Piaget vs. Orchard Hill

03/15/2012, 12:00 pm |

Piaget - 14, Orchard Hill - 10

The second Piaget Gold Cup match of the day had Piaget (2-1) securing a quarterfinal berth at the expense of Orchard Hill (0-3).

Piaget charged onto the field and scored the first three goals of the match. Gonzalito scored the first goal of the game in the first two minutes of play. Jeff Hall followed up with a goal from the field just thirty seconds later and capped it off with a penalty conversion late in the chukker. Pablo Macdonough jumped on a miss-hit by Gonzalito Pieres and carried the ball 200 yards down the field for a goal with seven seconds left in the period. Piaget held on to a 3-1 lead after the opening chukker.

A penalty goal from Hall and a goal from the field from Marc Ganzi were countered by a pair of goals from Orchard Hill’s Mariano Gonzalez. Piaget continued to lead by two goals, 5-3, as the second chukker ended.

Penalty goals from Gonzalez and MacDonough in the third chukker were offset by a pair of goals from the field by Gonzalito Pieres and teams rode off the field at halftime with Piaget stubbornly holding on to the 7-5 lead.

Penalty goals from Mariano Gonzalez and Gonzalito Pieres had Piaget in front, 8-6. A goal from the field from MacDonough cut the lead to a single goal, 8-7, but Hall put Piaget back on top by two to end the period, 9-7.

Piaget went on a run in the fifth, beginning with a penalty goal from Hall in the opening minute of the chukker. Gonzalito Pieres scored at the five minute mark and Nico Pieres added another goal shortly thereafter. Gonzalez converted another penalty shot for a goal to end the chukker, but Orchard Hill continued to trail, 12-8.

Piaget continued the attack into the sixth chukker with Gonzalito Pieres converting a penalty shot for a goal and Nico Pieres executing a beautiful nearside neck shot for a score and a 14-8, six goal lead. With just under two minutes in regulation time, Pablo MacDonough scored a goal from the field and then came right back to add another with under a minute on the clock. Time expired, with Orchard Hill trying to extend their rally, falling to Piaget, 14-10.

MacDonough led Orchard Hill with seven goals (three on penalties). Gonzalez scored three penalty goals.

Gonzalito Pieres was credited with seven goals (three on penalty shots) for the Piaget team. Hall added four goals (three on penalties). Nico Pieres scored twice and Ganzi added a goal in the win.