Harrisburg, Pa. - Moving up the ranks through all three rounds of the Dover Saddlery/USEF Hunter Seat Medal Final, 17-year-old Brian Moggre (Flower Mount, Texas) answered all the questions judges Geoff Teall and Robin Rost Brown asked, awarding him first place and the gold medal for his spectacular performance.

 

After a year of qualifying, 238 riders started their quest for the top prize in the Dover Saddlery/USEF Hunter Seat Medal Final at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show. Riders from all over came to test their skills and horsemanship to add their names to the list next to those who have preceded them.

 

Moggre started the day with a clean and flowing round on his mount, Efendi, owned by Don Stewart, that placed him in the top three of the 25 riders that were called back for Round 2. The order of go for the second round was in reverse order of merit, with the following riders returning: Emily Williams, Laila Klinsmann, Nina Columbia, James Faloni, Mia Mannis, Erin Floyd, Madeline Schaefer, Sam Walker, Isabelle Song, Tess Lenihan, Alexandra Worthington, Ellie Ferrigno, Emma Fletcher, Breanna Bunevacz, Kaitlyn Lovingfoss, Elli Yeager, Olivia Broder, Emma Kurtz, Paige Matthies, Augusta Iwasaki, Grady Lyman, Daisy Farish, Moggre, Madison Goetzmann, and Coco Fath.

 

When the second round was complete, six riders – Elli Yeager, Olivia Broder, Augusta Iwasaki, Moggre, Alexandra Worthington, and Coco Fath – were called back yet again and tested.

 

Moggre’s “go for it” attitude was noticed with approval from the judges. When asked what put Moggre over the top into first, Geoff Teall summed it up, “He did,” was the reply. Worthington (Las Vegas, Nev.) was awarded the silver medal for second place, and Fath (Fairfield, Conn.) earned the bronze medal for third place.

 

“This is my third year doing the equitation and it means so much for me to go in and have the result I did,” said Moggre. “I came with a mission, and I wanted to accomplish that mission. I can’t thank everyone involved enough for making it happen. It really is a group effort. This win means so much to me because it is not only about the success, it is about the production and everybody behind the scenes making it happen.”

Moggre is trained by Mike McCormick along with Ken and Emily Smith.

 

“The first round I was quite pleased with,” Moggre continued. “But that does not eliminate the nerves, I thought it was built very nicely for my horse but that still could not bring the nerves out of me, so I was a little bit shaken. For the second round I was in third, so I had a little bit of ground to make up and I thought that the only way I was going to make it to the top was to give it my all and not try to protect third place. I was really happy with how it worked out.”

 

“This is my last year doing the Final,” said Worthington. “I wanted to give it one last shot and do my best. I started college this fall at Vanderbilt, so I actually sold my main equitation horse a couple of days ago. I ended up leasing the horse I rode from a barn mate, and this was his first Medal finals so he really stepped up to the plate. He was pretty perfect so I could not be happier with how it all came together today.”

“This Final is very special to me, it was the first Final that I medaled in, and I am here with Class Action, my horse, the best horse I have ever had,” said Fath. “He might be old, but he can still come out here and put everything together. I owe everything to him. I could not have been happier with my three rounds today.”

 

The Best Equitation Horse Award, the Doris H. Clark Memorial Perpetual Trophy sponsored by Missy Clark, was awarded to Efendi, owned by Don Stewart and ridden by Moggre.

 

Top 12 in the Dover Saddlery/USEF Hunter Seat Medal Final

1 Brian Moggre

2 Alexandra Worthington

3 Coco Fath

4 Elli Yeager

5 Augusta Iwasaki

6 Olivia Broder

7 Kaitlyn Lovingfloss

8 Ellie Ferrigno

9 Sam Walker

10 Emma Kurtz

11 Nina Columbia

12 Emma Fletcher

Reserve: Isabelle Song

 

Follow the Dover Saddlery/USEF Hunter Seat Medal Final on Facebook and US Equestrian on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.