2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest Winners Announced

(Updated: March 24, 2026, 7:48 p.m.)
A picture of the first place senior hippology team and their awards

2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest Winners

On March 14, Riddick Hall at NC State University was buzzing with equine excellence. We are so proud of the 224 4-H’ers who joined us to put their horse knowledge to the ultimate test!

From identifying breeds and tack to evaluating feed and judging classes, these youth showcased incredible dedication. A huge thank you to our 16 Junior teams and 13 Senior teams for a fantastic day of competition.

A Special Thank You:
This event wouldn’t be possible without the generous support of The Dale Earnhardt Foundation. Thank you for investing in the next generation of equine leaders!

The top ten individuals and team results are posted below.

For detailed results:
Check out the full individual and team placings on JudgingCard
North Carolina State 4-H Hippology Contest Mar 14, 2026 2026 NC State 4-H Senior Rookie Hippology

Junior Rookie Top Ten Results

Rank Name County Score
1 AVERY BEAL Lee 392
2 MAPLE KEMP Lee 384
3 CHARLOTTE KUSZ Iredell 384
4 HALLIE HARDY Lee 376
5 AUBRIE BATTEN Nash 370
6 JOCELYNN HUGHES Pender 362
7 HANNAH MERRITT Moore 362
8 MADISON ANDERS Wilson 360
9 GRACE SOREY Dare 356
10 PAISLEY MEADS Perquimans 352
The top Junior Rookies and their awards for the 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest

Senior Rookie Top Ten Results

Rank Name County Score
1 KIMBER BRAMBLE Franklin 358
2 CLAIRE VEENSTRA Wake 356
3 KENDALL KULHAN Avery 336
4 SUSIE STOCK Granville 334
5 MADISON UPDYKE Nash 328
6 CARYS HECKMAN Wake 326
7 HAYLIE KRAUSE Pender 324
8 PEYTON CANFIELD Pender 324
9 CHLOE NERSESSIAN Johnston 320
10 SYDNEY DICKINSON Pender 318

Senior Rookie Top Ten Results:

The top ten senior rookie individuals and their awards for the 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest

Junior 8-10 Results

The top 8-10 junior in Hippology judging and their awards for the 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest
Junior 8-10 Top Ten High Individuals Overall
Rank Name County/Team Score
1 SLOANE ANDERSON Wake-Cloer 465
2 BAYLEE PIKE Alamance 462
3 KATE BRAMBLE Franklin 460
4 KYNDAL MCLAMB Wake-Cloer 442
5 VALERIE POOLE Franklin 432
6 SAVANNAH WAHL Wake-Cloer 422
7 COLLINS WADDELL Ashe 404
8 RAYLAN MANESS Rockingham 399
9 LUKE HARPER Wilson-Reva 396
10 RILEY HICKS Rockingham 391
The top ten 8-10 junior individuals and their awards for the 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest

Junior 11-13 Results

The top 11-13 junior in Hippology judging and their awards for the 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest
The top 11-13 junior in Hippology Exam/ID and their awards for the 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest
The top 11-13 junior in Hippology stations and their awards for the 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest
The top 11-13 junior overall and their awards for the 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest
Junior 11-13 Top Ten High Individuals Overall
1 GRACE MATTHEWS Chatham Individual 558
2 JOY CHANEY Union 552
3 LEAH GROVE Nash 548
4 LILY BEAN Catawba Individual 546
5 BLAIRE GREGORY Perquimans Individual 546
6 CAMILLE ARNALL Buncombe Individual 540
7 CALI AUGUST Union 533
8 SARAH LEDFORD Catawba Individual 530
9 ANNIE MANNING Nash 529
10 ELIZA MEINERS Cherokee Individual 525
The top ten 11-13 junior individuals overall and their awards for the 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest

Senior Results

The top senior in Exam/ID and their awards for the 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest
The reserve champion senior individual and their awards for the 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest
Champion Senior Horseman of the Year- 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest and their awards
Rank       Name County/Team Score
1 MARISSA RATHBUN Wake Individual 529
2 RUBY DESROSIERS Burke Individual 528
3 CHARLI WILLIAMS Perquimans 519
4 EVA TAYLOR Perquimans 519
5 KYLEE GREENE Union 512
6 KINLEY JOHNSON Rockingham Individual 506
7 KATELYN PENNELL Catawba 490
8 SOPHIE JARRETT Catawba 486
9 REESE DARRESS Caldwell Individual 481
10 NATALIE SPRINKLE Union Individual 480
Top Ten Senior Individuals Overall and their awards- 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest

Junior Team Results

The top junior team in team problem and their awards for the 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest
The top junior team and their awards for the 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest
Top Ten Junior Teams Overall
Rank County/Team Score
1 Union 1667
2  Nash 1627
3  Rowan 1562
4 Moore 1533
5 Halifax 1527
6  Alamance 1523
7 Cabarrus 1511
8  Wake-Taylor 1482
9 Onslow 1444
10  Franklin 1444

Senior Team Results

Champion Senior Team Problem and their awards- 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest
Champion Senior Team and their awards for the 2026 NC State 4-H Hippology Contest
Top Ten Senior Teams Overall
Rank County Score
1 Perquimans 1591
2 Union 1520
3 Catawba 1499
4 Rockingham 1444.5
5 Currituck 1416
6 Chatham 1385
7 Cherokee 1380
8 Halifax 1363
9 Johnston 1273
10 Wake 1190

Cloverbud Participants

The Cloverbud participants and their awards from the 2026 NC State 4-H Horse Bowl and Hippology Contests
Cloverbud Participants
County First Name Last Name
Ashe Emery Osborne
Burke Red Baudean
Catawba Abigail Ledford
Dare Adelina Lorke
Dare Scarlett Renkosiak
Nash Adalyn Stallman
Pender Everleigh Finney
Perquimans Libby Craddock
Perquimans Raiden Karagias
Perquimans Lilley Schleeper
Rockingham Harper McVey
Rowan Aaliyah Land-Lynch
Rowan Allyson Lloyd
Union Palmer Kaus
Union Bennett Kaus
Wake Julia Wahl
Wilson Matthew Simmons
Wilson Kira Stump
Wilson Charlie Torres
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