Campus Equestrian: Zone 5, Region 5 Home Page

IHSA ZONE 5 - REGION 5

On the first day of 2026 IHSA Nationals in Mill Spring, North Carolina the individual limit over fences division was not tested. And if the judges had tested they probably would not have tested for first place. This is because the team of "Rebel" (a horse brought to IHSA Nationals by the State University of New York at Albany) and Peter Cavagnac of Savannah College of Art & Design (on left) posted a score of "90." The next-best score was an "86" and from there things were close. The SCAD junior from Amherst, Massachusetts obviously won the division, and later on May 1st Cavagnac would place second in individual limit on the flat. Two days later Cavagnac would win the team intermediate on the flat while the Bees would win IHSA Nationals by a healthy 14 points over Skidmore College. SCAD has now won five of the last 11 IHSA Nationals hunter seat team championships with Cavagnac on the team roster for two of them.

Zone 5 Zones in Hardeeville, South Carolina on March 28th started out very well for Florida State University. The riders who placed second in each of the first two individual classes were Seminoles including Madison Moore (on right). Seen here with hunter seat coach Rob Billings, the senior coincidentally from Tallahassee, Florida was second in the individual open over fences which was the first individual class of the event. On May 1st Moore closed out four years at Florida State with a seventh in the same division at IHSA Nationals. Moore was technically fourth in the Region 5 hunter seat open rider standings for the season as well.

The University of Central Florida finished in second place within the Zone 5, Region 5 hunter seat team standings in 2025-26, besting Florida State by 39 points in a field of 13 teams. One member of the Knights competed at 2026 Zone 5 Zones and she is Ashley Salviolo (on right). Seen here with head coach Lesli Isaacson, Salviolo (a junior from Boca Raton, Florida) placed eighth in the individual introductory equitation division at Zones in Hardeeville on March 28th.

The fourth-best team in Region 5 for hunter seat in 2025-26 was the University of Florida. The Gators finished only one point behind the Seminoles in the standings. While Kim Burnette (not pictured) is the Gators' head coach it is Heather Fischel (on the left) who coaches the team at all shows not held at their home base of Kimberden Farm. This photo is yet another from Zone 5 Zones. RyLee Haugh of the Gators (on right) was sixth in the Region 5 hunter seat open rider standings. Pronounced "Houk" the junior from New Oxford, Pennsylvania was fifth in individual open over fences at the Ronald C. Warach Equestrian Center in Hardeeville on March 28th.

Only five points separated second and fifth places in the Region 5 hunter seat open rider standings. With 69 combined open flat and fences points Bailey Wllliams of the University of South Florida (on right, with head coach Danielle Appley) technically finished third in the standings. The senior from Tampa, Florida was three points behind both Ashley Burgess of the University of Florida and Sophia Bouvier of Keiser University while sitting two points ahead of Moore (SCAD's Alex Alston, who won the Cacchione Cup at both 2025 and 2026 IHSA Nationals, scored a remarkable 129 of a possible 140 points to lead the region). The Bulls finished in fifth place overall, ten points behind the Gators and 36 points ahead of the University of North Florida.

Finding a large supply of introductory equitation riders is not an easy thing for any IHSA program to do. But Savannah College of Art & Design managed to send two riders - Hannah Durwachter and Grace Borell - to Regionals in the division while Sophia Iglesias (pictured) was held back for the post-season team competitions. This strategy worked as well as possible, as Iglesias (from Roanoke, Virginia) is seen here after winning the team intro class at Zones on March 28th during which the Bees won five of the eight team classes and first place team honors. Iglesias closed out her junior year with another blue in the division at Nationals on May 2nd.

Addison Hutchins of Keiser University (on left) qualified for 2026 Regionals in both intermediate divisions and qualified through to Zones in intermediate flat. From Clearwater, Florida, Hutchins is seen here with head coach (and former Cazenovia College rider) Cate Poppen - Eagan after placing third in intermediate flat at Zones to close out her sophomore year. Keiser finished eighth overall in the highly competitive Region 5 hunter seat team standings during the 2025-26 school year.

Ninth place in the region went to Stetson University. Five members of the Hatters qualified for Regionals including Ella Curran (on left, with head coach Jessalyn Gardner). A junior from Sarasota, Florida, Curran pointed out of both intermediate divisions in 2025-26.

Along with the likes of Hutchins and Curran, Maddy McLean of Florida Southern College was one of eight Region 5 riders to qualify for 2026 Regionals in the intermediate flat division. The senior from Lakewood, Colorado is seen here under the Mocs team tent at the February 8, 2025 SCAD show. Many of the Region 5 schools bring team tents to their IHSA shows to shade themselves from the strong Southeastern U.S. sun. One team McLean did not ride against at Regionals was SCAD, as the Bees had riders qualified individually in all the divisions except in both of the intermediates.

The other Florida State University rider to qualify from Zones through to '26 Nationals was Cara Jensen (pictured). From Lutz, Florida, Jensen followed up her second in individual intermediate over fences at Zones by closing out her junior year in Tallahassee with a fourth in the division within the indoor at Tryon International Equestrian Center in Mill Spring, North Carolina on May 1st (though this photo was taken outdoors at SCAD on March 28th).

This photo of Kayla Bardgett of Savannah College of Art & Design was taken under their covered arena after the conclusion of Zone 5 Zones on March 28th. Hailing from the island of Bermuda, Bardgett won the final class of the day on March 28th, the individual open on the flat. Bardgett technically tied for seventh with Lauren Schmidt of the University of Tampa in the Region 5 hunter seat open rider standings, though both earned a rather high combined 53 points considering seven riders scored more (some regions are fortunate if more than one rider scores above 53 combined open flat and fences points). SCAD won Zones by a 46-36 margin over Berry College and went on to win 61-47 over Skidmore at Nationals where the scoring system awards ten points for first, eight for second, seven for third down to a half a point for tenth place.

While SCAD's run of Region 5 hunter seat team titles stretches back to 2011 the University of Florida has a run of Region 5 (or Area 5.0) western team titles stretching back to 2015. Adrianna Loper of the Gators is seen here at the March 2025 Logan Township, New Jersey Semifinal during which ironically she did not lope! From Orlando, Florida, Loper was eighth in the individual beginner western horsemanship on March 16th of 2025. In 2025-26 Loper did in fact lope at Semifinals in Findlay, Ohio. Loper closed out her senior year by placing sixth in team level I western horsemanship on March 24th. Loper also qualified for '26 Regionals in rookie western horsemanship.

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The Zone 5, Region 5 Smorgasbord

Schools which competed in Zone 5, Region 5 during the 2025-2026 school year: Florida Atlantic University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Florida Southern College, Florida State University, Keiser University, Rollins College, Savannah College of Art & Design, Stetson University, University of Central Florida, University of Florida, University of Miami (FL), University of North Florida, University of South Florida and University of Tampa.

Fall 2026 Show Schedule for Zone 5, Region 5:

Saturday, October 17 University of Florida (Host) at Kimberden Farm, Ocala, FL 9:00AM ENGLISH ONLY

Sunday, October 18 University of Central Florida (Host) at Kimberden Farm, Ocala, FL 9:00AM ENGLISH ONLY

Saturday, October 31 Savannah College of Art & Design (Host) at the Ronald C. Waranch Equestrian Center, Hardeeville, SC 9:00AM ENGLISH ONLY

Sunday, November 1 Savannah College of Art & Design (Host) at the Ronald C. Waranch Equestrian Center, Hardeeville, SC 9:00AM ENGLISH ONLY

Saturday, November 14 Florida Southern College/University of South Florida (Co-Hosts) at English Oaks Equestrian Center, Lakeland, FL 9:00AM ENGLISH ONLY

Saturday, November 21 University of Florida (Host) at the University of Florida Horse Teaching Unit, Gainesville, FL Time TBA 2 WESTERN ONLY

Sunday, November 22 University of Florida (Host) at the University of Florida Horse Teaching Unit, Gainesville, FL Time TBA 2 WESTERN ONLY

Georgia Southern University from Zone 5, Region 3 shows Western in Zone 5, Region 5 (Known as Area 5.0). Show Schedule subject to change.

Recent Region 5 Team Champions (region was spun off from Zone 5, Region 3 prior to the 2012-13 season)

Hunter Seat:

1997 - College of Charleston
1998 - College of Charleston
1999 - College of Charleston
2000 - College of Charleston
2001 - College of Charleston
2002 - University of Florida
2003 - University of Florida
2004 - Savannah College of Art & Design
2005 - College of Charleston
2006 - College of Charleston
2007 - College of Charleston
2008 - College of Charleston
2009 - College of Charleston
2010 - College of Charleston
2011 - Savannah College of Art & Design
2012 - Savannah College of Art & Design
2013 - Savannah College of Art & Design
2014 - Savannah College of Art & Design
2015 - Savannah College of Art & Design (2014-15
IHSA Hunter Seat National Champions)
2016 - Savannah College of Art & Design (2015-16
IHSA Hunter Seat National Champions)
2017 - Savannah College of Art & Design (2016-17
IHSA Hunter Seat National Champions)
2018 - Savannah College of Art & Design
2019 - Savannah College of Art & Design
2020 - Savannah College of Art & Design
2022 - Savannah College of Art & Design
2023 - Savannah College of Art & Design
2024 - Savannah College of Art & Design (2023-24
IHSA Hunter Seat National Champions)
2025 - Savannah College of Art & Design
2026 - Savannah College of Art & Design (2025-26
IHSA Hunter Seat National Champions)

Western:

1997 - ???????????????????????
1998 - ???????????????????????
1999 - ???????????????????????
2000 - Wesleyan College
2001 - University of Florida
2002 - Georgia Southern University
2003 - Wesleyan College
2004 - University of Florida
2005 - University of Florida
2006 - Georgia Southern University
2007 - University of Florida
2008 - Florida State University
2009 - Florida State University
2010 - Florida State University
2011 - University of Florida
2012 - Florida State University
2013 - Florida State University
2014 - University of Central Florida
2015 - University of Florida
2016 - University of Florida
2017 - University of Florida
2018 - University of Florida
2019 - University of Florida
2020 - University of Florida
2022 - University of Florida
2023 - University of Florida
2024 - University of Florida
2025 - University of Florida
2026 - University of Florida

Regional Qualifiers

Open Level Rider Standings

Team Standings

ZONE 5 NEIGHBORS

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