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Samantha Cooper and Nandino Prove Unstoppable in the $10,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby 3′ Open

13 Aug 22 | Shows
Samantha Cooper and Nandino take the big win. Photos courtesy of Winslow Photography.

Wilmington, OH – Fifty horse and rider combinations gathered under blue skies hoping for the chance to win Friday afternoon’s $10,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby 3′ Non Pro and $10,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby 3′ Open. Course designer Joe Carnicom’s track’s allowed riders to show off their horse’s natural abilities and scores soared well into the nineties throughout both derbies.

Cooper rode each line perfectly. Photos courtesy of Winslow Photography.

Samantha Cooper of Cleveland, Ohio emerged victorious in this afternoon’s $10,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby 3′ Open riding Ellen Malson’s Nandino. The stunning bay gelding recently came back to showing after an injury and is proving to be better than ever, securing a 91 in round one and 94 in the handy-round for a total of 185 points to win the class. 

In the winner’s circle. Photos courtesy of Winslow Photography.

“I’ve ridden Turtle (Nandino) for ten years and he’s like an old friend to me. We know each other very well. The course was so fun and there were many challenges that you could choose to take. I just went for it and was happy that I didn’t second-guess myself like I thought I would. We took the harder options, rode more direct and it paid off,” shared Cooper. 

Ellis rode to second place. Photos courtesy of Winslow Photography.

Soleil and Catherine D. Ellis rode away with the red ribbon during the $10,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby 3′ Open. The pair gracefully rode each round to amass a total score of 181. The pair was the second team with a single-round score soaring into the nineties. Ellis and Soleil reached an 89 in the first round and a 92 during the final to win second place. 

Donnelly piloted the perfect gray to a third place finish, besting nearly 30 entires. Photos courtesy of Winslow Photography.

Corlando 49 and Melissa P. Donnelly amassed scores of 86 and 87.5 for a two-round total of 173.5 to take home third place honors. 

$10,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby 3′ Open Results:

  1. Nandino, Samantha Cooper: 91 | 94 | 185
  2. Soleil, Catherine D. Elli: 89 | 92 | 181
  3. Corlando 49, Melissa P. Donnelly: 86 | 87.5 | 173.5
  4. Lulavani, Sami Milo: 83.4 | 89 | 172.5
  5. D’esparges, Sarah Robertson: 85 | 87.25 | 172.25
  6. Norderney, Belynda S. Bond: 84.5 | 85 | 169.5
  7. Udefix, Colleen Holton: 81.5 | 86 | 167.5
  8. Persuasive, Tamara Provost: 82 | 85 | 167
  9. Lord Clooney, Catherine D. Ellis: 87 | 79 | 166
  10. Emilio, Allie L. Mcbreen: 82 | 71 | 153
Haribo and Lyvere soar to first place. Photos courtesy of Winslow Photography.

Lyvere and Haribo win the $10,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby 3′ Non Pro

Nicole Lyvere, of Lexington, Kentucky, bested a field of twenty-eight competitors to snag the first-place prize aboard her mount Haribo. Lyvere and the flasy chestnut Warmblood gelding delivered a superb first round for a class-topping high score of 92.

In the winner’s circle. Photos courtesy of Winslow Photography.

She went on to speak about her special mount, “I enjoyed this track! It asked all the right questions and it was a lot of fun to ride. Haribo was great as usual and shined through each round. I’m so happy with how he rode each course… He tripped in the warm-up ring and I fell off right before the first round, so I’m glad to make a comeback and win the class!”

The duo delivered an untouchable handy round to earn a 90 for a two-round total of 182 to seal the deal and win the class.

Flawless delivery by Hildebrand and Cosmo Cool to take home second. Photos courtesy of Winslow Photography.

Next up in the lineup was Grace Hildebrand and her own Cosmo Cool. The show-stopping Oldenburg gelding floated over each effort to receive scores of 85 and 89, totaling 174 for a second-place finish.

Red Roc jumped to third. Photos courtesy of Winslow Photography.

Rounding out the top three placings in the $10,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby 3′ Non Pro class were Kiera Phlipot and Red Roc (Roc USA). The talented team from Michigan collected scores of 86 and 85, reaching 171 points total to win third-place honors.

$10,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby 3′ Non Pro Results: 

  1. Haribo, Nicole Lyvere: 92 | 90 | 182
  2. Cosmo Cool , Grace Hildebrand: 85 | 89 | 174
  3. Red Roc, Kiera Phlipot: 86 | 85 | 171
  4. Checkmate, Victoria Kountouriotis: 87 | 79 | 166
  5. The Huntsman, Emma Paul: 78.5 | 85 | 164.5
  6. Summer Breeze, Makenzie Paul: 76 | 88 | 164
  7. Full Count, Emma Paul: 82 | 81 | 163
  8. Sweet Spot CTF, Madison Fankhauser: 74.5 | 86 | 160.5
  9. High Life, Jennifer A. Speisman: 89 | 71 | 160
  10. Double Dutch, Alexis Palmer: 77 | 81 | 158

Photos courtesy of Winslow Photography.

Experience fall at WEC

Show with us! The 2022 WEC Fall Classic Series features five weeks of USEF rated hunter / jumper competition beginning September 28th and continuing through October 30th. All five weeks feature USEF Premier Hunter competition with Jumper Level 4 during weeks 1 and 2 and Jumper Level 5 for weeks 3 through 5. The 2022 WEC Fall Series features three new $75,000 WEC Grands Prix and more than $1 million in prizes and money awarded.

Jumper Highlights:

  • $50,000 Grand Prix – Weeks 1 and 2
  • $75,000 Grand Prix – Weeks 3, 4 and 5
  • $15,000 Welcome Stake – All weeks
  • $10,000 Futures Prix – All weeks

All Grand Prix’s are American Standard

Hunter Highlights:

  • $20,000 WEC Hunter Derby 3’6″-3’9″ Week 1 and 5
  • $10,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby 3′ – Open – All Shows
  • $10,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby 3′ – Non Pro – All Shows 
  • $2.500 WEC Pony Hunter Derby – All Shows
  • $3,500 Non Pro Derby 2’6″ – All Shows

Prize List

Reserve Stalls

schedule weeks 1-2

Schedule weeks 3 thru 5

Enter Online