NCAA ‘SCRIMMAGE’ at UGA

11/19/2006

After competing at the Clemson show, some of the members of the team went home, and some went to Athens, Ga., to compete in an NCAA scrimmage against UGA’s varsity team.  The format is different than the IHSA, in that each rider gets a 3-4 minute warm-up period with the horse she draws, and then performs a pattern, similar to a dressage test.  In the reining and jumping phases, the tests can be difficult and challenging.  There were 4 phases: Equitation on the Flat, Equitation Over Fences, Western Horsemanship, and Western Reining.  Berry faired well, winning seed 1 of the Over Fences, but in the end, UGA won over Berry 25-5.  Despite the loss, the experience was a good one, and gave the Vikings another chance to compete on unfamiliar horses.  Those riders whose scores were higher than their Bulldog opponents were Sarah Smith, Lauren Brown, and Jocelyn Bee in Over Fences, and Sarah Smith and Kristin Farmer in Equitation on the Flat.  In the western events, there were many scores in which Berry riders lost to their opponent by only .5 point, and Casey Bennington tied her opponent in horsemanship with the second highest score of 70.  Good job Vikings!