Early morning practices, core workouts in the gym, and of course, the sweet smell of horses — the Cornell equestrian team knows it all. It seems that hard work and dedication are the themes this year for a team that has its sights set on victory.

Those victories are looking more and more likely, as the Red is already off to a great start early in the season.

Though the team initially slipped in the rankings, a stellar performance at the Morrisville show allowed the Red to return to second place in the region.

“We had an unreal comeback [at Morrisville],” said head coach Chris Mitchell. “We outscored everyone in the afternoon and maintained our second place spot … we’re not losing any ground.”

The Red’s early success is especially impressive due to the fact that the team has had to compensate for the graduation of several key riders. Among them were co-captains Dana Kendrick ’09 and Caroline Shulman ’09, who were prominent scorers for the Red in nearly every show of the 2008-09 season.

“We graduated some pretty strong seniors, so it’s been kind of a transition year for us,” said junior co-captain Georgina Melbye. “We’ve had to adjust, and veterans have had to move up to new divisions … it really increases the level of competition.”

“I don’t think we’re quite as deep as we were last year,” Mitchell said. “Talent-wise, there’s a different makeup of the team, so the girls have to be a little hungrier to win.”

However, there is no shortage of determination among this year’s riders. Several veterans — including Melbye, senior co-captain Heather Sherman and seniors Nicole Finazzo and Brooke Cagwin — have recently stepped up into starting positions in order to fill the gaps.

Not to mention that the team’s rookies are already displaying a great deal of talent.

“All of our rookies are really good this year,” Mitchell said. “I was very specific in what I was looking for in my tryouts, because we needed to get some more depth.”

Just a few of the new riders include Joan Kim in Walk-Trot; Emily Webster in Intermediate; and Emily Kowalchik, Anne Elise Creamer and Erica Hooker in Novice. All are expected to be important contributors in this year’s competitions.

Rookies and all, the Red will have to be on top of its game this season, for the other schools in the region are shaping up to be tough opponents.

“Our region has gotten really big, so the other schools are catching up pretty quickly,” Sherman said. “We don’t have just one or two teams to worry about any more … instead, there’s five or six.”

But the Red is always prepared for a battle.

“A major goal of ours is to win the region and send as many riders to nationals as possible,” Sherman said. “So for now we’re just staying focused … we’re just going to do what we can to get the job done.”