Junior Erin Mays became the equestrian program’s first Western rider in the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA) National Championships this year. It is an accomplishment all the more remarkable considering what she has overcome.
When she was 11, while riding with a friend on the Vero Beach, Fla., farm where she had trained since she was 8, her horse bucked her off and kicked her in the head, knocking her unconscious. The fall broke her collarbone and caused a brain hemorrhage. Mays was airlifted to the hospital, where she spent three days in intensive care.
“Blood was putting pressure on my brain, and my body was pretty much shutting down,” Mays said. “It was really a miracle because I was six hours from dying without the surgery that stopped the bleeding.”
Mays was sent home for three weeks of bed rest and couldn’t practice for three months. But she amazed doctors by making a full recovery.
Mays was the 2012 Regional Novice Youth All-Around champion for the American Quarter Horse Association and the 2013 Regional Novice Youth Trail champion, earning her enough points to start her IHSA career at Liberty in the Novice Division.
“She fully recovered her memory and is very good at remembering patterns very quickly, which, for someone who has had a massive head injury, you wouldn’t expect,” Western Coach Lauren Eagles said. “She’s an inspiration to her teammates and to other athletes who have overcome head injuries, showing that even though something like that happened, you can still ride again and have a successful career.”
Eagles said Mays is an encouraging team member.
“Erin has a big, huge, bubbly personality and always knows how to make people smile or laugh,” Eagles said. “It has been nice to see her bloom into much more of a leadership role.”
As a survivor of a potentially fatal fall, Mays wants to make the most of the opportunities God provides, in her sport and in life.
She is studying business administration, with a specialization in project management. After graduation next spring, she hopes to become involved with a ministry in developing countries “to help children in impoverished areas and boost their living standards,” said Mays, who sponsored a child through World Vision growing up. “That’s something God laid on my heart. I’d like to work with an organization that places children with sponsors or that deals with sex trafficking prevention or disaster relief. Wherever God leads, I’m going to go. My life is not my own. Whatever God wants to do with it, it’s His.”
The 380-acre Liberty Equestrian Center is home to the men’s and women’s Hunt Seat and Western riding programs. It is one of the largest facilities of its kind in Virginia, featuring indoor and outdoor riding arenas as well as three barns with 78 horse stalls. The center is open to students for trail rides and kinesiology horsemanship courses.
