Liberty's Hunt Seat team coached by Suzanne Flaig (left) and Kimi Counts (right) finished first in its Region 4 opening show Sunday at Sweet Briar College.
Hunt Seat, Western equestrian teams open season with strong showings at Sweet Briar, Clemson
9/29/2026 4:05:00 PM | Equestrian
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Liberty won its season-opening Hunt Seat show paced by freshman Abby Brookover’s High Point Rider honors and the Western team landed in second place in its second show.
Liberty University's equestrian team opened its season with solid performances at IHSA Region 4 shows hosted by Sweet Briar College (Hunt Seat) on Sunday and Clemson University (Western) on Saturday and Sunday. Multiple riders landed on the leaderboard and the two squads posting first- (Hunt Seat), second-, and fourth-place (Western) finishes.
The Lady Flames' Hunt Seat team earned High Point Team Champion honors with 37 points in Sunday's season opener in nearby Amherst, Va. The host Vixens, Randolph-Macon College, and Longwood College tied for second place with 36 points each. Abby Brookover earned High Point Rider honors for the Hunt Seat team at Sweet Briar.
Freshman Abby Brookover led the way for Liberty, earning first place in both the Limit Flat and Limit Fences competitions. Her performances also earned her High Point Rider honors for the day.
Junior Sophie Battin added a first-place finish in Intermediate Fences and came in third in Intermediate Flat. Kylie Kacinski rode to a blue ribbon in Novice Flat, while fellow freshman Madeline Hammond finished third in Open Flat. Junior Abby Griffith finished third in Open Fences, and sophomore Anna Talmadge landed in third place in Introductory Flat and qualified for the end-of-season Region 4 championships. Senior Sophia Golden rounded out Liberty's individual results with a third-place finish in Pre-Novice Flat.
Liberty's Western Seat team finished fourth overall on the first day of competition at Clemson, then returned with an even stronger performance on Sunday's Day Two, finishing as the Reserve High Point Team.
"Day One was a great start to our season, with our returning riders getting back into the swing of the show season and our new athletes making their debut rides for the Liberty Equestrian Team," Western Assistant Coach Kylie Morse said.
A highlight of the first day came from first-year rider Siah Whitaker, who earned first place in Beginner Horsemanship in his first-ever horse show. Senior Alexandra Dixon rode to third-place finishes in both Reining and Open Horsemanship, while senior Daniel Snell placed third in Beginner Horsemanship and junior Savannah Hatfield finished third in Rookie B Horsemanship.
Whitaker continued his strong performance on Day Two, earning second place in Beginner Horsemanship. Dixon took first in Reining and added a third-place finish in Open Horsemanship. Dixon was also named the Reserve High Point Rider for Sunday's show.
Other riders earning top finishes on Day Two included senior Ayva Anderson, who captured a blue ribbon in Ranch Riding; junior Abigail Debly, who placed first in Rookie A Horsemanship; Snell, who finished second in Beginner Horsemanship; and junior Anna Norris, who placed second in Rookie B Horsemanship.
Norris also pointed into Level One Horsemanship following her performance.
"Day Two, we definitely caught our stride and came back even stronger than Day One," Morse said. "A shout-out for Day Two would go to senior Ayva Anderson (who) laid down the winning ride for her first-ever Ranch Riding class (competition)."
The team's performance at Clemson provided an early indication of the team's potential for the remainder of the season.
"Overall, Day Two has helped to lay the foundation for what we're hoping to be a very competitive and successful season," Morse said.
The Flames and Lady Flames enter the rest of the season with momentum as they look forward to hosting a Region 4 Hunt Seat competition on Oct. 31 at the Liberty Mountain Equestrian Center before traveling to Christopher Newport University in Newport News, Va., for a third show on Nov. 1 and the Western team visiting Virginia Tech for back-to-back shows in Blacksburg, Va., on Nov. 7-8.
By Amory Doyle/Student WriterLiberty's Western squad captured multiple individual ribbons in fourth- and second-place team showings Sunday and Saturday at Clemson.
