Wins by Villa Del Lago and Zacara help set Joe Barry Memorial Cup semifinals
ByAlex Webbe
Polito Pieres scored the first goal of the game in theopening 25 seconds of play to give Villa Del Lago the early lead. Jeff Blake responded with a goal for ERG, butAgustin Obregon closed out the scoring with a goal in the final 32 seconds ofthe chukker for the 2-1 score.
Three consecutive goals in the second period had VillaDel Lago on top, 5-1. Villa Del Lago gottwo goals from Pieres and another goal from Obregon. Paco de Narvaez got ERG on the scoreboard,but at the end of the second chukker Villa Del Lago was in front by threegoals, 5-2.
The two teams exchanged goals in the third with MagooLaprida scoring twice from the field while ERG relied on a pair of penaltygoals from de Narvaez. The first halfended with Villa Del Lago defending its two goal lead, 6-4.
Two more goals from de Narvaez (one on a penalty shot)were offset by a pair of goals from Laprida, and the fourth chukker ended with VillaDel Lago maintaining its lead, 8-6.
Pieres added two more goals to the Villa Del Lago totalin the fifth, but ERG got single goals from Scott Wood and de Narvaez (a60-yard penalty conversion). ERGcontinued to trail by two goals, 10-8.
Just one minute into the final chukker, Blake scored to cutthe Villa Del Lago lead to a single goal, 10-9, but they would get nocloser. Pieres converted a penalty shotfor a goal, 11-9. ERG continued to pressits attack, but time wasn’t on its side. De Narvaez scored the final goal of the game, but the Villa Del Lagodefense kept them off the scoreboard for the final three minutes of the game toride off with the 11-10 win.
Polito Pieres set the pace for Villa Del Lago with six
goals, one on a penalty shot. Magoo Laprida
and Agustin Obregon scored two goals apiece and Villa Del Lago was awarded one
goal on a Penalty 1 for dangerous riding in the area of the goal. ERG’s Paco de Narvaez led all scoring with
seven goals, five on penalty shots. Jeff
Blake added a goal from the field and a penalty conversion for a goal and Scott
Wood accounted for a goal in the loss.
Magoo Laprida was
named MVP for his efforts while Lola,
a 6-year-old Bay mare owned by Marcos Bignoli and played by Polito Pieres was
honored as Best Playing Pony
ZACARA11, VALIENTE 10
Earlier in the day, Zacara overcame a 5-1 second chukkerdeficit Sunday morning to record a 12-11 win over a powerful Valiente lineup asFacundo Pieres led all scoring with seven goals in the 2013 Joe Barry MemorialCup at the International Polo Club in Wellington.
Following runs by each team up and down the field, AdolfoCambiaso scored the first goal of the game halfway through the opening chukkerto give Valiente the first lead of the game, 1-0. Two minutes later Hilario Ulloa scored forZacara for a 1-1 tie. Alfredo Capella (Barabucci)put Valiente ahead with a go-ahead goal with just 11 seconds on the clock inthe first chukker for the 2-1 lead.
Valiente got into gear in the second period, with Capellascoring consecutive goals within two minutes of one another. Teammate Julio Gracida’s first goal of thegame had Valiente on top, 5-1 with four-and-one-half minutes left in thechukker. The period ended with Ulloascoring a goal from the field and Facundo Pieres converting a 60-yard penaltyshot for a goal. Valiente led by twogoals, 5-3.
Goals were a precious commodity in the third chukker. The teams were four minutes into the period beforeCapella’s third goal of the game had Valiente leading, 6-3. Pieres closed out the scoring with a goalfrom the field in the last minute of play and Zacara left the field trailingValiente by two goals, 6-4.
Pieres cut the lead to a single goal in the fourthchukker on a 60-yard penalty shot for a goal and Zacara team captain Lyndon Leahad it all even at 6-6 on his first score of the game. Pieres thrilled hundreds of spectators as heraced down the field with the ball to score and put Zacara in the lead for thefirst time all day, 7-6. The lead wasshort-lived, however, with Valiente being awarded a goal on a Penalty 1, fordangerous riding in the goal area. Cambiaso drew oohs and aahs from the crowd just seconds later when he backhandedthe ball over a crowd in front of the goal to give the lead back to Valiente,8-7.
The pace of the game continued to quicken in thefifth. Fourteen-year-old Matias Gonzaleztook a pass from Lea and scored his first goal of the match to tie it up at8-8. Capella moved Valiente ahead onceagain on a well-placed shot from 80 yards out, 9-8. Midway through the period, Gonzalez knottedit up once again, 9-9, with his second goal of the game. Gracida put Valiente on top once again with apenalty conversion, 10-9, but Pieres converted a 30-yard penalty shot todeadlock it 10-10 to end the chukker.
Four minutes into the final period of regulation time,Pieres broke loose and raced down the field over 200 yards to put Zacara backin the lead, 11-10. A minute later,Cambiaso converted a penalty shot and tied it up once again, 11-11. With under a minute left in regulation time,Pieres scored the final goal of the game, giving the 12-11 win to Zacara.
The victory boosts Zacara into Wednesday’s semifinalswhere it will play Crab orchard at 3pm.
Facundo Pieres was credited with seven goals, four onpenalty shots. Hilario Ulloa and MatiasGonzalez scored two goals apiece and Lyndon Lea added a goal in the win. Alfredo Capella (Barabucci) scored five timesfor Valiente. Adolfo Cambiaso registeredfour goals, two on penalty shots and Julio Gracida scored a pair of goals (oneon a penalty shot).
LECHUZACARACAS 9, FARAWAY 8
In a noon contest, Hutton Goodman’s Faraway polo teamjumped out to an early 4-0 lead after the opening chukker but fell to LechuzaCaracas, 9-8, in Joe Barry Memorial Cup competition Sunday afternoon.
Pelon Escapite scored three first chukker goals from thefield and Faraway added a penalty conversion from Argentine 9-goaler SantiagoChavanne for a lopsided 4-0 start.
Defenses tightened in the second chukker with Escapiteadding another Faraway goal on a penalty conversion. Lechuza Caracas responded with a pair ofpenalty goals from Goti and the chukker ended with Faraway guarding a 5-2 lead.
Lechuza Caracas finally got into sync in the thirdperiod. A single goal from Faraway’s Chavannewas answered by four Lechuza Caracas goals (two from Goti on penalty shots andsingle goals from Agustin Nero and Adam Snow) as the first half ended in a 6-6tie.
Lechuza Caracas took control of the game in the fourth chukker,shutting out the Faraway offense and tallying a pair of goals from Goti (onefrom the field and one on a penalty shot). With two chukkers left to play, Lechuza Caracas had taken a two goal,8-6 lead.
Goti’s seventh goal of the game had Lechuza leading bythree goals, 9-6 in the fifth. Escapitekept Faraway from getting shut out for the second consecutive chukker byscoring a goal in the final 38 seconds of the period. The Lechuza lead stood at two goals, 9-7,with one chukker left to play.
Faraway continued to press their attack, but LechuzaCaracas wasn’t having any of it. Defensive backhanders and well-timed interceptions kept their attack atbay. With just under four minutes leftin the game, Escapite registered his sixth goal of the game, but that was whereit ended. Lechuza rode out the balanceof the game for the 9-8 victory.
Tomas Goti led all scoring with seven goals (five onpenalty shots). Agustin Nero and AdamSnow added single goals in the win. Pelon Escapite set the pace for Faraway with six goals (one on a penaltyshot). Santiago Chavanne scored twice(once on a penalty conversion).
PIAGET11, LUCCHESE 10
It was a reshuffled lineup for both Piaget and Luccheseas they faced one another in the final round of play in the 2013 Joe Barrymemorial Cup competition Sunday morning, with Piaget coming out on the winningend of an 11-10 score.
Juan Bollini remained as the only original member of the 201320-goal Piaget lineup as he was joined by Juan Badiola, Brandon Phillips andLucas Lalor. Lucchese had MarianitoGracida filling in for Jason Crowder, later replaced by former 10-goaler CarlosGracida.
A pair of goals from Lucas Lalor and a goal from Juan Bolliniwent unanswered in the opening chukker for a 3-0 Piaget lead.
Brandon Phillips scored a single goal for Piaget in the secondchukker, but a pair of goals from Carlos Gracida and a single goal fromSebastian Merlos saw Lucchese cut the lead to a single goal, 4-3.
Lalor’s third goal of the game extended the Piaget leadto two goals, 5-3, but Carlos Gracida fired back with his third goal of thegame as well. At the end of the firsthalf Piaget guarded a one goal lead, 5-4.
Piaget controlled the fourth chukker, scoring four times (threefrom Phillips and a goal from Bollini) while limiting the Lucchese attack to asingle goal from Merlos. With twochukkers left to play, the Piaget lead had grown to four goals, 9-5.
Two more penalty conversions from Phillips were counteredby penalty goals from Merlos and Carlos Gracida. At the end of the fifth chukker Piaget heldthe four goal lead, 11-7.
Carlos Gracida added three more goals to the Lucchesetotal in the final chukker while Piaget failed to score. Time expired with Piaget celebrating the11-10 win.
Carlos Gracida’s seven goals led all scoring, with threeof them coming on penalty shots. Sebastian Merlos accounted for the remaining three Lucchese goals (one ona penalty shot). Brandon Phillipsrecorded six goals for Piaget (four on penalty goals). Lucas Lalor scored three times and JuanBollini was credited with two goals for the win.