Mary Lisa Leffler Scores One-Two Finish in $5,000 Welcome Stake to Kick Off Lexington Spring Premiere
Lexington, Va. – April 24, 2025 – Mary Lisa Leffler of Rolling Acres came out strong Thursday morning, delivering all the right answers to kick off the 2025 Lexington Spring Premiere, part of the Festival of Champions, presented by Attwood Equestrian, at the Virginia Horse Center. She garnered the top two spots with speedy jump-off rounds aboard her veteran partner Zaza Z and newest mount Gentleman Jack, placing first and second, respectively. Leading off the day with the first double clear effort of the morning was Cullen Drescher Speckhart aboard Oscars Afterparty.
“With Gentleman Jack, I’ve been going up to levels, so the 1.35m and 1.40m, and I am getting ready for the Grand Prix and such,” explained Leffler after her win. “He’s fast, so today I wanted to go as fast with him. Then with Zaza, I was trying to save her for Saturday, but she’s fast – she’s fast when she’s not trying. She sights on one and she just goes – she lands and turns.”
Ken Krome set an inviting track for the first major event of the week, which featured two double combinations and a final line bending towards the in-gate as the last question. Six horse and rider combinations advanced to the tiebreaker, where four turned in a second clear round. Speckhart was the first to return, carefully leaving each rail intact as she crossed the finish line in 37.048 seconds. Leffler was next to tackle the short course with Gentleman Jack, and they quickly increased the time to beat as they broke the beam in 33.816 seconds. As the last to return for the jump-off, Leffler had the win in hard when she rode in on Zaza Z, but always the competitor, Zaza Z found the first jump out of stride and never slowed down, stopping the clock in 33.625 seconds to move ahead of Gentleman Jack and claim the top prize.
“She’s my angel,” expressed Leffler, talking about her veteran partner. “Every time Zaza Z comes out, she always tries to win. We used to not be able to ride her [at home], but now we’re able to get on her and I just trot her. She doesn’t do anything bad, it’s just anxiety, so I just trot her to keep her fit. She’s had three weeks off since Florida, so I might have jumped over two 2’9” jumps and that’s it – she knows her job.”
Leffler was thrilled to be back at the Virginia Horse Center for the Lexington Spring Premiere, concluding, “It’s always my favorite show back after Florida. I love the green grass and the new footing is great! The horses have jumped well the past two days – you feel a difference.”
The Lexington Spring Premiere will continue through April 27 at the Virginia Horse Center. Friday’s highlight event will be the $5,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby, followed by Saturday evening’s $25,000 Rockbridge Grand Prix. Next week, riders will return for the Lexington Spring Encore, the second event in the 2025 Festival of Champions, presented by Attwood Equestrian.