Liberty Equestrian Finishes 2021-2022 Campaign

Liberty University’s Hunt Seat Equestrian Team saddled up one last time Feb. 19 and ended third in the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA) Zone 4 Region 4 for the 2021-22 show season behind Sweet Briar College and Randolph-Macon College.

Although the team will not be traveling together to Regional Finals, individual riders who qualified will compete for a chance to advance to Zone Finals.

Hunt Seat Assistant Coach Kimi Counts said she is excited about the growth the team has seen this season.  

“The team and riders have only gotten stronger throughout the season,” Counts said. “All of the riders have put in a lot of hard work in their practices and progressed in their own ways.”

Riders that qualified for Regionals include Ellie Bruss, Juliana Gorena, Carly Woods, Maggie Saunders and Nadia Cooper. 

But it does not stop there.

The hooves will keep moving as they prepare for the show that will either advance or end their 2021-22 postseason.

“We definitely up the intensity for post season,” Head Coach Suzanne Flaig said. “They will spend more time in the arena and identify strengths and weaknesses. We will challenge them physically and mentally as they will need that preparation to be successful at the next level.”

Cooper not only qualified for Regional Finals but also is the Zone 4 Region 4 High Point Rider — which automatically qualifies her for Zone Finals in the Cacchione Cup Class. 

“Honestly, just going out in every practice and being repetitive in what I am going to be asked to do and see is the best preparation that works for me,” Cooper said. “Being able to compete and having what you’re doing become like a second nature makes it so much easier to answer questions and tasks that I might see on course … Our sport is already mentally challenging, so it’s nice to have the basics down and out of the way.”

Regional Finals will be held Feb. 27 at Sweet Briar College. The top two riders in each class will advance to Zone Finals in April. From there, the top two riders will proceed to the National Championship in May. 

For more information and to keep up-to-date on the equestrian team, visit https://www.liberty.edu/club-sports/team/equestrian/.

Shank is the Editor-in-Chief. Follow her on Twitter