Goose Creek wins Everglades Classic finals in a big way
By
Alex Webbe
Goose Creek blew the doors off the Catamount team as they
galloped to a resounding 13-6 triumph in the finals of the 2012 Everglades
Classic 16-goal championship Saturday morning at the International Polo Club in
Wellington.
The two teams seemed to be evenly matched on paper, but
numbers are only numbers until you take the field.
“I think it was the teamwork,†offered Goose Creek’s Chilean
6-goaler Tano Vial. “We played as a team;
every player did their job,†he said, “I think that was the difference.â€
The talented Catamount team took the field behind the
talented Nic Roldan, Kris Kampsen, Scott Devon and 16-year-old polo phenom
Wesley Finlayson, but never managed to get it all working together as Goose
Creek rode up and down the field with impunity.
Brandon Phillips scored the opening goal on a 40-yard
penalty shot with Vial adding a goal from the field to it in first chukker
action. Catamount struggled to put
together an effective attack and Goose Creek took the early 2-0 lead.
Cote Zegers added a goal from the field to put Goose
Creek on top, 3-0 before Catamount could respond. A goal from the field from Nic Roldan was
followed by a 40-yard penalty conversion by the American 7-goaler, cutting the
Goose Creek lead to a single goal, 3-2.
Phillips closed out the period with a goal from the field to put Goose
Creek ahead by two goals, 4-2.
A goal from the field from Phillips was the only offense
provided by either team in the third period as errant shots and defensive
clears limited the effectiveness of the attacks on goal. At the end of the first half, Goose Creek
held a 5-2 advantage.
Goose Creek roared onto the field in the second half
scoring four unanswered goals to take a commanding 9-2 lead over Catamount’s
impotent offense. Zegers opened the
scoring in the fourth chukker followed by three straight goals from Phillips,
who seemed to be all over the field. With four chukkers behind them, Goose
Creek was ahead, 9-2.
“I think that we were quicker to the ball, quicker on the
turns,†added Vial. “We got a bit of a
jump on them on almost every play.â€
A penalty goal from Vial and a goal from the field from
Zegers had the Goose Creek lead at nine goals, 11-2, before Catamount could
react. A pair of goals from team captain
Scott Devon and a penalty goal from Kris Kampsen showed some form of life in
the Catamount lineup, but there was only one chukker to play and Goose Creek
still led by six goals, 11-5.
Vial and Zegers added single goals in the sixth while
Catamount had to settle for a single goal from Kampsen in the 13-6 loss.
“Definitely the teamwork,†said Goose Creek team captain
Maureen Brennan. Brennan, who scored no
goals in the contest, did a stellar job taking out the young Number 1 of the
Catamount team. Locked onto the talented
young player, Brennan made him a non-entity throughout the game, opening up the
front end of the lineup for her teammates who seemed to be able to score at
will.
“It’s not the number of goals you personally score in a
game,†said Vial, “but your value to the team as a whole, and Maureen certainly
did more than her share for the win today.â€
Brandon Phillips led all scoring with six goals (one by
penalty) and was named MVP for his efforts.
His six-year-old chestnut gelding, Chivato,
received Best Playing Pony honors.
Zegers added four goals and Vial was credited with three goals (one by penalty).
Devon, Roldan and Kampsen scored two goals apiece (Roldan
and Kampsen each had one penalty goal).