By Jim Fenton

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- They had an up-close view of the International Horse Show Association Zone 1, Region 4 Championships last year.

Samantha Burke (Weymouth, Mass.), Emily Desmond (Braintree, Mass.) and Rianne Wyckstrom (Hudson, Mass.) joined teammates on the Bridgewater State University equestrian team to watch Bears senior Ashley Drake compete.

"There's a lot of team support and sportsmanship," said Burke, a senior captain. "It's a really fun day. All the teams are supporting their individual riders, but we come together as Region 4."

On Saturday, March 30, Burke, Desmond and Wyckstrom will be returning to the IHSA Zone 1, Region 4 competition at the Holly Hill Show Stables in Hanover, Mass., this time as competitors representing BSU.

Burke has qualified in the limit flat and over fences competitions while Desmond, a junior captain, will be in the limit flat and Wyckstrom, a sophomore, is in the intermediate flat.

The top two finishers in each event based on points will move on to the Zone 1 competition at Mount Holyoke when spots in the nationals in North Carolina May 3-5 will be on the line.

Burke and Desmond qualified for the regionals in the season's opening show on Oct. 14 while Wyckstrom did so on March 16 in the final show of the regular season in Bolton.

BSU took part in four shows during the first semester and two more in March for coach Christine Murphy.

Burke transferred to BSU after one year at the University of Rhode Island and has been a member of the equestrian team for three seasons.

"It's been great," said Burke. "Just being involved with the team, it's great for making friends. We work out together. It's been a lot of fun.

"I've been doing this since I was a little kid, so being on the team is great and it's great to qualify for the regionals in my last year on the team."

Burke began riding at the age of 9 in Hingham, and after she started taking lessons, "I loved it right away," she said.

Riding for a varsity team at BSU has been a new experience the past three years.

"Getting to ride a bunch of different horses has made me a better rider," said Burke. "All the different horse providers bring horses to the show and you pick out of a hat. So, the first time sitting on the horse is when your being judged.

"The chance to ride all these great horses has been a great experience."

Burke's career at BSU is winding down and she wants to make the most of the trip to the IHSA regional.

"I feel pretty good," said Burke, who graduates in May. "Everyone is a competitive rider and talented, so we'll see. For the people competing, it can be very stressful, a little bit more so than a regular show.

"I hope to do well and represent my team well at regionals. I hope to go out on a good note. It's kind of sad (that her career is ending), but it's been really fun. I'm excited for our other two riders who are coming back next year."

Desmond came close to qualifying for the regionals last season but just fell short.

She had plenty of motivation going into this season to get enough points to make it to the regional competition and she did that in the opener on Oct. 14.

"It has been a huge goal," said Desmond. "I was really close last year, but this year I was able to qualify in the first show. It was so nice to do it then."

Desmond began riding at the age of five and has been a regular at Pemberly Oaks Equestrian in Wrentham.

"It was just having a relationship with the horse and being able to be on a live animal and communicate and compete with the horse," said Desmond of what she likes about riding.

Being part of the BSU team for three years has been different for Desmond, who only rode as an individual before college.

"That's the main reason I'm doing this, just being able to compete with my friends and support them in a sport," said Desmond. "It's been a nice community to be part of.

"Just being able to enjoy what I like to do with other people who like to do it and being there with everyone else and supporting them through their goals and milestones has been great."

In the regular-season finale on March 16, at a show in Bolton hosted by Brandeis University, Desmond was awarded the reserve high point rider of the day after finishing first in intermediate flat and second in limit over fences.

She is the first BSU rider to earn that honor since the program went to the varsity level in the 2018-19 academic year.

Now, Desmond turns her attention to the regionals and a chance to move on to the Zone competition next month.

"I just want to do the best I can and hopefully I can pin well and move on to zones," said Desmond. "If not, I'll try next year. Qualifying for regionals is what I wanted to do this year, so I've already reached my big goal. I just want to be there with my team."

Wyckstrom had advanced to the regionals in her second year on the BSU team.

"I think it'll be a little bit more high pressure," said Wyckstrom. "But it's still like any other show, same format. There's more pressure because it's the people who have accrued the most points. It's the cream of the crop.

"The goal is always to try and point out. It's definitely something I wanted to do in my time here, go to regionals once."

Wyckstrom enjoyed being at Holly Hill Show Stables a year ago for the regionals when the BSU team watched Drake compete.

"It was really fun," she said. "We had a great team atmosphere. It'll help this year. It's good to know what you're doing going in."

Wyckstrom has been riding for 11 years and clearly remembers how it all started.

"I like to say it's pretty much the most expensive Christmas gift ever," joked Wyckstrom. "I asked for a couple of lessons when I was 9 going on 10. My parents were like, 'Oh sure.'

"I hadn't liked many sports as a kid. It was finding something I liked. Then the lessons never stopped and here we are 10-11 years later and my parents were like, 'It's a very expensive gift, huh?'

"I just love having the partnership with the horse. To have that trust is pretty unique. And it's been really great being on the team here. We bond with teammates over a shared love. I've made some really good friends."

Boston University, which is hosting the Zone 1, Region 4 competition, has won five of the last six regional championships.