Pony fans proved you can beat the heat at the 2019 National Dressage Pony Cup (NDPC) and Small Horse Championship Show, held July 19-21, 2019 at Lamplight Equestrian Center in Wayne, Ill. Leaders after the first round of competition on Friday had to contend with not only soaring temperatures but also heavy pressure from their fellow exhibitors, all vying to put in strong second round performances and earn the coveted titles of overall division champions. Below we’ll spotlight the 2019 class of champions for the Pony Divisions – stay tuned for our next release which will feature the winners of the Small Horse Championship classes.

PONY DIVISIONS

Starting off with Juniors at Intro Level, Devon Garutti of Flemington, N.J. posted a big score in the second round of competition to claim the overall come-from-behind victory with a combined average of 70.407% aboard Alexa Sendro’s Welsh pony Frostline, while Ruth Lemna of Wheaton, Ill. and Bergdalen Marit (Fjord mare owned by Rebecca and Ruth Lemna) earned the Intro Level Young Rider title with a two-test average of 69.000%. Randie-Lynn Reynolds of Lake Villa, Ill. and her POA mare Jetta could not be beaten as they claimed the Intro Adult Amateur championship with 65.000%, while Joann Williams of Elkhorn, Wis. and Jill Gianoni’s Welsh mare WHW Mazing Rockette dominated the Intro Open division on their way to a combined score of 75.094%.

For Training Level Junior, Aislin Falasco of Little Rock, Ark. and her Dutch Warmblood gelding Unscripted swept both tests of the division for a winning average of 71.724%, while Emma Kane (Algonquin, Ill.) and her American Warmblood gelding Mein Liebling put in another solid performance on Saturday to earn top honors in the Training Level Young Rider division with 64.138%. Melissa Gray of Mukwonago, Wis. was successfully able to fend off all challengers in the Training Level Adult Amateur division with her Welsh gelding G.M.A.’s Dark Shadow with a two-day average of 69.483%. Emerging victorious in both rounds of hard-fought competition in the Training Level Open division was Alexandra Du Celliee Muller (Little Rock, Ark.) and her Warmblood mare Lark RC with a combined score of 72.069%.

Victory was never in doubt for Maya Ilada of Warsaw, Ind. and her Welsh mare Here-Be Seren Gwyn as the pair won the First Level Junior title with an average of 69.827%, and Young Rider Emma Kane and Mein Liebling earned their second title of the day, this time at First Level with 62.104%. Consistent performances over both days of competition earned Leana Tank of Grand Rapids, Mich. and her Fjord mare Odden’s Norske Wood Sunniva the First Level Adult Amateur title with 67.066%. In the First Level Open ranks, Emmanuelle Lord of Pakenham, Ontario and Christine Baker’s Westfalen stallion Deja D’Or were the only combination to earn an average score over 70% and thereby claim victory with 71.623%.