Gaylord junior Blue Devils earn Reserve Champions at home-hosted meet
GAYLORD ― The Gaylord Junior Equestrian Team hosted its annual spring meet this past Saturday, May 20 in Gaylord.
Eleven teams from across Northern Michigan competed in the event, and the Junior Blue Devils finished as the Reserve Champions in Division B, just four points shy of the eventual grand champions, Kingsley.
Six riders ranging from fifth to eighth grade from Gaylord schools competed including William Wingo, Landon Groters, Louiza Calano, Mikayla Rodabaugh, Zoey Hutchinson and Brooklyn Wixon. The team is coached by Stacey Holzschu, Casey Butler and Kim Leist.
For Wingo, Groters and Calano, the Gaylord meet was their first time on a horse in a show. Calano took home first place in Huntseat showmanship and placed in nearly all her events, all while riding new horses. Wingo placed first in showmanship, first in Western horsemanship, fourth in trail and had the top placings in all his classes. Groters's horse didn’t always want to cooperate, according to head coach Stacey Holzschu, but he performed well with the circumstances, placing fifth in his riding event.
Hutchinson and Wixon took first place in the two-man relay while Wixon also took home first place in English equitation. Rounding out the Gaylord riders was Rodabaugh, highlighting her efforts with a third-place finish in ranch, fourth in bareback and fifth in the two-man relay alongside Calano.
"The team showed great promise and all riders will still be eligible to show on the junior team in 2024 and will look to take home grand champion," head coach Stacye Holzschu said.
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Gaylord junior Blue Devils earn Reserve Champions at home-hosted meet
