Liberty Equestrian Takes Second Place During Hunt Seat Regional Championships

The Liberty University Equestrian team took second place for the season, and many riders qualified for the next competition as they competed in the Intercollegiate Horse Shows Association (IHSA) Hunt Seat Zone 4 Region 4 Individual Qualifiers Regional Championship Horse Show Feb. 22 at the Liberty Mountain Equestrian Center.  

The Flames hosted riders from Randolph College, University of Mary Washington, Sweet Briar College, Christopher Newport University and more for this event. 

The day began with an award presentation to recognize the final team standings for the season. Riders and teams received these awards for points they accumulated throughout the season up until their final regular season show that took place Feb. 15. Out of eight schools, Liberty finished with 278 points overall, falling second to Sweet Briar with 284 points. 

While Sweet Briar took home the championship title for the season, multiple Liberty riders succeeded individually in the day’s show with many riders bringing home ribbons and four advancing to the IHSA Zone 4 Championship Horse Show. 

Prior to the competition, Liberty recognized its equestrian team seniors. Twelve seniors — Tristan Battin, Shelby Coble, Giulia D’Addesi, Alexis Evans, Claire Hutchinson, John Hutchinson, Amanda Mast, Ruth McAtee, Abigail Rice, Hannah Summerlin, Tiffany Walker and Ellie Ward — were acknowledged for their time with the Flames. 

John Hutchinson is the most decorated member of the team this season, receiving the Cacchione Cup 2024-2025 High Point Rider accolade, as well as placing first in Open Flat and Open Fences during this competition. 

The IHSA Zone 4 Region 4 competition was the first step in qualifying to go further in postseason riding. The top two riders in each class earned the opportunity to move onto the IHSA Zone 4 finals.  

Alongside John Hutchinson on the men’s side, Battin secured his spot in the Intermediate Fences contest with a first-place finish. On the women’s side, junior Katie Staib was able to find a second-place finish in the Limit Flat, clinching her qualifying spot. Sophomore Madeleine Hammond also earned a first-place finish in Novice Flat.  

While these four were the only to place in a qualifying spot, many others finished with notable performances. D’Adessi, Summerlin and Golden all finished third in their respective contests, just shy of the qualifying mark.  

D’Addesi said Liberty’s team came into the competition with excitement. 

“We just had such a great season overall and everybody has been progressing a lot,” D’Addesi said. “We all tried our best and worked so hard this season.”  

Hutchinson, Battin, Staib, and Hammond will all move on to the IHSA Zone 4 Championship Horse Show at Virginia Tech University on April 5 for a shot at advancing to the IHSA Nationals in May.  

Stewart is a sports reporter for the Liberty Champion.