Sisters riders spur into season

The Sisters High School equestrian team started the season in fine form.

At the first district meet held February 22-24, at the Deschutes County Fair and Expo Center, the team was leading in the large school division going into the third day. The meet ended with Redmond High School squeaking into the winning spot by one point.

Points for the three district meets are cumulative over the season, so Sisters is by no means out of the picture.

Competitors in the performance classes carried the flag for Sisters. Courtney Acarregui was first in Dressage and Hunt Seat Equitation Over Fences and second in In-Hand Trail.

Michael Hopp blazed into first in Trail, with Shelby Ross close behind in second. Hopp took second in Showmanship. Katie Yozamp showed good form with a second in Dressage and third in Hunt Seat Over Fences.

JJ Ashley brought home the blue ribbon in Stockseat Equitation.

The gamers struggled a bit overall, but there were bright moments, too. Leah Keeton won the Barrel Racing on her new horse with a time of 15.5 seconds. Keeton teamed with Jessica Snow to take second in BiRangle.

The Working Pair of Danielle Orr and Lexi van der Velde were second, while Christina Holler ran third in Keyhole.

In the team section, In-Hand Obstacle Relay members Hopp, Ashley, Ross and Acarregui worked their way into third place.

The Drill Team, made up of returning members Holler, Leslee Zenich, Jenna Jacobsen, Snow, Hopp, Awbrey Cyrus and Taryn Gates, placed second.

The team members weren't the only ones working hard at the meet. Parental support is required for the myriad background jobs required to run a successful equestrian event.

According to parent Melinda Witt, there's a job for everyone who turns up. This year the Sisters parents are responsible for setting up the trail course at each district meet. When they arrived at 6:30 a.m. to set up the course, they discovered that several of the course-building elements they'd stowed on a trailer were missing. They found the pieces in the Working Rancher course, mistakenly borrowed by parents from another school.

After some good-natured ribbing and a few cups of coffee, both courses were set up according to the OHSET rule book.

The next meet is scheduled for March 28-30, at the Deschutes County Fair and Expo Center.