Women defeat Men in sudden death at Winter Equestrian Festival

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WELLINGTON — In the closest finish in event history, the women's team won the Winter Equestrian Festival's season-opening "Saturday Night Lights" $75,000 Battle of the Sexes at Wellington International.

The women broke a 21-all tie in sudden death to snap the men's three-year win streak and capture the bragging rights grudge match.

Jessica Mendoza of the United Kingdom and Noble won the tiebreaker with a clear round over Venezuela's Luis Larrazabal and Asconos Girl Z to clinch a 24-21 victory.

"I’ve never seen the final round come down to the wire like that, but that made it even more fun,” Mendoza said. "Everyone comes together and there’s a little bit of rivalry between the boys and the girls. This crowd is so fun, and it’s great for the horses to come out and have fun in a night class."

It was the 11th title in the event's 16-year history for the women.

The winning team was captain Kelly Soleau, Mia Bagnato, Alexis Bodo, Kyla Makhloghi, Samantha Mackenzie, Caroline Mawhinney, Kelly Taggart and Mendoza.

Captain Kelly Soleau and Liberty One go over a hurdle during the Battle of the Sexes on Jan. 3 in Wellington.

The men's team was captain Charlie Jayne, Christian Coyle, Daniel Geaney, Alex Granato, Tony Stormanns, Söhnke Theymann, Michael Tokaruk and Larrazabal.

Making the traditional WEF opener even more fun was the sold-out crowd and horses decked out by grooms in pink or blue feathers and tinsel, ribbons, sparkles and painted hearts and stars. The women also wore pink tulle skirts.

One of the season's most popular events pitted men and women show jumpers against each other. The scoring was based on three phases: faults-converted speed course, relays and match races.

In the opening speed class where riders go head-to-head on the same course, the women rallied from a 3-0 deficit to finish with a 4-4 tie.

In the relay event, trailing 9-4, the men bounced back behind Coyle, Theymann and Tokaruk for a 9-9 tie.

In the third and final round, the women led the match race, 15-9 and 18-12, before the men rallied for a 21-21 tie sending it into sudden death.

Mia Bagnato and Florida N compete during the Battle of the Sexes on Jan. 3 at the Winter Equestrian Festival in Wellington.

"It was a lot of fun," Soleau said. "Jessica was our secret weapon."

Added Jayne, "It was tense but fun, and that playoff at the end coming down to that final round was really exciting."

Mckayla Langmeier, Jiselle win Dodd Technologies Grand Prix

Colombia’s Pablo Mejia Villa and his 9-year-old Caramia won the Hermès 1.50-meter Championship Jumper Series opener on Jan. 1 in Wellington.

American Mckayla Langmeier and Jiselle NS won the $75,000 Dodd Technologies Grand Prix on Jan. 4. The pair won the All-American three-rider jump-off with a clear round of 42.459 seconds to pocket $22,500. Jacqueline Ruyle and Cyramo Z and Lillie Keenan and Happy Time rounded out the top three U.S. finishers.

In early week action:

Colombia’s Pablo Mejia Villa and his 9-year-old Caramia won the Hermès 1.50-meter Championship Jumper Series opener. The $150,000 Hermès 1.50-meter Championship Jump Series Final is March 21 during WEF Week 11.

Larrazabal won the $35,000 Adequan WEF Challenge Cup Premiere opening round with Ribery on Jan. 1. They posted back-to-back clear rounds, including 39.83 seconds in the jump-off to win $10,500.

WEF continues through March 29. This week's highlight is the Saturday Night Lights' $140,000 Palm Beach County Sports Commission CSI3 Grand Prix at 7 p.m. Theme night for fans is Country Western Night.

General admission is free. Parking is $25 per car. The venue is located at 3400 Equestrian Club Drive, just off South Shore and Pierson Road. For more information, call 561-793-5867.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Winter Equestrian Festival opens with women earning bragging rights

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