Overtime goal Gives US Trust Cup to GTP Polo
By Alex Webbe
With just over a minute gone in sudden-death overtime, GTP Polo’s Joey Casey scored the winning goal in the finals of the 2009 US Trust Cup at the Grand Champions Polo Club in Wellington Sunday afternoon.
Boca Developers took an early lead on the strength of two goals from Diego Cossio in the first chukker while holding GYP Polo scoreless.
GTP returned the favor in the second period as it relied on two penalty conversions from Marc Ganzi to tie the game. The GTP defense blanked Boca Developers in the second frame.
Kris Kampsen opened the scoring in the third chukker with a 100-yard shot at goal. Ganzi took the ensuing throw-in and carried it to goal. Moments Ganzi scored from the field again to give GTP a5-2 lead. Luis Escobar got Boca Developers on the scoreboard with a chukker-ending goal. GTP left the field at the end of the first half with a 5-3 lead.
Marc Ganzi’s fifth goal of the game was the only offense provided in the fourth period by either team as they carried the ball up and down the field with few scoring opportunities. GTP Polo held on to a 6-3 lead going into the fifth chukker.
Escobar opened the fifth chukker with a penalty conversion and then followed up with a goal from the field. Boca Developers were awarded a penalty shot that would have knotted it up at 6-6, but the effort fell short and the Boca Developer mini-rally fell short. GTP was unable to score but held on to a narrow 6-5 lead going into the final chukker of regulation play.
Casey gave GTP a 7-5 advantage with a goal from the field in the sixth chukker, but two goals from Escobar tied it at 7-7 as time expired and the teams were forced into overtime play.
With 1:12 gone in the overtime period, Joey Casey carried the winning goal through the goalposts for the 8-7 win.
Marc Ganzi led the GTP Polo team with five goals. Kris Kampsen added a score and Casey supplied two goals, including the winning strike in overtime for the win.
Luis Escobar set the pace for Boca Developers with five goals. Teammate Diego Cossio added two goals.
GRAND CHAMPIONS 12, AUDI 11
In earlier competition, Grand Champions trailed early by as many as four goals but came back to win the consolation round of the US Trust Cup by defeating Audi 12-11.
Melissa Ganzi and Trevor Allen scored the opening goals of the game for Audi before Charlie Muldoon converted a penalty shot to end the first chukker with Audi ahead, 2-1.
Allen scored three more second chukker goals for Audi, with Melissa Ganzi and Leo Mandelbaum each scoring a goal as Audi took a 7-3 edge. J. J. Celis accounted for both second chukker goals from Grand Champions.
Greg Keough opened the third period with a goal from the field for Grand Champions that was answered by a single goal from Mandelbaum. Two more goals from Celis ended the chukker and had Grand Champions trailing by only two goals at halftime, 8-6.
Melissa Ganzi opened the fourth chukker with a goal for Audi followed by a penalty conversion from Grand Champions’ Keough. Allen added another Audi goal for a 10-7 lead.
Trailing by three goals, the fifth chukker was all Grand Champions. Consecutive goals from Celis and Charlie Muldoon were complimented by a penalty conversion from Keough. Disciplined defense held Audi scoreless and the score was all even at 10-10.
Leo Mandelbaum’s third goal of the game had Audi up, 11-10 in the final chukker, but Grand Champions wasn’t through yet. Keough found his way through the Audi defense to score the tying goal with Ruben Gracida scoring the winning goal just moments later. The game ended with Grand Champions taking the game 12-11.
Trevor Allen led the Audi with five goals. Melissa Ganzi scored three times and Leo Mandelbaum accounted for two goals.
J. J. Celis scored five times for Grand Champions. Greg Keough added four goals with Muldoon added two. Ruben Gracida scored one goal, the winning score in the final chukker.