Polo News
Merchant Hub
Notches First Win;
Villa del Lago Remains Perfect at 3-0; Enigma Goes to
2-1
By Alex Webbe - Wellington FL
Merchant Hub 11, FlexJet 8
Sunday, January 18, 2015 - 3:00 pm
Merchant Hub (Scott Swerdlin, Marianito Obregon, Facundo
Obregon and Luis Escobar) recorded their first win of
the season in Joe Barry memorial Cup competition at
the International Polo Club Sunday afternoon by downing
FlexJet (Melissa Ganzi Guille Aguero, Miguel Novillo
Astrada and Juan Bollini), 11-8.
The 19-goal Merchant Hub team received one goal by
handicap but FlexJet scored the first goal of the game
on a 30-yard penalty conversion from Guille Aguero for
a1-1 tie. Miguel Novillo Astrada made it 2-1 on a goal
from the field with 1:34 left in the period.
Merchant Hub came alive in the second with goals from
Marianito Obregon and his brother Facundo Obregon for
a 3-2 edge. Astrada leveled the score at 3-3 with a
goal in the final 48 seconds of the chukker.
Luis Escobar scored the go-ahead goal in the opening30
seconds of the third chukker for a 4-3 Merchant Hub
advantage. Astrada converted a 40-yard penalty shot
for s 4-4 score. Juan Bollini and Marianito Obregon
traded goals to end the first half deadlocked at 5-5.
The fourth chukker remained scoreless until Marianito
Obregon found Facundo with a pass that he redirected
to a streaking Escobar who scored, giving the lead to
Merchant Hub, 6-5. With 1:28 on the clock, Marianito
Obregon scored to give Merchant Hub a two goal, 7-5
lead.
Fifth chukker action got underway with Marianito Obregon
scoring the first goal of the period and Facundo adding
the second as Merchant Hub stretched their lead to four
goals, 9-5. Astrada got FlexJet on the scoreboard with
a 40-yard penalty conversion, 9-6, adding a goal from
the field moments later to cut the Merchant Hub lead
to two goals, 9-7.Facundo Obregon closed out the chukker
by scoring from the field with nine seconds on the clock.
With one chukker left to play, Merchant Hub held a three
goal, 10-7 advantage.
FlexJet pressed the attack in the sixth, with shots
being blocked or going wide of the goal. Astrada converted
a 30-yard penalty shot with nearly six minutes left
to play, but that was where it ended. Luis Escobar scored
on an impressive angle shot from just off the end line
that gave Merchant Hub the security goal they needed
as they rode on for the 12-8 victory.
Facundo Obregon led the Merchant Hub offense with four
goals and earned MVP honors. Escobar and Marianito Obregon
scored three goals apiece and the team received one
goal by handicap. Astrada scored a game-high six goals
(three on penalty shots). Bollini and Aguero scored
single goals in the loss. Halo Polo’s Oro,played
by Juan Bollini in the fifth chukker, was named Best
Playing Pony.
Click
here for game photos by Alex
Pacheco
Villa del Lago 15, Lechuza Caracas 10
Sunday, January 18, 2015 - 12:00 pm
In earlier Joe Barry Memorial Cup action Villa del Lago (Jim Zenni, Agustin Obregon, Polito Pieres and
Julian de Lusarreta) remained undefeated (3-0) as they
bounced back from a 7-3 halftime deficit to defeat Lechuza
(Peke Gonzalez, Marcos Alberdi, Juan Martin Nero and
Martin Espain) , 15-10.
In the opening minute of the game Lechuza’s Marcos
Alberdi raced 180 yards down the field for the first
goal of the game, 1-0. Polito Pieres responded two minutes
later with a 60-yard penalty conversion, 1-1. Fifteen-year-old
Peke Gonzalez (filling in for the absent team captain
Victor Vargas) put Lechuza back on top, 3-2, with a
goal from the field. After a missed scoring attempt
by Villa Del Lago, Martin Espain was knocking the ball
in for Lechuza when he was jumped by Pieres who skirted
around him for the score, 2-2. Lechuza 10-goaler Juan
Martin Nero scored the final goal of the chukker with
just two seconds on the clock for an early 3-2 lead.
Nero extended the Lechuza lead to two goals, 4-2 with
the opening goal of the second period. Defense dominated
the balance of the chukker as Lechuza rode off the field
with the 4-2 advantage.
Pieres opened the third period with a 30-yard penalty
goal, 4-3, but Lechuza was ready. Goals from Gonzalez,
Nero and Alberdi closed out the first half with Lechuza
holding on to a comfortable 7-3 lead at the end of the
first half.
A refocused Villa del Lago team returned to the field
in the fourth period. Pieres scored four consecutive
goals in the opening four minutes of play for the 7-7
tie. Nero gave the lead back to Lechuza, 8-7, with a
goal from the field with 1:37 to play. Facundo Obregon
tied it at 8-8, scoring with 14 seconds on the clock.
Agustin Obregon found himself on the scoring end of
a pass from Pieres, 9-8, to open the fifth. Nero answered
with a goal from the field just a minute later, 9-9.
Pieres took over scoring on an 80-yard neck shot and
following it up with a 240-yard run with the ball for
a goal. A minute later Pieres scored again to end o
the chukker with Villa del Lago in front by three goals,
12-9.
Gonzalez scored the first goal of the sixth period,
cutting the Villa del Lago lead to a manageable two
goal lead, 12-10, but that was where it ended. Peres
scored from 130-yards out, 13-10, followed by single
goals from Agustin Obregon and Julian de Lusarreta for
the 15-10 victory.
Pieres led all scoring with ten goals (two on penalty
conversations). Obregon scored four times and de Lusarreta
added a goal for the win. Nero led Lechuza with four
goals. Alberdi and Gonzalez added three goals each in
a losing effort.
Click
here for game photos by Alex
Pacheco
Enigma
14, Coca-Cola 13
Sunday, January 18, 2015 - 10:00 am
Enigma (Jerome Wirth, Jeff Hall, Matias MacDonough
and Carlucho Arellano) registered their second win of
the season, improving their record to 2-1 as they downed
Coca-Cola (Gillian Johnston, Sugar Erskine, Julio Arellano
and Mason Wroe) 14-13 in a Sunday morning match.
Gillian Johnston and Julio Arellano scored single goals
for Coca-Cola in first chukker action. Enigma was unable
to break through the Coca-Cola defense, falling behind
after the opening chukker, 2-0.
Enigma team captain Jerome Wirth scored in the first
minute of the second chukker, 2-1. Arellano countered
with a 30-yard penalty goal, 3-1. Enigma 7-goaler Jeff
Hall cut the Coca-Cola lead to a single goal, 3-2, before
leveling the score at 3-3 on a 70-yard cut shot through
the Coca-Cola goalposts. Mason Wroe gave the lead back
to Coca-Cola, 4-3, with a run and a goal from the field
for the final goal of the chukker.
Wirth scored a goal in the opening 30-seconds of the
third, tying the game at 4-4. Consecutive goals from
Matias MacDonough from the throw-ins put Enigma in the
lead, 6-4. Arellano countered with a pair of 60-yard
penalty goals to make it 6-6. MacDonough scored on a
40-yard penalty shot to end the first half with Enigma
in control of a 7-6 score.
Fourth chukker play Hall scoring the first goal of
the second half for an 8-6 Enigma advantage. Arellano
fired back by scoring on a 30-yard penalty shot, 8-7.
Wroe tied it at 8-8 before three consecutive goals (including
a Penalty 1) had Coca-Cola trailing by three goals,
11-8. Carlucho Arellano (Julio Arellano’s younger
brother) was credited with two of the three penalty
conversions.
Coca-Cola put the pressure on Enigma in the fifth chukker,
as Johnston and MacDonough traded goals in the first
few minutes of the period, 12-9. Julio Arellano scored
from the field, 12-10, and Sugar Erskine carried the
ball over 230 yards down the field to score, 12-11.
Hall scored the first goal of the sixth period, 13-11.
Julio Arellano and his brother Carlucho Arellano each
converted a penalty goal, but Enigma continued to enjoy
the lead, 14-12. With under a minute remaining in the
game, Johnston broke loose to score the final goal of
the game for a 14-13 Enigma win.
Click
here for game photos by Alex
Pacheco
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