The Tufts Equestrian Team currently leads the competitive Zone 1 Region 4, where the No. 1 spot has historically belonged to Stonehill College. The Jumbos earned a new sense of pride after competing at BU over the weekend and vaulting themselves into first place.
BU played host to its second point−rider show of the season. In intercollegiate point−rider shows, there are five divisions in which riders compete: Walk−Trot, Walk−Trot−Canter, Novice, Intermediate and Open. Each team is allowed to bring one rider per division, and the Tufts squad finished with 44 points — one of the highest point totals it has seen in several years, according to senior co−captain and point steward Katie Christiansen.
Sophomore David Eder, who first began riding as a freshman, has been one of the more notable contributors to the Jumbos' success. In addition to starting fresh with a new sport, Eder is also in the minority as one of only two males on a 22−person team. After a year of practice, however, Eder now shows in the Walk−Trot division for the team.
"David is such a superstar," Christiansen said. "He's been a great addition to the team. He's such a consistent point−winner, he's got a great attitude, and it's really nice to have a guy contributing to the team as well."
In Walk−Trot−Canter, junior rider Megan O'Toole is a standout in her division. In just her first season of competitive riding, O'Toole has already won two classes and placed second in another two, according to Christiansen.
"Megan has been extremely beneficial to the team," Christiansen said. "She won two classes, which is very impressive for someone's first season showing, especially because her division is really competitive."
At this past weekend's event, the equestrian squad sent out these and other top riders at each division and picked up a team win. The second place team, Brandeis, finished with just 38 points while BU and Stonehill, two of the region's powerhouses, finished in fourth and fifth place, respectively, according to Christiansen. This finish is particularly significant for the Jumbos because they felt they did not meet their full potential during the first competition at BU just three weeks prior.
"I think the reason we did so well is that we have a really supportive team," junior co−captain Kerry Sachs said. "More often than not, riding is an individual sport, but our team is so supportive, especially in comparison to the rest of the region, and that made a big difference."
Following a commanding victory at a difficult venue, Tufts looks forward to bringing the fall season to a close with its last competition at Stonehill tomorrow. Though the season does take a small intermission before the spring semester starts up, the Jumbos have been invited to the Tournament of Champions to be held at St. Andrews Presbyterian in North Carolina the first weekend in December. The tournament is held twice a year and is one of the most prestigious tournaments offered to equestrian teams across the country. At St. Andrews, the Jumbos will likely compete against the likes of Michigan, Penn State and other schools with varsity teams.
"We are very excited to be invited back," Christiansen said. "It's really exciting because we are usually the only club team that gets invited, and this year they are accepting even fewer teams than usual."
The team hopes to finish atop its region in March so that it can advance the entire team to zones, where it can compete against teams outside of the region and test its strength against a variety of competitors.
