Las Monjitas Wins!
By Alex Webbe
Orchard Hill and Las Monjitas battled tooth and nail for five chukkers before Las Monjitas finally took control of the game on it way to a 12-10 win in the finals of the 2009 Hall of Fame Cup Thursday morning at the International Polo Club in
Tied at 606 at halftime, the teams seemed to be exchanging goals throughout the match with neither looking like they were going to run away with it.
In the end, it was a four-goal sixth chukker by Las Monjitas that put them into the United States Open Championship finals for the second consecutive time.
Orchard Hill took an 8-7 lead after the fourth chukker and held the one goal advantage, 9-8, at the end of the fifth, but Las Monjitas wouldn’t be denied.
Adam Snow opened the final chukker by converting a 40-yard penalty shot for Las Monjitas to tie the game at 9-9. Teammate Eduardo Astrada put them ahead 10-9 on a goal from the field. Nacho Astrada made it 11-9, Las Monjitas before Orchard Hill finally answered back.
Ten-goaler Pablo MacDonough scored his sixth goal of the game to cut the Las Monjitas lead back to a single goal, 11-10 when Adam Snow closed the door on Orchard Hill with a goal for the 12-11 final score.
The victory assures Las Monjitas of a berth in Sunday’s 2009 Sunday finals against the winner of Thursday’s late afternoon match between Audi and White Birch.