Day two of quarterfinal action in the 130th Hurlingham Open for the Ayshire Cup resumed at the AAP Headquarters in Pilar with a battle between La Natividad (Camilo Castagnola, Facundo Pieres, Bartolome Castagnola Jr., Pablo Mac Donough) and La Hache Cría & Polo (Juan Ruiz Guiñazu, Cristian Laprida, Carlos Maria Ulloa, Facundo Sola, Joaquin Pittaluga).
Nearly matching each other stride for stride in shots, La Natividad caught an early edge in open play, shooting 47%. Four goals from Ulloa carried La Hache Cría & Polo’s first half offense but foul troubles allowed La Natividad to swallow possession and control the pace. Going 5 for 5 at the line, Camilo Castagnola complimented his penalty shooting accuracy with four more from the field to give La Natividad a commanding 13-6 lead at the break.
Committing five more fouls in the second half, La Natividad continued to take advantage at the line, as Camilo Castagnola and Mac Donough combined for three more conversions. Unable to find the goal until the sixth chukka, Ulloa and Pittaluga worked in tandem to get La Hache Cría & Polo back on the scoreboard, but the inability to keep Camilo Castagnola contained proved detrimental, as La Natividad claimed the resounding 25-11 victory.
Vying for the last spot in the semifinals, La Hache Polo Team (Pablo Pieres, Hilario Ulloa, Guillermo Caset, Rufino Bensadon) were pitted against La Ensenada (Juan Britos, Alfredo Bigatti, Juan Martin Zubia, Jeronimo del Carril).
A contested match from the outset, La Hache Polo team struggled to find their offensive rhythm converting just one penalty goal on five attempts in the first half. Going 2 for 2 at the line, La Ensenada managed to take advantage of La Hache Polo Team’s slow start as each teammate reached the scoreboard to take a narrow 4-3 advantage following four chukkas.
Relying on their strong defensive play to keep them within striking distance, La Hache Polo Team regrouped in the fifth with back-to-back goals from Bensadon and Elizalde. Tied 7-all at the end of the fifth chukka, La Hache Polo Team leaned on the strength of Elizalde to account for four crucial goals, including three from the line to complete the 11-10 comeback.
Upcoming Schedule
Saturday, September 30
Clinova La Irenita vs Cría La Dolfina (Subsidiary Drysdale Cup Semifinal)
La Dolfina Saudi vs Ellerstina Yellow Rose (Hurlingham Open for the Ayshire Cup Semifinal)
Photo Credit: ©Matías Callejo/Prensa AAP