Equestrian Team competes in Holiday Tournament of Champions

Photo courtesy of Mount Holyoke Athletics

Mount Holyoke College’s Equestrian Team competed in a Holiday Tournament in early December.

By Elodie Muller ’29

Staff Writer

As the cold of winter approaches Mount Holyoke College, the equestrian team has had a great month. The Lyons tied for second place out of nine teams at the Trinity College Show on Sunday, Nov. 2, at Folly Farm in Simsbury, Connecticut. On Saturday, Nov. 8, Mount Holyoke finished third out of 11 teams at the Bentley/WPI Show, held at Maplewood Farm in Berlin, Massachusetts. They placed second out of 11 teams at the Mount Holyoke Show, located at the Equestrian Center on Mount Holyoke College’s campus in South Hadley, Massachusetts, on Saturday, Nov. 15.

“We started the season off really strong, but we didn’t do as well as we would have liked in our last couple of shows,” Cloe Hinck ’28 said in an email to Mount Holyoke News.

Unlike typical equestrian competitions, this competition did not affect the standings of the teams participating whatsoever. Instead, these riders competed out of love and enjoyment of the sport.

Though the months of the calendar dwindle as the end of the year swiftly approaches, the equestrian season will continue into the spring.

“We still have three shows in the spring, which we are excited and ready for,” Hinck shared.

The future of Mount Holyoke’s hunt seat team is filled with optimism for 2026 as they look forward to competitions at UMass Amherst, Springfield-Westfield State and Mount Holyoke College in February and March.

Since writing, Mount Holyoke’s Equestrian Team has participated in the Holiday Tournament of Champions, which took place on Saturday, Dec. 6, at Centenary University in Long Valley, New Jersey. The tournament featured one rider from each division and did not have any impact on Mount Holyoke’s standing in the division. Mount Holyoke’s hunt seat team will next participate in the UMass-Amherst Show on Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026, at Muddy Brook Farm in Amherst, Massachusetts.

Karishma Ramkarran ’27 contributed fact checking.

Volleyball season concludes at NEWMAC Quarterfinal against Babson

BY ELODIE MULLER ‘29

STAFF WRITER

The 2025 season for Mount Holyoke College’s volleyball team came to a close on Tuesday, Nov. 11, with a 3-1 defeat to Babson College. The game was Mount Holyoke’s first playoff appearance in nearly 20 years. The No. 7-seeded Mount Holyoke went up against the second-seeded Babson at Babson Park, Massachusetts.

For Mount Holyoke, the starting lineup consisted of Sadie Duffrin ’26, Elle Rimando ’26, Madeline Barton ’26, Sonja Gray ’28, Milan Dansoh ’29 and Amelia Ringor ’26. For Duffrin, Rimando, Barton and Ringor, this was their last volleyball game at Mount Holyoke College, as they graduate in spring 2026.

The Lyons lost their initial set at a score of 25-13. This loss was compounded by losing the second set with a score of  25-20. However, a glimmer of hope came in the third set as Mount Holyoke won with a score of 25-23. The winning point in that set was scored by senior  Rimando. Ultimately, however, Mount Holyoke’s season came to an end with a loss, with the final set ending in a score of 25-16 in favor of Babson.

Despite the disappointment of the season’s ending, Mount Holyoke’s volleyball team still holds its head high. This season marked the team’s “second winning record” since 1992 and the most total and conference victories since 1994, according to the Mount Holyoke Athletics website. Though the team will face the loss of its graduating seniors next season, the future still looks bright for Mount Holyoke’s volleyball team.

Karishma Ramkarran ’27 contributed fact-checking.

Varsity hunt seat team competes in first competition of season

By Elodie Muller ’29

Staff Writer

As the month of November dawned upon the college, Mount Holyoke’s varsity hunt seat equestrian team was preparing for its competition against Trinity College. The competition took place on Sunday, Nov. 2, in Simsbury, Connecticut. Spirits and camaraderie were high amongst those competing. The Lyons finished in second place with 28 points, tied with Bentley University and Smith College, out of the nine teams competing in the Trinity College Show at Folly Farm.

Mount Holyoke College is part of the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association, which employs what is called “catch-riding.” In this, riders are randomly assigned a horse to ride in the competition through drawing lots. The horses are supplied by the college hosting the event. These riders do not warm up with these horses; instead, they are immediately thrust into competition with a random horse. In competition, they are judged based on how they ride the horse, how they communicate with the horse and how they maintain body position. There are two classes: flat and fence or “jumping.”

“This is a really unique opportunity because it is meant to put everyone on an even playing field — you don’t have to own a fancy horse to show,” Em Jablonka ’28 wrote in an email to Mount Holyoke News.

This competition is divided into five divisions, all based on a given rider’s skill level. In each division, the team picks one rider to be their point rider. This rider’s points will contribute to the team’s overall score.

Aside from the competition, Mount Holyoke’s equestrian team also anticipated the deep camaraderie they would feel during the day. From breakfast in Blanchard Hall at the beginning of the day to cheering each other on at the competition, a deep sense of community runs through the team.

“Our team is really good at cheering during shows, which is a great feeling because I know how supportive we are of each other,” Cloe Hinck ’28 said.

Mount Holyoke’s hunt seat team has since competed in a game at the Worcester State Show on Saturday, Nov. 8, in Berlin, Massachusetts. They will next hold a home show on Saturday, Nov. 15, at the Mount Holyoke College Equestrian Center.

Jillian Stammely ’28 contributed fact-checking.

In their final tournament, Mount Holyoke Tennis secures many victories

Photo by Kate Vavra ‘26

By Elodie Muller ’29

Staff Writer

The weekend of Oct. 10 marked the end of an era in Mount Holyoke Athletics as the tennis team played in its last match ever after the sport was cut in May 2024. The team attended the New England Women’s Invitational Tennis Tournament — abbreviated as NEWITT — hosted at Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts, and Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts.

Mount Holyoke was one of 13 colleges participating in the tournament. The roster included Smith College, Trinity College, Amherst College, MIT, Wesleyan University, Springfield College, Wheaton College, Emerson College, Colby College, University of Saint Joseph and Gordon College. Four Mount Holyoke students competed in the tournament: Kennedy Bagley-Fortner ’26, Cal Smith ’26, Kate Vavra ’26 and Lara Gao ’26.

“NEWITT … is one of the longest-running events in women’s Division III tennis. It started over forty years ago and used to have schools compete across all divisions against each other in the North East.” Caitlyn Lawrence, head coach of the Smith College tennis team, said in an email to Mount Holyoke News.

In the NEWITT, teams entered groups of two to three players in different draws. The players then competed in two singles matches and one doubles match, with teams that won two out of the three matches moving up in the draw.

“The tournament is a highlight for teams because of the format,” Lawrence said. “This team-based format makes this tournament unique and a lot of fun. It also means a lot of tennis is played. Over three days, we had over 230 matches.”

Smith and Vavra each won two singles matches apiece, and teamed up for two doubles match wins. Smith defeated Abigail Miner of Emerson College with a final score of 8-3 and won a victory against Teah Login of Emerson College by default due to injury. Vavra went up against and defeated Carlson Jones of Emerson College with a set score of 8-7 and finished the tournament with a victory against Anna Matsura of Emerson College, with the score from that match being 7-6, 7-6.

Smith and Vavra also teamed up to defeat Wheaton College’s number one-ranked doubles duo, Kara Greenlee and Alissa Ortiz, with a final score of 7-6 and a tiebreak score of 7-4. Smith and Vavra also had success against Miner and Jones of Emerson College with a final score of 6-3.

Newcomer Gao had success as well, defeating Kathy Kim of Gordon College with a final score of 7-6, 3-6, and 10-8. Gao was not previously a member of the tennis team, but played in the tournament due to her prior experience in tennis and squash.

“I wish there were more matches for us to play! I just feel like I played such a fun tournament with such an amazing team, had so much fun every single point, so I really wish the team could keep playing!” Gao said in an email to Mount Holyoke News.

Also in an email to Mount Holyoke News, previous number one player for the varsity tennis team Annika Chai ’25 offered her perspective. “As sad as it is that this is the last tournament for the Mount Holyoke varsity tennis team, I could not be prouder of my fellow teammates for competing! I would like to emphasize the fact that they chose to compete completely on their own. They were not forced by any commitment, there was no coach providing guidance or assistance on court and absolutely no support was provided by athletics. They won matches against NEWMAC schools that other MHC varsity teams would be lucky to even have close games against. Cal, Kennedy and Kate demonstrated everything a student-athlete at Mount Holyoke should be and more.”

With this tournament, the varsity tennis program at Mount Holyoke came to an end. Nevertheless, the players went out with their heads held high and showed the value that their program had to the college.

Karishma Ramkarran ’27 contributed fact-checking.