CCU’s Equestrian Team is riding high
Coastal Carolina University’s Equestrian Team is having a successful 2016-2017 show season competing in the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA) for the region.
Taylor Landis, a CCU senior from Hershey, Pa., won the Cacchione Cup at the recent meet held at the College of Charleston. The Cacchione Cup is awarded to open riders with the highest combined points in the entire region, which includes 11 colleges and universities in South Carolina and Georgia.
Landis, a marketing major, is now eligible to compete at IHSA Nationals on May 4-7 in Lexington, Ky., against 38 riders across the country who received the award for their regions.
In the first show of the season, held Oct. 1, 2016, at Georgia Southern University, CCU’s equestrian team won the High Point Team Championship, coming in first of all the teams, beating the College of Charleston, Clemson University, University of South Carolina, Wofford College and Furman University.
During the show, CCU rider Morgan Willis also placed as reserve high-point rider with the second highest score of all of the riders at the show that day.
The next show, hosted by the University of South Carolina, was a two-day event where six CCU riders placed first, and three received second place. The third show at Clemson was another winning day with freshman rider Nicole Corsi being named as the high-point rider. The final show of the season was at the College of Charleston where CCU placed third.
Landis made it to the Regional show along with Willis and Kara Funk. Landis and Funk both placed reserve in their classes, coming in second place out of a large pool of riders. Both will be moving on to Zone finals in Ocala, Fla., on April 1 to compete with riders from the Southeast.
The coach for CCU’s equestrian club team is Kristi Rae Grigg from Myrtle Beach. The riders practice at Fox Rae Equestrian in Galivants Ferry.
The team has achieved a record high in fundraising this semester as team members pay their own way to the equestrian competitions. The team also does its own share of philanthropy., donating money to multiple sclerosis research, volunteering at the Heart Association’s annual beach ride, and contributing fishing vouchers to a charity auction for the Fidelis Foundation, a faith-based program that works with several Horry County agencies to provide equine assisted learning for youth who have experienced traumatic life circumstances.
