Melanie was  as the new head coach of the Phoenix equestrian hunt seat team. Vest joins the Phoenix after serving as the head coach at Bridgewater College in Virginia. In addition to her coaching duties at Wilson, she will also be serving as an instructor in our equine studies program.

Vest had been with the Eagles since 2018 in a variety of roles before eventually earning the head coaching position of their IHSA team in 2021. Since then she's also been the owner and head trainer of Hat Trick Equestrian which included managing boarding, training and lessons. She taught all level lessons with an emphasis in hunt seat equitation and jumper seat style. She was also responsible for coaching, schooling, and showing client horses at SWVHJA, CVSJA, and VHSA shows. From 2018 to 2021, Vest was the head coach of Bridgewater's open show team while also being the assistant to the director of riding, assistant professor of equine science.