United States Eventing Association

From Campus to Cross-Country: Meet the Top Intercollegiate Riders of 2024

As USEA members strive to set new goals and start gearing up for another exciting year of eventing, the USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Program is taking one more chance to celebrate the successes of 2024. Last year, the USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Championship was hosted alongside the inaugural USEA Interscholastic Eventing Championship, and the Auburn University War Eagles showed the next generation how it’s done by securing the school’s fourth National Championship.

But this wasn’t the only collegiate success worth celebrating in 2024. In addition to the top team being crowned, Intercollegiate Rider of the Year titles were given out at every level from Starter through Advanced. As we set our sights on 2025, the USEA celebrates these bright young riders!

Starter Intercollegiate Rider of the Year: Juliana DiCesare

Juliana DiCesare of Concord, Massachusetts, jumped into recognized competition with both feet in 2024 when she partnered with Fibonacci (Artie Schiller x Goose Martini), Erin Pullen’s 10-year-old Thoroughbred gelding, for their first season at the Starter level. DiCesare and Fibonacci represented the Otterbein University Eventing Team, who also made it a year of “firsts” by sending four members, including DiCesare, to compete in the Intercollegiate Eventing Championships for the first time, finishing in the top 25 of almost 40 teams that participated.

In addition to the Intercollegiate Championship, DiCesare and Fibonacci also made their debut at the USEA American Eventing Championships (AEC) presented by Nutrena Feeds (Lexington, Kentucky), finishing in the top 16 in the H&C Open Starter Championship after adding just a few seconds of time on cross-country to their dressage score. Season highlights for the pair include a double-clear effort in the Starter division at Cobblestone Farms H.T. I (Dexter, Michigan) in June to win their division on a score of 29.7, and a successful move up to the Beginner Novice level later in the season at Cobble Stone Farms H.T. II, where they earned third place.

Beginner Novice Intercollegiate Rider of the Year: Sophia Hand

The reigning national champion Auburn University War Eagles not only brought home the title in this year’s team championship, but their very own Sophia Hand of Roswell, Georgia, also managed to top the Beginner Novice Intercollegiate leaderboard as an individual. On the last day of competition at this year’s Championship, it came down to one show jumping round that would make or break that War Eagle’s win, and the pair that walked through the gate to seal the deal was Hand and her own 7-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding, Fernhill The Wild Card (Classiebawn Hughs Promise x Turraun Clover). More than a dozen Auburn teammates anxiously awaited along the fence line of the arena as Hand and “Wilder” turned in a double-clear effort before erupting in to cheers. No one had clued Hand in before her round that the team’s result would come down to her final phase, so she was that much more elated when her teammates gave her the news when they left the ring.

The championship success didn’t stop there for this pair. Hand and Wilder’s next stop on their championship tour took them to the Area III Eventing Championships at Bouckaert Equestrian (Fairburn, Georgia), where they earned third place in the Senior Beginner Novice Championship, then like our Starter Intercollegiate Rider of the Year, they went on to the AEC where they earned a top-5 placing in the USEA Beginner Novice Amateur Championship out of over 40 entries. The pair also collected one win in the Open Beginner Novice at Bouckaert Equestrian in March, and now look to be on the rise, earning two top-5 finishes at Novice later in the season.

Novice Intercollegiate Rider of the Year: Callia Englund

University of Kentucky’s eventing team has long been a force to be reckoned with in the Intercollegiate program, and Callia Englund lived up to the hype in 2024. Englund, who calls Lexington, Kentucky home, spent most of her season bringing along her own 6-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding, Fernhill Celtic Flight (Celtic Hero B Z x Countess Rock), successfully at Novice to earn her leaderboard title. Out of six appearances at the level last year, the duo claimed a podium placing five times, with their biggest achievements coming in a win in the Open Novice at the Hoosier Horse Trials (Edinburgh, Indiana) on a personal low score of 26.4 and a third-place finish in the USEA Novice Amateur Championship at the AEC, where they cashed in a double-clear performance for the yellow ribbon.

Englund also teamed up with Michelle Drewien’s 14-year-old Thoroughbred gelding, Mr. Opportunity (Nationhood x Punxsutawney), early in the season to represent the University of Kentucky Wildcats at the USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Championships. Englund and the gelding gave it their all in their first recognized competition together, adding just two-time penalties to their dressage score, and helping their team earn sixth place in the championship.

Training Intercollegiate Rider of the Year: Elle Snyder

Another Auburn University teammate, Elle Synder of Fort Worth, Texas, claimed the win in the Training Intercollegiate Rider of the Year standings. Snyder campaigned her 12-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding, Oakland Quality (O.B.O.S. Quality 004 x Oakland Beauty), to a whopping five wins at Training level throughout the 2024 season. Snyder and Oakland Quality’s best result came at the final event of the year, The Event at TerraNova (Myakka City, Florida), where they laid down an impressive 24.3 in dressage and produced double-clear efforts in both jumping phases to win their division out of 11 starters.

While Snyder didn’t compete at this year’s Intercollegiate Championship, she and her trusty steed found success at the AEC when they finished in fifth place in the ARMA USEA Training Rider Championship. Like many of Snyder and Oakland Quality’s results, the weekend culminated in a fault-free performance over the fences, and they ended on a score of 31.6. The ARMA USEA Training Rider Championship was a massive 50 pairs strong, leaving this duo in the top 10% of finishers for the weekend.

Modified Intercollegiate Rider of the Year: Ruth Rosendaul

Eventing is alive and well in the state of Kentucky, which is made even more clear with another Intercollegiate leaderboard winner coming from the University of Louisville. Ruth Rosendaul of Louisville, Kentucky, took top honors in the Modified Intercollegiate Rider of the Year leaderboard thanks to her partnership with Bonhunt Bertie (Wivollet Vanbeek x Eileens Pride), Christa Schmidt’s 13-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding, who was bred by Jack Murphy. After starting the 2024 season at Training level, Rosendaul and Bonhunt Bertie officially made the move up to Modified at the Fair Hill International Recognized H.T. (Elkton, Maryland) in May, where they earned a top-3 finish after just adding a bit of time to their dressage score.

The success didn’t stop there, as the pair went on to collect three more podium finishes at the level throughout the season, including the reserve champion title in the USEA Modified Rider Championship at the AEC, where they finished on their dressage score of 27.4. Rosendaul finished the year with Bonhunt Bertie by stepping up to FEI competition at the Virginia Horse Center Eventing Fall H.T., where they won their CCI1*-L out of 29 starters after a double clear performance in their first international event together.

Preliminary Intercollegiate Rider of the Year: Megan Loughnane

Megan Loughnane of Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, represented her University of Virginia Eventing and Dressage Team all the way to the top of the Preliminary Intercollegiate leaderboard in 2024. Loughnane competed two of her own horses to help her achieve the title: Flamenco Ping (Je t’Aime Flamenco x Ping Pong), her 14-year-old Selle Français gelding, and Lynton (Glenfiddich VDL x Zonnelady), her 9-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding. Both of her mounts helped her represent UVA at the Intercollegiate Eventing Championships this spring, with Flamenco Ping in the Intermediate and Lynton in the Preliminary division.

Lynton had several standout performances that shot Loughnane up the leaderboard. In March, the pair competed in the Open Preliminary division at the Morven Park Spring H.T. (Leesburg, Virginia) and earned reserve champion out of 17 starters when they added just one second of time to their final score of 35.4. Then in April, the pair took third place in the CCI2*-S at the Fair Hill International April H.T. and CCI-S. Finally, Lynton rounded out several months of spectacular results by earning second again in the CCI2*-L at the MARS Bromont CCI (Quebec, Canada). Flamenco Ping’s top results came at Fair Hill International in August, where they finished in the top 5 in the Open Preliminary division, and at the Waredaca Classic Three-Day Event (Laytonsville, Maryland), where the pair won their Modified Three-Day division.

Intermediate Intercollegiate Rider of the Year: Kiersten Miller

University of South Carolina’s Kiersten Miller successfully competed Mama Mia (Indoctro x Lysienne II), her 13-year-old Dutch Warmblood mare, and Rosconnell Alto (Tabasco Van Erpekom x All Clover), her 10-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding, at the Intermediate level in 2024 to earn her leaderboard title. Like Loughnane, the native of Rochester Hills, Michigan, brought both of her upper-level mounts to the Intercollegiate Championship, but it was Mama Mia who contributed most to the teams success, earning a third place finish individually in the Modified division, and helping her team to a top-25 result.

Miller also found success at the MARS Bromont CCI over the summer, where both her horses earned fourth place in their respective divisions, with Mama Mia completing the CCI2*-L and Rosconnell Alto in the CCI3*-L. The trio ended their year in the CCI3*-L at The Event at TerraNova, where both horses earned top-10 placings.

Advanced Intercollegiate Rider of the Year: Elle Choate

The final Intercollegiate Rider of the Year title went to Elle Choate of Toddville, Iowa, who rode for Clemson University. Choate and her own 14-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding, Paddrick (Kroongraaf x Temple Clover), competed at the Advanced and CCI3* level in 2024, earning multiple top placings on their way to year-end success.

Their biggest result of the year came at the Stable View Spring 2/3/4* and H.T. (Aiken, South Carolina) in April, where the pair competed in the Advanced division and took third place out of 15 starters. Later in the fall, the pair completed the CCI3*-S at the Morven Park International & Fall Horse Trials to finish in the top 12.

The USEA congratulates all the Intercollegiate Eventing Program participants on a fantastic competition season. Colleges and universities, don’t forget to renew your Affiliate membership with the USEA and submit your updated rosters to Jennifer Hardwick at [email protected] prior to Feb. 15, 2025. Only students listed on an Intercollegiate roster prior to Feb. 15 will be eligible to participate in the 2025 USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Championship at Stable View in Aiken, South Carolina, on May 2-4.

About the USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Program

The USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Program was established in 2014 to provide a framework within which eventing teams and individual competitors could flourish at universities and colleges across the country. Many events across the country offer Intercollegiate Team Challenges where collegiate eventers can compete individually or in teams with their fellow students. In Intercollegiate Team Challenges, each rider’s score is multiplied by a coefficient appropriate for their level to account for differences in level difficulty, and then the individual scores are added together to determine the team score. The USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Championship is a capstone event for the program, which is held annually in the spring. The 2025 USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Championship will be held at Stable View in Aiken, South Carolina, on May 2-4. Click here to learn more about the Intercollegiate Eventing Program.

The USEA would like to thank Bates Saddles, Horse & Country, Kerrits, Nunn Finer, Sidelines, U.S. Equestrian, WeRideTogether, World Equestrian Brands and Young Rider for sponsoring the USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Program.