Britons Finish Regular Season Strong

The Albion College stock seat team kicked off the second half of their season in style on January 15, qualifying not one, but four riders for the upcoming IHSA regional meet.

Katie Petchell (Pinckney/Pinckney), who won a regional championship last year and competed at the 2011 IHSA Semi-Finals, led the group, earning her second consecutive qualification in the open and reining divisions.  She also set the example for the three first-year students who stamped own tickets to the regional meet for the very first time:  Morgan Carey (Hemlock/St. Charles Community) and Elle Root (Alpena/Alpena) both qualified in the intermediate division and Chantal Chuba (Grosse Pointe Park/Grosse Pointe South) qualified in walk-trot.

Senior Olivia Choate (Fenwick/Gratton Academy) also won her final open division class, a win that puts her in good stead heading into the upcoming regional show, for which she qualified earlier in the season.

As a team, the Britons finished third overall in the regular season standings for IHSA Zone 6 Region 4, after a third place team result in the morning half of Sunday’s double-header and a fourth in the afternoon.  They will gain home field advantage in the regional meet on February 25, as it will be hosted at the Albion College Nancy G. Held Equestrian Center.