Flat Out Wins in OT; Will Face Newport in Finals
By Alex Webbe
Leo Mandelbaum tied it up with a goal for Barbarossa leather in the last 14 seconds of regulation play, but Flat Out’s Lucas Lalor won the day with the game winning overtime goal Saturday morning at the Grand champions Polo Club. The Win catapults Flat Out into Sunday’s finals of the Grand Champions Cup, after a second half see-saw battle in the final chukkers of play.
Barbarossa Leather received two goals by handicap from the 15-goal Flat Out foursome and needed both of them as they battled to stay in the game.
Flat Out got first chukker goals from Paul Knapp, Brandon Phillips and Steven Scott (2) while Barbarossa Leather relied on a pair of penalty goals from Kris Kampsen, a single goal from Matias Sosa and two goals by handicap to hold on to a 5-4 lead after the opening chukker of play.
Flat Out charged into the second period of the game, netting two goals from Knapp and another goal from Phillips. Barbarossa Leather managed a single goal from team captain Leo Mandelbaum, but trailed 7-6 at the end of the chukker.
The third chukker belonged to Barbarossa Leather, as they carried the ball up and down the field while holding Flat Out scoreless. Goals from Kampsen, Sosa and Joey Casey gave the lead back to Barbarossa leather, 9-7, to end the first half.
Phillips scored twice for Flat Out in the fourth chukker, but Barbarossa Leather capitalized on a beautifully played ball by Mandelbaum. Picking up the ball on the nearside at midfield, Mandelbaum carried it down the field, cut it across in front of the Flat Out goal and converted the shot with a well-executed neck shot. Barbarossa Leather held on to a narrow 10-9 as the chukker ended.
Flat Out got its offense back on track in the fifth, with every member of the team getting on the scoreboard. Goals from Knapp, Scott, Phillips and Lalor were countered by a pair of goals from Barbarossa Leather’s Casey, and Flat Out took a 13-12 lead into the final chukker of regulation play.
Kampsen tied it up at 13-13 with his fourth penalty goal of the game in the sixth, as both teams staged long drives with the ball. Knapp’s fifth goal of the match put Flat Out ahead, 14-13 with time running out, but a foul in the area of the Flat Out goal put Mandelbaum at the penalty line where he converted the shot for a goal with fourteen seconds left on the clock. Time expired with the teams locked in a 14-14 tie,
Both teams continued to battle for control of the ball in the sudden-death overtime period when Lalor picked up the ball at midfield. Galloping down the field with Barbarossa Leather players in pursuit, Lalor nursed the ball through the goal posts for the exciting 15-14 victory, and a ticket to Sunday’s Grand Champions Cup final.
Knapp and Phillips led the pace with five goals apiece. Scott scored three times and Lalor added two goals in the Flat Out victory.
Kampsen accounted for four goals for Barbarossa Leather. Mandelbaum and Casey each scored three times and Sosa came up with two goals. Barbarossa Leather also received two goals by handicap.
NEWPORT 9, ELANGENI RANCH 7
Robert Orthwein scored four goals to lead Newport to a 9-7 win over Elangeni Ranch in tournament play on Friday at the Palm City Polo Club grounds in Boca Raton.
Elangeni Ranch got two goals by handicap to start the game and ran it up to 3-1 after the first chukker on a goal from Sugar Erskine. Newport got goals from Orthwein and Hector Galindo to end the chukker.
Newport team captain Gene Goldstein got a single goal from Gene Goldstein in the second to even t at 3-3 as Elangeni Ranch was held scoreless.
Goals from Goldstein and Orthwein in the third were countered by a goal from Elangeni Ranch’s Carlos Baez, and the first half ended with Newport holding a 5-4 advantage.
Orthwein’s third goal of the contest had Newport up by two goals until Elangeni Ranch team captain Brian Street pounced on a loose ball and carried it through the goal posts for a score. The chukker ended with Newport holding on to a narrow 6-5 edge.
Goldstein and Orthwein added single goals again in the fifth while shutting down the Elangeni Ranch attack in the fifth. The chukker ended with Newport out in front 8-5 with one chukker left to be played.
Baez and Erskine closed out the scoring for Elangeni Ranch. Galindo scored Newport’s final score in the 9-7 win.
Newport will meet Flat Out on Sunday at 1 pm in the Grand Champions Cup championship game. Elangeni Ranch and Barbarossa Leather will meet one another in the consolation match at 11am. Both games are scheduled to be played at Grand Champions.