Seen here with Red Raiders Head Coach Danica Jorgensen, Alicia Daugherty of Texas Tech University (on right) placed seventh overall in the 2010 individual AQHA Cup class at IHSA Nationals. Daugherty was fourth in the rail phase.

THE INDIVIDUAL AQHA TROPHY HEADS TO THE MOUNTAIN TIME ZONE FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 1995

(Hayley McGuire, an Oregon State University junior from West Linn, Oregon who competed at 2010 IHSA Nationals in both the team and individual western classes, has been a big help in providing Campus Equestrian with photos and storys from Zone 8, Region 4 this season. McGuire has written her account of the 2010 IHSA Nationals Individual AQHA Trophy/Cup competition, which determines who the top western open rider in the entire IHSA is each year - Editor).

LEXINGTON, KY - Perhaps considered the pinnacle of IHSA western competition, the Individual AQHA Cup competition brings together Open/Reining riders from all over the country to compete head to head. To compete for the Individual AQHA Trophy a rider must first finish the regular season with the most combined Open Reining and Open Western Horsemanship points in that rider's region.

The high point Open riders are scored in both a Horsemanship and Reining class, with their combined score determining class placing. Scores for each rider were posted following the conclusion of both Horsemanship phases of the competition. The top score received in either phase of Individual AQHA Trophy division is "120." Second would be "105," third "91," fourth "78," fifth "66," sixth "55," seventh "45," eighth "36," ninth "28," tenth "21," eleventh "15," twelfth "10," thirteenth "6," fourteenth "3," and fifteenth "1." Riders who placed sixteenth or below receive a "0" score for that phase. Unlike last year’s reining phase of AQHA Cup, judge’s scores were announced over the loudspeaker following every run (However, as was the case in most seasons prior to 2009 the announced reining scores did not match the AQHA system. For example the score announced after University of Findlay junior Katelyn "Katie" Morehead's reining pattern was "139.5" though when the official printout of both the reining and rail scores was posted this had been converted to a "105" or second place. This alternate method of scoring - which must be used before all the scores are then converted into the AQHA's "120," "105," etc. - has caused confusion at many prior IHSA Nationals shows due to the radically-different looking numbers which are later posted in the arena and on the official IHSA web site - Editor).

Though Ohio State senior Sarah Phillips (on right) heard her reining score announced as a '141.5' this score is automatically converted into '120' using the AQHA scoring system. This gave Phillips the top reining score out of 22 riders. Sister Laura (on left), who as a freshman at Ohio State won the individual AQHA trophy in 1999, was on hand to see Sarah earn fourth place overall.

Since its' introduction into the IHSA National competition in 1982, the honor of AQHA High Point Western Rider has remained mainly in the Eastern portion of the country (or at least east of the Mississippi - Editor). This year a rider West of Texas was able to claim the honor. Jason Romney, a Utah State University junior from the town of Farmington, Utah scored a 120 in horsemanship and ranked third in the reining to prevail with a combined score of 211. In addition to his success in the AQHA Cup, Romney earned top honors in the Individual Open Reining class, earning himself a coveted spot in the collegiate NRHA Derby. Romney had previously made his Nationals debut in 2007, placing third in Individual Open Reining (Romney did not compete one of the past two seasons which is why he is still a junior and has one year of IHSA eligibility remaining - Editor).

Similar to the Champion of the 2010 AQHA Cup, the Reserve Champion could claim to be one of the few riders to hail from the West Coast. Sabrina Wilson of Stanford University earned a score of 105 in the rail phase and a 66 in the reining giving her a combined total of 171. Wilson made her Nationals debut in 2008 when she placed second in Individual Open Horsemanship.

Many riders competing in the 2010 AQHA Cup could say that they were IHSA Nationals veterans. Seven riders from this year’s competition had ridden in the same class in 2009, while many more had competed in different classes in previous years. University of Findlay Junior Katie Morehead is one of the few riders in IHSA that can claim three consecutive years competing in the AQHA Cup, all three of which Morehead has placed in the top three. Defending AQHA Cup Champion Jennifer Nagel from the State University of New York at Oswego may have placed out of the ribbons in this division but was the winner of the Versatility Award. Given to riders competing in a minimum of three classes with at least one in Hunt Seat and one in Western, Nagel was ninth in individual novices fences while placing sixth or seventh in three individual or team open western or reining classes.

Seen here with her Mother (who is coincidentally University of Findlay Head Coach Cindy Morehead), Katelyn "Katie" Morehead finished third overall in the individual AQHA. In three seasons the University of Findlay junior from the town of Findlay, Ohio has placed inside the top three each time in this division.

Also returning to Nationals as AQHA Cup Veterans were Allison Kralovansky (St. Mary of the Woods College), Kathryn "Katie" Douglass (Florida State University) and Amanda Peterson (University of Minnesota at Crookston), each of whom had claimed top 10 placings in Murfreesboro a year earlier. Out of these three top ten contenders only Kralovansky would return to claim another top ten finish. Allie Jones (Berry College) and Randi Cashman (Centenary College) had both placed out of the ribbons in Murfreesboro though Jones would come out of 2010 Nationals with a fifth place individual AQHA finish.

While they may not have competed in the 2009 AQHA Cup division, three of this year's qualifiers had ridden at Nationals in previous years. Alicia Daughtery from Texas Tech University had placed second in individual open reining in 2009 and came back to place 7th in the 2010 AQHA Cup. While both riders had top ten ribbons from previous Nationals, riders Kelsey Moody from St. Andrews Presbyterian College and Elizabeth Whitman from Oregon State University both placed out of the ribbons in this year's individual AQHA class.

A field of 22 of the most competitive and successful Open riders in the country is bound to bring excitement to any show. The field in Lexington certainly did not disappoint, yielding a new Champion and Reserve Champion to be added to the record books. With this being the second year in a row that the University of Findlay has not claimed the individual AQHA Champion (after an impressive four year winning streak through 2008), the question arises: Will the Oilers come back to claim the cup again next year or will we see yet another new Champion?

From San Diego, California, Stanford University junior Sabrina Wilson (center) holds the red ribbon while most of her Cardinal teammates join in for photos. Wilson had the second best rail score and went on to receive Reserve National Champion status.

More notes on the individual AQHA: Save for Zone 1, Region 3 (in which no open rider earned enough points to qualify for Regionals), all the remaining IHSA Regions which hold western shows sent a rider to Nationals to compete for the individual AQHA Cup. This will not be the case starting next season, as an individual AQHA class will be held at the various Semifinal shows to eliminate part of the field. Expect to see 16 riders compete at 2011 Nationals for the individual AQHA prize...Not only did Romney's wins in the individual AQHA and individual open reining make him the first Utah State rider ever to win those awards, they also marked the first time in Utah State team history that any of their riders had won a class at an IHSA Nationals show...When asked who were his trainers back home, Romney mentioned Mike and Robbin Jung (pronounced 'Young') and Vicky Holt...For the first time in several years not one of the individual AQHA entrees was a freshman. The field was made up of seven sophomores, eight juniors and seven seniors...Three of the 22 qualifiers claim New York as their home state. Cashman, Nagel and Jill Featherly of Morrisville State College all claim the Empire State to be home. The states of Pennsylvania, Florida, Indiana, Oregon and Texas could claim two riders who are residents each...Jones, a junior from Cambridge, England was the only returnee from the 2009 AQHA field to improve on her placing of a year ago. While seven other riders slid at least one place Jones went from out of the ribbons in Murfreesboro to fifth...Kralovansky appears to have made IHSA history by riding as an Undergraduate at five consecutive IHSA National shows. From Sheridan, Indiana, Kralovansky graduated mid-season but had enough points in the Zone 9, Region 1 open rider standings that no one caught her over the two spring western shows that remained when she received her diploma. Kralovansky made her IHSA Nationals debut on May 7, 2006 at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, when as a Purdue freshman she was fifth in a field of 15 riders in individual novice western horsemanship (the creation of Semifinals the following season reduced the number of individual western qualifiers to 12 per class). After placing out of the ribbons in advanced western at 2007 Nationals at the Big E in West Springfield, Massachusetts, Kralovansky lost one semester when transfering from Purdue to St. Mary of the Woods during the 2007-08 season but still had enough open horsemanship points over two seasons to qualify and eventually finished out of the ribbons in individual open western at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center in Burbank, California in 2008. Kralovansky's fourth in the individual AQHA last season turned out to be her best showing at Nationals overall.

Seen here with family, teammates, officials from the AQHA and even IHSA Founder and Executive Director Bob Cacchione (who is on the far right), Utah State University junior Jason Romney (center, holding the individual AQHA pitcher-shaped trophy) had the highest combined score and thus is the 2010 individual AQHA Cup winner. From Farmington, Utah, Romney is the first rider from a school located in the Rocky Mountain States to win the award since Tammy Jo Greeman of New Mexico State won in 1995.

Listed below are the placings from the 2010 IHSA Nationals Individual AQHA Trophy/Cup class. The Rail phase (which was actually two separate sections made up of eleven riders each) took place on Friday, May 7th while the Reining Phase (which for the first time in IHSA history was also two separate sections of eleven riders each) took place on Sunday, May 9th. An explaination of the scoring can be found shortly after the beginning of this article. The judges for all Western divisions held during 2010 IHSA Nationals May 7th through 9th in Lexington, Kentucky were Charlene Carter and Bonnie Jo Clay.

2010 INDIVIDUAL AQHA TROPHY DIVISION RESULTS: