The Geneseo women's equestrian team had two shows this weekend at Lehman Farms in Pittsford, N.Y., competing in a tournament hosted by Nazareth College on Saturday and hosting the second Geneseo Invitational of the year on Sunday.
The team finished seventh in their first show of the weekend, and took home sixth place on Sunday.
"We had a great weekend and we were so close to finishing even better in the standings," said sophomore Casey Williamson. "It was a great way to start the season for us; it showed us what we are capable of as a team overall."
While the results this time around weren't what the Knights expected, team captain junior Carla Stephan said the team still gained valuable knowledge from the weekend. "We didn't finish as high as we did the first weekend, but we are taking this as a learning experience," she said. "It takes a lot of hard work through the season to become a top team, and we are trying to get better each week. Shows are mainly about winning the competition, but they are also about learning from mistakes and becoming stronger riders."
On Saturday, the Knights competed against 13 teams, and were led by sophomore Julianne Pangal, who took first in over the fences in the intermediate class and first on the flat.
Other outstanding performances came from senior Amyrose Lomele, who won over the fences in the novice class, and sophomore Caroline Patton, who won the walk/trot.
On Sunday, the Knights finished sixth out of 13 with wins in the open class from sophomore Katie Roberts in the flat, Williamson in advanced walk/trot/canter and Patton in walk/trot.
"It was a tough weekend for us," Williamson said. "However, we still have a long way to go in this season. If we get down on ourselves now, we won't see what the true potential of this team is."
"A lot of people think riding horses is an individual sport, but when you are on a team in college, the IHSA [Intercollegiate Horse Show Association] makes it into the purest form of competition; one that we couldn't do alone," Stephan said.
The season is still relatively young for the Knights. On Oct. 24 and 25 the Knights competed in their first two events of the season at Lehman Farms, finishing third overall in both tournaments. The team will compete again this weekend, traveling to St. Lawrence College on Nov. 21 and to Cazenovia College on Nov. 22.