Equestrian Teams Transfer Under Athletics

By Isabella Di Troia

Starting in the 2023 spring semester, Wilson College has officially transitioned the Hunt Seat and Western Equestrian Teams from a club to athletics.

As clubs that have been a part of Wilson for quite some time, this change has been one that the teams have been pushing for and are looking forward to the shift in gears.

“I think it’s very exciting, for one,” Hunt Seat Coach McKenna Debus said. “I think it’s a good opportunity for the students to be able to represent the school kind of in a different way than we did just as a club. I’m really excited to see how the teams can grow working under athletics and the opportunities they are able to provide for us.”

The switch to athletics is a beneficial one that the teams have long needed. Carrying the title of athlete raises the bar of expectations, which puts more pressure on the teams. Despite being under high pressure, it’s a great way to push everyone to work harder.

Having the equestrian teams under athletics also gives them new opportunities and sources to strengthen their performance. They now have access to the athletic trainers to optimize their workouts. The personalized workouts will help enhance their riding abilities and set them up for success.

Since equestrian sports are unique in contrast to more common sports, the transition to athletics has been somewhat rocky. The results of the shows portrayed on the official athletic website of Wilson College exhibit some misunderstanding of how shows work.

“Hunt seat team doesn’t just face off against, for example, Penn State, in one show,” Intermediate Hunt Seat Rider Samantha Gilley explains. “We compete against multiple different teams at the same time.”

When equestrian teams go to another college’s home show, they aren’t competing only against that college. Multiple colleges show up at one show, making each school compete against every other school participating.

Despite the differences and a couple of errors in portraying show results, the Athletic Department continues to improve the results and actively makes an effort to understand how the sport works.

“For a lot of the people in athletics, this is their first time dealing with equestrian teams,” Debus said. “So, it’s a kind of learning curve for everyone, but I think they’re doing a good job. They are doing their best, they ask questions, so it’s been a really fun experience to kind of help them get into the swing of how equine works and how shows work.”

Equestrian events aren’t often recognized as a sport by most people since it’s so different to other more familiar sports. Having the equestrians now recognized as athletes will bring more attention to this controversy.

“Going under athletics I think is an important change that needs to happen,” Gilley said. “I think it’s really cool that it’s happened, it puts more of a light on what we do as a sport and how we compete and how it’s different from other sports teams like soccer, baseball, and volleyball.”

Both the Western Team and Hunt Seat Team will without a doubt get more recognition from the Wilson College community, including President Wesley Fugate showing up to the home show to cheer the team on. The Hunt Seat Team had a successful home show as they earned the High Point Team award.

Along with an anticipated increase in publicity, being under athletics is beneficial to students since it is significantly less financially burdensome. Any fees that need to be covered for horse shows are taken care of by the college. This is very helpful for the team members, especially since equestrian sports are already so costly.

With an equestrian center on campus, it’s surprising how many students don’t understand how horse shows work or haven’t even attended one of Wilson College’s home shows.
For a better understanding, the Western and Hunt Seat Teams compete through the Intercollegiate Horse Shows Association or IHSA. The Western Team participates in western horsemanship while the Hunt Seat Team participates in hunter equitation and equitation over fences.

When the riders compete, they will be competing on a horse that they most likely haven’t ridden before. The horse is picked at random by a draw or lottery system. This ensures that the rider has the ability to ride any horse that they are thrown on.

Every time a rider earns a ribbon, they earn a certain number of points depending on how high they place. The higher a rider places, the higher number of points they will earn. When they gain a total of thirty-six points in their level, they will be able to “point out” and move up to the next level.

With athletics welcoming the equestrian teams, many wins for the Phoenix are being anticipated for further semesters to come.

Starting in the 2023 spring semester, Wilson College has officially transitioned the Hunt Seat and Western Equestrian Teams from a club to athletics.

As clubs that have been a part of Wilson for quite some time, this change has been one that the teams have been pushing for and are looking forward to the shift in gears.

“I think it’s very exciting, for one,” Hunt Seat Coach McKenna Debus said. “I think it’s a good opportunity for the students to be able to represent the school kind of in a different way than we did just as a club. I’m really excited to see how the teams can grow working under athletics and the opportunities they are able to provide for us.”

The switch to athletics is a beneficial one that the teams have long needed. Carrying the title of athlete raises the bar of expectations, which puts more pressure on the teams. Despite being under high pressure, it’s a great way to push everyone to work harder.

Having the equestrian teams under athletics also gives them new opportunities and sources to strengthen their performance. They now have access to the athletic trainers to optimize their workouts. The personalized workouts will help enhance their riding abilities and set them up for success.

Since equestrian sports are unique in contrast to more common sports, the transition to athletics has been somewhat rocky. The results of the shows portrayed on the official athletic website of Wilson College exhibit some misunderstanding of how shows work.

“Hunt seat team doesn’t just face off against, for example, Penn State, in one show,” Intermediate Hunt Seat Rider Samantha Gilley explains. “We compete against multiple different teams at the same time.”

When equestrian teams go to another college’s home show, they aren’t competing only against that college. Multiple colleges show up at one show, making each school compete against every other school participating.

Despite the differences and a couple of errors in portraying show results, the Athletic Department continues to improve the results and actively makes an effort to understand how the sport works.

“For a lot of the people in athletics, this is their first time dealing with equestrian teams,” Debus said. “So, it’s a kind of learning curve for everyone, but I think they’re doing a good job. They are doing their best, they ask questions, so it’s been a really fun experience to kind of help them get into the swing of how equine works and how shows work.”

Equestrian events aren’t often recognized as a sport by most people since it’s so different to other more familiar sports. Having the equestrians now recognized as athletes will bring more attention to this controversy.

“Going under athletics I think is an important change that needs to happen,” Gilley said. “I think it’s really cool that it’s happened, it puts more of a light on what we do as a sport and how we compete and how it’s different from other sports teams like soccer, baseball, and volleyball.”

Both the Western Team and Hunt Seat Team will without a doubt get more recognition from the Wilson College community, including President Wesley Fugate showing up to the home show to cheer the team on. The Hunt Seat Team had a successful home show as they earned the High Point Team award.

Along with an anticipated increase in publicity, being under athletics is beneficial to students since it is significantly less financially burdensome. Any fees that need to be covered for horse shows are taken care of by the college. This is very helpful for the team members, especially since equestrian sports are already so costly.

With an equestrian center on campus, it’s surprising how many students don’t understand how horse shows work or haven’t even attended one of Wilson College’s home shows.
For a better understanding, the Western and Hunt Seat Teams compete through the Intercollegiate Horse Shows Association or IHSA. The Western Team participates in western horsemanship while the Hunt Seat Team participates in hunter equitation and equitation over fences.

When the riders compete, they will be competing on a horse that they most likely haven’t ridden before. The horse is picked at random by a draw or lottery system. This ensures that the rider has the ability to ride any horse that they are thrown on.

Every time a rider earns a ribbon, they earn a certain number of points depending on how high they place. The higher a rider places, the higher number of points they will earn. When they gain a total of thirty-six points in their level, they will be able to “point out” and move up to the next level.

With athletics welcoming the equestrian teams, many wins for the Phoenix are being anticipated for further semesters to come.

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