Tryon Delivers the Final Twist in the US Equestrian Open Qualifiers
Ashker earns her spot, Mendoza Loor rises to the cutoff, and Marek ends the season on top.
In a final qualifier class of just three, Tryon proved that a small field can still have Series-altering impact. Both Julio Mendoza Loor and Laine Ashker entered the weekend outside the qualification cutoff—and both left with invitations to the Final.
Mendoza Loor and his Paris mount, Jewel’s Goldstrike, claimed victory on a 76.190%, while Ashker and Zeppelin followed with 72.955%. Their one-two finish vaulted both riders up the leaderboard: Mendoza Loor now sits in 18th, the last automatic qualifying position, and Ashker moves to 20th but has already received and accepted her invitation to the Final.
Entries for the US Equestrian Open of Dressage Final will be confirmed later this week, but several riders inside the top 18—Eline Eckroth, Evelyn Eger, and Kevin Kohmann—have already declined their spots, which created an opening for Ashker. Eckroth plans to stay in Florida to prepare for the winter circuit, while Eger and Kohmann are entered in the $350,000 World Cup event in Mexico the week before the Final. As for Mendoza Loor, we’ll have to wait and see whether he joins the field in Thermal when entries are confirmed.
With the standings now set, Anna Marek officially tops the season leaderboard on 105 points, closing out the inaugural season with a $12,500 payout. Later this week, we’ll take a closer look at her journey and how she got here. In the meantime, as we wait with bated breath for official entry announcements, one question lingers: which horse will she bring to the Final? With Kohmann out of the picture and Ebeling on an upward trajectory, it’s a decision that promises to be anything but simple.
