Senior Kayleigh McDonnell was reserve high point rider at Worcester State on Sunday. (PHOTO BY Tom Eng Photography)

McDonnell reserve high point rider to qualify for regional championships 

BERLIN, Mass. (March 25, 2015) – The Stonehill College equestrian team earned high point team honors for the second straight week with its first place team finish at the Worcester State University show, hosted by Maplewood Farm, on Sunday.

Despite the first place team finish, Stonehill narrowly missed out on qualifying for the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA) Zone 1 Championships in two weeks, but added to its total of individual qualifiers for the IHSA Zone 1, Region 4 Championships this weekend. Stonehill finished with 38 points on Sunday to finish ahead of Bentley University (38) after the first place tie was broken by point accumulated in over the fences competitions. The Skyhawks finished the regular season with 322 points, just behind Regional Champions Tufts University with 326 points.

Senior Kayleigh McDonnell (Rutland, Vermont/Rutland) was reserve high point rider to lead the way for Stonehill, one week after earning high point rider honors at Wellesley. She earned blue ribbons in both her events for intermediate equitation over the fences and intermediate on the flat, qualifying for regionals for over fences. Sophomore Kayla McNulty (Tyngsboro, Massachusetts/Academy of Notre Dame) also earned a first place finish for the Skyhawks in walk-trot equitation.

Sophomore Serafine Torregiano (Saratoga Springs, New York/Saratoga Springs) led Stonehill's four riders who turned in second place finishes with her performance in intermediate fences. Junior Dara D'Agostino (Canton, Massachusetts/Canton) and freshman Baylee Kimbar (Worcester, Massachusetts/West Boylston) both earned red ribbons for their second place finishes in their novice flat classes, while freshman Abby Westerlind (Auburn, Massachusetts/Auburn) finished second for walk-trot-canter. Kimbar also placed third in her novice fences class.

Senior Danielle Franchi (Islip, New York/Islip) placed fourth for open flat and fifth in open fences to round out Stonehill's ribbon winners on Sunday.

McDonnell and Franchi, as well as senior Justine Mitchell (Sunderland, Massachusetts/Frontier Regional) and sophomores Nina Fultz (Littleton, Massachusetts/Littleton) and Ashley Eng (New Milford, Connecticut/Nonnewaug) will all compete individually at the IHSA Zone 1, Region 4 Championships, hosted by Herringbrook Farm in Pembroke, Massachusetts, on Saturday at 8:30 p.m.

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