Audi and Orchard Hill remain undefeated in Piaget Gold Cup play
By Alex Webbe
Following the second round of play in the 2015 USPA Piaget Gold Cup at the International Polo Club, only two teams, Audi and Orchard Hill, remained undefeated, 2-0; two more were winless, Valiente and Engel & Volkers, 0-2; and four others were all even with 1-1 records, Alegria, Coca-Cola, Las Monjitas and Lechuza Caracas.
In one of the day’s two 10am matches, Audi (Marc Ganzi, Rodrigo Andrade, Gonzalito Pieres and Fred Mannix) defeated Engel & Volkers 11-7. The win left Audi with a perfect 2-0 record while Engel & Volkers remained winless at 0-2.
In an uneventful opening chukker the two teams traded goals with Kris Kampsen getting Engel & Volkers on the scoreboard first with a goal from the field, 1-0. Audi responded with a goal from Canadian 6-goaler Fred Mannix for a 1-1 tie.
An offensive explosion by Audi saw them score five times while Engel & Volkers was unable to mount a successful attack. Rodrigo Andrade opened the second period with a goal, 2-1. Gonzalito Pieres converted a pair of penalty shots and Fred Mannix added two more goals for the 6-1 lead.
Engel & Volkers staged a mini rally in the third. Goals from Santi Torres and Kampsen were complimented by shutout defense as Engel & Volkers cut into the Audi lead, trailing by three goals, 6-3 at the end of the first half of play.
The Engel & Volkers defense were able to keep Audi off the scoreboard for the second consecutive period, but managed only a single goal. Torres scored a goal from the field, bringing Engel & Volkers to within two goals of the lead, 6-4.
Audi woke up again in the fifth, scoring three times and holding Engel & Volkers to a single goal from Kampsen. Goals from Andrade, Pieres and Mannix carried Audi to a 9-5 advantage.
Sixth chukker goals from Pieres and Andrade had Audi in the lead by six goals, 11-5 with the clock running. Matias Magrini scored his first goal of the day and Mariano Gracida chipped in the last score of the match as Audi rode on to the 11-7 victory.
Pieres and Mannix scored four goals apiece. Andrade added three goals in the win. Kampsen led the Engel & Volkers offense with three goals. Torres scored twice and Gracida and Magrini each scored a goal in the loss.
Alegria 9, Las Monjitas 8
In the second morning contest of the day, Alegria (Julian Mannix, Hilario Ulloa, Mariano Aguerre and Sterling Giannico) fought off a second half rally to record a 9-8 win over Lads Monjitas (Camilo Bautista, Facundo Sola, Sebastian Merlos and Eduardo Novillo Astrada).
In a defensively-oriented opening chukker, Alegria’s Hilario Ulloa scored the only goal of the first chukker for a 1-0 lead.
Two more Alegria goals from Ulloa and Mariano Aguerre extended their lead to two goals, 3-1, with Eduardo Novillo Astrada finally getting his team on the scoreboard.
Ulloa scored on a 30-yard penalty shot as Alegria moved to secure their lead, 4-1. Facundo Sola closed out the period with Alegria on top, 4-2.
Las Monjitas came alive in the fourth period scoring four goals while holding Alegria scoreless. Astrada started the charge with a goal from the field, 4-3, followed by three consecutive goals from Sola (one on a 30-yard penalty conversion) that took the game away from Alegria and gave Las Monjitas the lead, 6-4.
The Alegria offense pressured Las Monjitas in the fifth chukker. Fouls resulted in a pair of penalty conversions for Alegria (Ulloa), tying the game at 6-6. Sebastian Merlos scored the final goa of the chukker from the field, taking back the lead for Las Monjitas, 7-6, to end the period.
Alegria team captain Julian Mannix scored the first goal of the sixth chukker to tie the game at 7-7, and ensuing goals from Sterling Giannico and Aguerre had them in front by two goals, 9-7. Las Monjitas continued to press, but a pair of missed penalty shots cost them. Merlos scored the final goal of the game on a 30-yard penalty shot, but Alegria had managed to come back to win record the 9-8 victory.
Ulloa’s five goals (two on penalty conversions) led the Alegria attack. Aguerre scored twice and Mannix and Giannico added single goals for the win. Sola scored a team high four goals for Las Monjitas. Merlos and Astrada scored two goals apiece in the loss.
Coca-Cola 10, Lechuza Caracas 8
Coca-Cola (Gillian Johnston, Sugar Erskine, Pelon Stirling and Julio Arellano) took early control of their noon game with Lechuza Caracas (Victor Vargas, Nico Pieres, Juan Agustin Grossi and Juan Martin Nero), taking a 3-1 lead after the opening chukker. Julio Arellano scored twice (one on a 40-yard penalty conversion) and Sugar Erskine added a goal while the Coca-Cola defense held Lechuza to a single penalty goal from Juan Martin Nero.
The two teams traded goals in the second period as the Lechuza attack got back on track. Coca-Cola opened the scoring with a goal from the field from team captain Gillian Johnston in the opening seconds of the chukker, 4-1. Nero responded with a goal from Lechuza, 4-2. Erskine added his second goal of the game, 5-2 followed by a goal from Lechuza’s captain, Victor Vargas, 5-3. Arellano and Juan Agustin Grossi alternated goals to close out the chukker with Coca-Cola maintaining the two goal lead, 6-4.
Both defenses buckled down in the third period and goals were hard to come by. It wasn’t until a Lechuza foul sent Arellano to the penalty line in the final seconds of the period that Coca-Cola got on the scoreboard with a 60-yard penalty goal for a 7-4 halftime lead.
Arellano scored his fifth goal of the day two minutes into the fourth to extend the Coca-Cola lead to four goals, 8-4, when Lechuza stormed back. Grossi scored from the field followed by a 30-yard penalty conversion from Nico Pieres, 8-6. The Coca-Cola offense went silent as Grossi scored the final goal of the period with 10 seconds on the clock bringing Lechuza to within a goal of the lead, 8-7.
Erskine gave Coca-Cola some breathing room in the fifth, scoring a goal from the field in the opening minute of play. Erskine followed up with a second goal at the 5:40 mark for a three goal advantage, 10-7. Vargas answered for Lechuza with their only goal of the chukker in the final two minutes of the period, 10-8.
Defense took to the field in the final chukker for Coca-Cola as they fought to preserve their lead. Lechuza continued to press their attack, but to no avail. At the end of a scoreless chukker, Coca-Cola rode off the field with the 10-8 victory.
Arellano scored three of his game-high five goals on penalty conversions. Erskine added four goals from the field and Johnston kicked in a goal for the win. Grossi scored three times for Lechuza. Nero and Vargas added two goals each and Pieres scored once in the loss.
Orchard Hill 14, Valiente 12
In a battle of what many anticipated to be a showdown between the top two players in the game, Adolfo Cambiaso and Facundo Pieres, it was the one-two punch of the Pieres cousins, Facundo and Polito that managed to carry the day against a balanced Valiente attack in a 14-12 Orchard Hill win.
Cambiaso opened the scoring with a 60-yard penalty conversion that was followed up by a goal from the field from Valiente team captain Bob Jornayvaz, 2-0. Orchard Hill responded with three consecutive goals from Facundo Pieres (penalty goal), Steve Van Andel and Polito Pieres for the early 3-2 lead.
Alejo Taranco tied the game at 3-3 in early second chukker action that was followed by two penalty conversions from Facundo Pieres that had Orchard Hill in front by two goals, 5-3. Jornayvaz scored his second goal of the game with 48 seconds on the clock to close to within a goal of Orchard Hill, 5-4.
Ezequiel Ferrario extended the Orchard Hill lead to two goals with the opening goal of the third chukker, 6-4. Taranco cut through the Orchard Hill defenders for a goal with 4:20 on the clock, 6-5, and tied the game minutes later for a 6-6 halftime score.
A regrouped Orchard Hill took to the field in the second half and unleashed Polito Pieres. With the defensive focus on the leading scorer of the tournament, Facundo Pieres, Orchard Hill unleashed their second big threat in his cousin Polito. Polito Pieres scored the first goal of the chukker just 15 seconds in to the period, 7-6, and added a second goal just one minute latter. 8-6. Polito Pieres was on fire adding a third score less than a minute later to give Orchard Hill a three-goal lead, 9-6. Polito Pieres still wasn’t through. His fourth goal of the chukker came at the 3:04 mark to make it 10-6. Facundo Pieres got in a goal with just over two minutes on the clock, but it was Polito Pieres who closed out the chukker with his fifth goal for the commanding 12-6 lead.
Valiente wasted little time in attempting to atone for the fifth chukker letdown. Guillermo Terrera opened the fifth chukker with a goal from the field and followed it up minutes later with a 30-yard penalty conversion, 12-8. Penalty goals from Taranco and Cambiaso closed out the chukker with Valiente shutting down the volatile Orchard Hill attack and closing to within two goals of the lead, 12-10, with one chukker remaining in regulation time.
With Valiente trying desperately to get back into the game, a costly foul sent Facundo Pieres to the penalty line where he converted a 40-yard shot for a goal, 13-10. Cambiaso returned the favor with a penalty goal for Valiente, 13-11, but time was slipping by. Facundo Pieres added a goal from the field with just three minutes remaining in the game, putting Orchard Hill in the lead by three goals, 14-11. Valiente struggled to break through an aggressive Orchard Hill defense but only managed a single goal from Terrera with 34 seconds on the clock that ended the game with Orchard Hill on the winning end of a 14-12 score.
Facundo and Polito Pieres scored six goals apiece. Van Andel and Ferrario added single goals for the win. A balanced Valiente tem had Cambiaso scoring four goals (three on penalty shots). Terrera and Taranco scored three goals each and Jornayvaz added two goals in the loss.