Sports
Hartland Equestrian Wins Regionals and Dances the Night Away
Eagles attend homecoming en route to state finals next week.
It was quite a ride for the equestrian team this weekend as it beat its chief rival in winning regionals while in between hopping in a super stretch limo to attend the homecoming dance.
"Hartland has more fun than anyone," said senior captain Caci Pippin. "We're all best friends."
The Eagles led the two-day event after riding ended Saturday and after dusting up the dance floor that night, Hartland returned to the ring on Sunday to win the regional title with 573 points, 78 better than second place and rival Milford. Both teams now advance to the Oct. 13-16 state finals in Midland.
Find out what's happening in Hartlandwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Leading the Eagles were Kendra Hall with 107 points, Chelsea Wojciechowski with 86 points and Sarah Laferty with 63 points, but key to the win was a surprise performance by Wojciechowski and Tessa Brown in the two-man relay, team riders said. The two were only paired together about a week ago and took a second and third in the timed event.
"They ended up doing amazing," Pippin said. "This team completely gelled and it came out of nowhere."
Find out what's happening in Hartlandwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Hartland coaches and players also are happy with the win over Milford, which edged them by a mere 12 points last year for the state championship. It was the first time the two teams, which have finished either first or second in the state for the past five years, have met in regionals.
"All of the kids did really well," said Lorae Myers, one of the team's coaches. "Now we have a better idea of what we're up against."
And while the win gives the Eagles a confidence boost, they also said they need to focus in practice on their own weaknesses as they prepare to compete against Milford once again and the state's other best teams.
"We can't rest," said senior captain Jacob Myers. "We can't get cocky. We're going to keep up our practices."
Pippin said the the co-ed team — which has three boys and 14 girls — excels because riders work hard but also are close like a family.
And that included having all but one pile into the limo Saturday night to the dance. Instead having the teens travel in small groups separately, parents decided to get the limo, so the team could go together and not have to drive. The competition was held at the Shiawassee Fairgrounds in Corunna, where riders typically stay overnight.
Yet it wasn't all smooth. Some of the riders only had 15 minutes to change before leaving because the competition ran later than expected. Pippin said the team was two hours late to the dance, leaving only one hour before it ended. That didn't matter, she said.
"It was funny with the limo at the fairgrounds," Pippin said. "It was way worth it. I had a lot of fun with my team dancing."
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.