Alegria outlasts Piaget in 8-7 win
By
Alex Webbe
In a marathon of a polo game that lasted nearly
two-and-one-half hours, Alegria managed to slip past Piaget to register an 8-7
win over Piaget (0-2) to remain undefeated in their first two outings.
“It was an ugly game to play in,†said 9-goaler Mariano
Aguerre, who led the Alegria team to the C. V Whitney Cup just weeks ago. “It was very frustrating all day long,†he
added.
Facundo Obregon gave Alegria the early lead on a penalty
conversion just two minutes into the game followed by a goal from the field from
teammate Hilario Ulloa. An
unsportsmanlike conduct foul was whistled on Alegria’s Facundo Obregon for
dangerous use of the mallet. The penalty
sent him off the field for the final 43 seconds of the first chukker, and the
entire second chukker as well. Piaget
was unable to break through the Alegria defense successfully, however, and
trailed 2-0 after the first period of play.
Playing four against three, Nacho Badiola got Piaget on
the scoreboard a minute into the second period.
He followed it up with a second goal just 90 seconds later and it was
all even at 2-2. Julian Mannix picked up
a short-handed goal at the 2:48 mark to close out the scoring in the second. Alegria remained in the lead, 3-2.
Miguel Novillo Astrada got Piaget right back into the
game with a goal in the first 30 seconds of the third to tie it up at 3-3. A pair of penalty conversions from Obregon
put Alegria in front by two goals, 5-3.
With 1:27 left in the chukker Badiola scored on a beautifully executed
nearside tail shot, 5-4. An Alegria foul
sent Sapo Caset to the penalty line with 34 seconds on the clock. Caset converted the penalty shot and at the
end of the first half it was all even at 5-5.
The two teams jockeyed for position throughout the fourth
period. Ulloa scored the first goal of
the chukker for a 6-5 Alegria, but Astrada answered back with a goal to make it
6-6. A goal from Caset with 4:22 left in
the period gave Piaget their first lead of the game, 7-6, but Alegria was up
for the challenge, and Mariano Aguerre scored the tying goal with 52 seconds
left in regulation play.
Three minutes into the fifth chukker Piaget 10-goaler
Sapo Caset suffered a groin injury and time out was taken. He returned to the field, briefly and tried
to continue, but was unable. At 4:07
Caset left the game, and in a double switch, Lucas Lalor and Juan Bollini took
the field for Piaget with Matias Sosa (who was substituting for the injured
Melissa Ganzi) sitting out with Caset.
Aguerre gave the lead back to Alegria on a 100-yard shot through the
Piaget goalposts for an 8-7 advantage with just 1:43 left in the chukker. Time expired with no further scoring and
Alegria took a narrow 8-7 lead into the final period of the game.
Sixth chukker play was a standoff. While Piaget pressed its attack, Alegria tried
to open the game up with long passes down the field to waiting teammates, but
neither team was successful. Two missed
penalty shots by Alegria kept Piaget in the game, but there were no more goals
scored and Alegria rode off the field with the 8-7 win.
A balanced Alegria attack saw Obregon leading the scoring
with three goals. Aguerre and Ulloa
scored two goals apiece and team captain Mannix added a goal for the victory. Badiola scored three times for Piaget. Caset and Astrada scored two goals apiece in
a losing effort.
Maserati U. S. Open play continues on Wednesday with
Coca-Cola (1-2) meeting Zorzal (1-2) at 2pm followed by a showdown between ERG (2-1)
and Valiente (3-0) at 4pm.