Underdog Tigers take on the best

It may be hard to think of an underdog in equestrian sports, but if there is one, Princeton is it. Competing as a club in a sport dominated by varsity programs, the Tigers have racked up a number of regional and Ivy League titles over the years. While riders at other schools may look at the sport as a future career, the Tigers compete for the love of riding. Restricted by their budgets to practicing as a team one day a week at an off-campus facility, the Tigers make do with talent, skill and individual practice.

Last year's membership of 17 has ballooned to over 30 this year with many qualified incoming freshmen. The newcomers are complementing a team that already has an impressive pedigree. Last year, Princeton won its region and tied for the Ivy League championship with Dartmouth. This year's Tigers have already decisively won their first show and are on track to repeat as regional and Ivy League opponents.

But success breeds contempt, and the Tigers' opponents have plenty of it for Princeton.

"Other teams assume that because we're Princeton we must have all the money in the world," junior captain Allison Harding said. "What they don't realize is that we're operating on a budget that's a tenth of theirs."

The Princeton equestrian team, unlike most other teams in the region, is a club team. While other Ivy League schools such as Cornell are able to own dozens of their own horses and practice in elaborate facilities, the Tigers are forced to work on a shoestring budget. Princeton's riding coach, while not a volunteer, works for a fraction of the pay of most other coaches and is paid out of individual club dues. The lack of varsity standing has hurt the club's recruiting as well.

"We have some of the best riders in the country, but a lot of them chose not to come out because it's not a varsity sport, we lack funding, and we don't own our own horses," Harding explained.

Princeton's elitist reputation, however, is more than enough for other schools to feed off.

"They've gone out of their way to give us a hard time," Harding said.

Last year, the other teams in Princeton's region had a judge disqualified for allegedly favoring the Tigers. Without the points from that show, the Tigers would have finished third in their region instead of first. Princeton's appeal was successful, however, and the Tigers held on to the title. But the animosity didn't end there.

"Riders from other schools told us that they'd Googled our riders to make sure they were in their proper experience category," Harding said.

The feuding has gotten off to an early start — at the first show of the year one of Princeton's riders was disqualified because the saddle she was issued by the organizers of the show broke prior to her event. Though the equestrian team has fought off these challenges aggressively — at one point even having to bring legal counsel to a show — they remain unfazed.

"In their end, we're still winning," Harding said.

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For the rest of the year, the Tigers will rely on a solid core of veteran talent. Senior Michelle Fox, junior Shayla Mulvey, junior Lindsay Jacob, sophomore Grace Clawater and Harding lead the open division. Any of them could be called upon to compete as the point rider — the one whose points count towards the team's standings. The Tiger's intermediate and beginner divisions are stocked with young talent, especially from the infusion of freshmen this year.

The Tigers will have nine more regional shows this year before moving on to zones, a broader geographic region that includes most of the mid-Atlantic. Based on their performance there they will have a chance of moving on to nationals, a goal that eluded them last year. Princeton wants another shot, though, and it has the team to match.