Over the past three years, the Schoolcraft High Equestrian Team has improved, increasing placings and points in its division. This year, the Class B team, coached by Christine Rosey since May 2018, produced enough points to challenge the second-place qualifying team, missing qualifying for regionals by just three points. This may be the best performance Schoolcraft’s team has had.
Three seniors have completed their high school equestrian career: Katelynn Delaney, Annabelle Ledlow and Alana Reed. Delaney, a determined showmanship competitor and rider, faced challenges with her horse’s health, limiting her competitions in the past two years. Ledlow has won high point district awards multiple times and has been the team’s high point award winner for the past two years, all the while competing on two of the most challenging horses on the team. Reed attends many horse shows and fairs, excelling at jumping. All three contributed to the success of this year’s team.
Looking to next year, Rosey states that she has talented riders coming up from the middle school, as well as returning underclassmen Mariah Flynn, Brooklyn Hamelink, Clara Ledlow, Ridley Reed and Faith Westfall.
Rosey is proud of her team and optimistic for the team’s future. She also discusses the bigger picture, stressing that being part of an equestrian team teaches important life lessons like “responsibility, emotional control, self-discipline and time management.” She teaches her young competitors, “You can do whatever you set your mind to if you don’t give up.”