colts Neck, New Jersey) delivered back to back blue ribbons for Rutgers in the first two sections of novice fences. Cacchione makes the rounds meeting riders and their parents. When he meets Jess Arnold of Rutgers it turns out she too is from San Diego, and like Benjamin of Princeton is making her IHSA debut at the open level. Arnold explains that she learned so many riding skills from several individuals in the Wellington, Florida area on a trip east that she decided she wanted to go to school and ride on the East Coast.

It was such a sunny day that shadows from the brims of helmets and baseball caps nearly obliterated people's faces in our photos. Trust us that from left to right are Katie Caracappa, Sam Sagot and Emily Hulak of Rutgers. Caracappa won her novice fences to qualify for Regionals in the division while Hulak, who pointed out of intermediate flat earlier in the week at the Lehigh show, was fourth in her open flat debut.

12:30PM - I am in the Coaches and Captains meeting. Then I purchase chicken fingers off the food truck. Earlier Rutgers nearly swept the novice fences, but after Sarina Bowen of the Scarlet Knights won 4C Kutztown freshman Miranda Brooks snapped the streak with a win in 4D. Zone 3, Region 4 is now the only IHSA region nationwide holding the maiden crossrails division. Former Princeton Coach Nicole Selody introduced this division to Region 4 back in 2001, after having seen it held in Zone 2, Region 1 while competing as a one woman Montclair State University team. The division, which does not count in the standings, allows riders to jump a course of (usually) four crossrails. This allows those who are learning to jump to compete unofficially to gain experience before being placed in novice fences. Stephanie Testai, a Moravian College sophomore from Flemington, New Jersey who is already qualified for Regionals in advanced walk-trot-canter, won the division at today's show.

Normally I won't talk about what happens at the Coaches and Captains meeting but I cannot help but endorse what Lehigh Head Coach Marisa Kalmar said at one point. It seems that at the February 28th Lehigh show several riders spoke disparagingly about some of the horses used in the show (This is certainly not a problem exclusive to Region 4). Kalmar mentioned how many of the horses had been former champions and that if riders took issue with them then they should voice their opinions in private. I could not agree more! I have seen horses in many places behave well on one occasion and not as well on others (even the Briarwood horses are entitled to an off-day); I have seen riders do the same. It is best to go as far away from where anyone can hear you if you need to vent after a less-than-steller ride or placing.

1:30PM - The meeting runs so long I eat chicken fingers in the car and miss three sections of open flat. Bock wins again while Heinzman is second. Maggie Gordon of Lehigh and Libby Dayton of Rutgers win the other open flat sections. With Ott fourth again Heinzman is Kentucky-bound. Heinzman holds an 85-70 lead over Ott so even if Ott gets two firsts at the Rider show it will not affect the Region 4 Cacchione outcome.

From left to right are Meghan Carty, Taylor Myers, Head Coach Andrea Hart and Cassie Thornton of Rider University. Carty qualified for Regionals in advanced walk-trot-canter six days earlier. The Broncs were one of several teams whose rosters were affected by Spring Break and as a result scored only six points. Myers however was third in open fences.

2:30PM - Shannon Bilder wins the first blue ribbon of the day for Bloomsburg while former Susquehanna University rider Emily Odle does likewise for Lafayette. Both were winners in intermediate flat. I meet alumni rider Betsy Summers for the first time. A 1976 graduate of Centenary College (she was known as Betsy Coe at that time), Summers places fifth in alumni flat. However her personal story is an interesting one. Summers was the Liberatarian party candidate for U.S. Senate from Pennsylvania in 2004. Summers got to debate Arlen Spector on national television! Summers may not recall, but Centenary College captured their first Region Title while she was an undergraduate in Hackettstown. Princeton Head Coach and 1989 Virginia Intermont College graduate Ashton Phillips is Regionals-bound after winning the alumni flat. To the surprise of many, this is the first time all season that Phillips has earned a blue ribbon! Rhiannon Diak of Bloomsburg wins 3A novice flat while Jamie Valentine of Kutztown wins 2Aa beginner walk-trot-canter. I still have not taken a Bloomsburg photo yet today.

3:30PM - I get Shannon & Rhiannon of Bloomsburg in a photo. Only three schools have full cards say the point sheets on the wall. No one has more than 15 points at a quarter to three. Kathryn Diamantoni wins 3B for Rutgers, Polly Werner wins 2Ba for Berks and Erin Kanaley wins 3C for ESU. None figure in a ride-off. Cavall, Brooks and Bowen, each yet to flat, still do.

4:30PM - Judge Nancy Hall is running the flat classes at a brisk pace. I find time spent in the office typing on my laptop has kept me from keeping up with the placings shouted within the indoor across the way. I hear that Erin Bethke of Rider has won 2Ab to give the Broncs their first blue ribbon of the day. Sadly I have to leave to attend a Princeton basketball game in Princeton at 6:00PM. I will depend on the updated points arriving via e-mail the following week to get me caught up with what I missed.

A freshman from Wallingford, Pennsylvania, Miranda Brooks of Kutztown (center, in helmet) won her first IHSA jumping blue ribbon in the morning (in novice fences). In the afternoon Brooks won her novice flat to become part of a three-way ride-off for high point.

2:20PM on Wednesday, March 17th - The points arrived on Saturday. On Sunday the Rider University show was cancelled at the last minute. Heavy rain and 50 mile an hour winds knocked out power to Fox Heath Farm the day before the show while flooding occured in many parts of Bucks County. People like Phillips are fortunate to have qualified the previous weekend as it is doubtful the show will be made up before Regionals on March 20th. Winners over the final few classes on the 6th turn out to have been Montana Blum of Kutztown (in 3D), Kelsey Lynch of Rutgers (in 2Bb), Brooks of Kutztown (in 3E, creating the ride-off), Renee Levesque of Rutgers (in 2Bc), Bowen of Rutgers (in 3F, making it a three-way ride-off with Bock and Brooks), Kelly Kuzminski of the University of Scranton (in the lone section of walk-trot as it turned out, 1A) and Colleen McCormick of Scranton (in 2Be). Sadly as of the time of writing I do not know the results of the ride-off. If anyone knows the results of the ride-off I will gladly add them to the end of this story.

Though they did not win a class, Cedar Crest College produced three red ribbon winners in Jen Preston (novice fences), Lauren Nagy (advanced walk-trot-canter) and Jessie Price (walk-trot). Co-host Moravian College earned two red ribbons, as Erica Stocker (intermediate fences) and Steven Villar (advanced walk-trot-canter) were second in their respective classes.

The team points show that it was a low-scoring day. Only four schools scored in the 20's, which happened only once during the 2009-10 season prior to March 6th. Berks won with 26 points, the lowest high point team score from any of the nine shows. Kutztown was second with 23 while Rutgers and Scranton scored 22 each. Lafayette (with 15), Princeton (with nine) and Rider (with six) earn their season-low point totals. Some of these low scores should be taken with a grain of salt, as the start of Spring Break meant many regulars were not present. With the Rider show all but confirmed lost from the schedule, Lafayette finishes the season a 270-242 winner over Penn State Berks while Rutgers earns third place with 222.

--Steve Maxwell

Show Incidentals: Sunny skies, with temperatures in the upper '40's. Entire show held indoors. Start time: 8:56AM. Finish: Unknown - includes lunch break/Coaches & Captains meeting and several short schooling breaks. Point cards posted in this region? Yes. Alumni classes held in this region? Yes. Judge: Nancy Hall. Stewards: Kalmar/Lehigh University, Casale/Kutztown University and Hart/Rider University.

Team Totals: Penn State - Berks (High Point Team) 26; Kutztown University (Reserve) 23; Rutgers University 22; University of Scranton 22; Bloomsburg University 19; Lehigh University 16; Lafayette College 15; East Stroudsburg University 14; Cedar Crest College 14; Moravian College 14; Princeton University 9; Rider University 6 and Wilkes University 4.

High Point Rider - ?????????
Reserve High Point Rider - ?????????