Centenary University’s IHSA team has also won the Highpoint Hunt Seat Equestrian Championship for the past 35 Years.

HACKETTSTOWN, N.J., May 19, 2025—Centenary University’s IHSA team has established an amazing track record through decades of equestrian competitions: For the past 35 years, the team has won the Highpoint Hunt Seat Equestrian Championship, which is determined by the total number of points teams accumulate throughout the season. While Centenary is a recognized powerhouse in the sport, the feat had largely gone unnoticed until equine historian Steve Maxwell contacted team coach Michael Dowling last month.

            “Steve is very familiar with our team and our program,” said Dowling, who co-coaches the University’s IHSA (Intercollegiate Horse Shows Association, Inc.) team with Heather Clark. “He reached out to share his research showing that we had won the championship for 35 consecutive years, and how very impressed he is with our team and our program. Steve knows his stuff—he attends zones and nationals almost every year—and his data is very accurate.”

            The IHSA team competes in approximately eight horse shows per season to accrue points for the Highpoint Hunt Seat team score, while riders also earn points to advance individually to zones and nationals. This year Centenary was the Zone 3 champion, with Caroline Mancini winning USHJA/High-Point Hunter Seat Rider. The team took third at IHSA National Championships on May 2-4 at Tryon International in Mill Spring, NC, placing behind Purdue University and Sacred Heart University.

“What makes this special is that Purdue and Sacred Heart are both DI schools with significant resources,” noted Centenary University President Dale Caldwell, Ed.D. “Incredibly, small DIII Centenary beat national athletic powerhouses Stanford University and the University of Southern California (USC). This is a testament to the dedication of Centenary’s riders, coaches, and equestrian faculty. Their hard work has made Centenary one of the nation’s best competitive and academic equestrian programs in the nation.” 

Centenary’s competitive equestrian teams are intentionally structured to cultivate the skills of riders interested in advancing to the next level. In addition to the IHSA team, the University hosts an IDA (International Dressage Association) squad, and just completed the inaugural season of a new NCEA team, which competes through the NCAA. In addition, the University’s Equine Studies Department offers a host of academic major, minor, and certificate programs that immerse students in daily operations at the Centenary University Equestrian Center in Washington Township. 

            “At a larger university, students may have a riding lesson a couple times a week,” Dowling said. “But at Centenary, our students spend most of their downtime at the Equestrian Center helping to care for and rehab the horses. Here, they become comfortable riding unfamiliar horses—which they often must do in competition—so they’re very prepared. Our students also have a lot of exposure to additional riding opportunities and trainers that may not be available at other universities.”

            Clark pointed to the professional experience of the University’s faculty and coaches as a contributing factor to the program’s extraordinary long-term success: “We’re all very invested in cultivating our students and helping them to reach their goals. Professionally, we’re active members of the equine field. For instance, Michael and I both have our own training facilities and our resident veterinarian, Jesslyn Bryk-Lucy, DVM, has her own practice. Other faculty are stewards and judges. We have such deep faculty expertise and are all committed to developing Centenary riders, competitively and academically.”

            “Cultivating young professionals is really what Centenary is all about,” agreed Kelly Munz, chair of the Equine Studies Department, noting that undergraduates routinely encounter between 20 and 30 working alumni at horse shows around the country. “While we welcome successful junior riders, we’re just as interested in developing the talents and passions of riders of all abilities. When we traveled to nationals in May, we transported between 14 and 18 of our horses to the competition. It’s a major effort that will provide amazing professional experience, not just for our competing riders, but also for those students who will be caring for and schooling the horses. This is very much a team effort.”

ABOUT CENTENARY UNIVERSITY

Centenary University offers extraordinary learning opportunities that empower students to develop intellectually, emotionally, and interculturally—keys to career and personal success. Under the leadership of President Dale Caldwell, Ed.D., the University aspires to advance its reputation as a world class institution offering innovative programs, including the world’s first Master of Arts in Happiness Studies, to lift the future for our students and local communities.