The Notre Dame Equestrian Team battled rain, wind, and mud at the Regional Championships last week held at the Ingham County Fairgrounds in Mason. The Irish finished in third place out of eight teams behind champion Oxford and runner up Cedar Springs. With the top two teams advancing to the State Finals, Notre Dame narrowly missed a return trip to the finals.
The Irish were led by Kendall Lance who scored 96 of the team's 262 points. Lance placed in all of her classes highlighted by first place finishes in Western Equitation and Western Bareback. Cara Defelice was solid throughout the week and racked up 59 points highlighted by a second place finish in Saddle Seat Equitation. Grace Parker continued her dominance in the Hunt Seat Over Fences class and was once again the champion of this event. Her efforts brought in 50 points for the team. Senior captain Olivia Urban contributed 29 points and was fantastic in the difficult Western Riding class with two third place finishes. Colette Bockrath showed her versatility by placing second in the Hunt Seat Over Fences class and also scoring in multiple speed classes. The freshman duo of Madison Fraser and Lilly Urban also gained invaluable experience at this high pressure event.