Roanoke, Va. -- The University of Lynchburg equestrian team opened its IHSA weekend at Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia, with a first-place team finish on Saturday before returning Sunday to place second. Across the two shows, Lynchburg riders recorded multiple victories and top finishes in divisions ranging from Open to Introductory.

On Saturday, Lynchburg totaled 38 points to take first place in the team standings. The Hornets opened with a victory in Open Fences A from Amaya Bellfield before she placed second in Open Flat. In Intermediate Fences, McKenzie Burch and Molly McGarvey finished second and sixth, respectively, while the Intermediate Flat classes saw Jessica McElhaney produce a win in the A section and Ava Hogan earn a second-place finish in the B section.

Lynchburg added another victory in Limit Fences B from Hogan, while also recording a reserve result in Limit Fences A from McElhaney. On the flat, Adam Matejko finished second in Limit Flat A and Mackenzie Overstreet won Limit Flat B. The Novice division featured a second-place finish from Annabella Shores in Novice A, a victory from Ashlyn Barksdale in Novice B and a third-place result from Reese Albany in Novice C. Lynchburg's Callie Goldstein placed fifth in Pre Novice and Amaya Shuler placed third in Introductory. 

The Hornets returned Sunday and accumulated 45 total points, with a drop score of 42, to finish second behind Virginia Tech. Lynchburg again started strongly with Bellfield winning Open Fences A and Open Flat B while McElhaney placed third in Open Flat A.

In the Intermediate classes, Burch placed fourth over fences before Hogan and Matejko swept both sections of Intermediate Flat with first-place finishes. The Limit divisions brought third- and fifth-place results over fences from Ashby Watts and Clair Humphreys, respectively, followed by a fifth-place finish from Emma Carter in Limit Flat A and a win from Overstreet in Limit Flat B.

Lynchburg closed Sunday with a second-place finish from Mackenzie Penn in Novice A and a victory from Lainey Dickens in Novice B. The Hornets' Goldstein also won Pre Novice and Shuler finished fourth in Introductory, completing a weekend that included first- and second-place team finishes in Roanoke.

Next up, the Lynchburg IHSA team will travel to Blacksburg, Va. for the two-day Virignia Tech IHSA on Saturday, October 10 and Sunday, October 11.

Visit Lynchburg athletics' home online, LynchburgSports.com, anytime for up-to-date news on all Hornets sports and coverage from the Lynchburg Hornets Sports Network.

Sign up here to receive Lynchburg Sports news in your email inbox.

Give Lynchburg Sports a like on Facebook, and follow Lynchburg Athletics on Instagram and X.