La Dolfina and Las Monjitas with Convincing Victories in Hurlingham Open
The second day in the Hurlingham Open featured two double-digit victories beginning with a convincing 17-5 victory for La Dolfina over La Ensenada, while Las Monjitas defeated Cria Yatay 19-9 at Hurlingham Polo Club.
In an overwhelming victory, La Dolfina held the advantage on all areas of the field against La Ensenada, outshooting their opponents 30-9. Along with the significant shot advantage, La Dolfina’s defense was relentless, led by Juan Martin Nero to hold La Ensenada to just one field goal on 11% shooting. The dominant offense for La Dolfina was highlighted by 10 goals from Adolfo Cambiaso, including perfect 6 for 6 shooting from the penalty line in the victory.
The immediate pressure provided by La Dolfina to begin the game resulted in foul trouble for La Ensenada and three penalty attempts inside the first four minutes for La Dolfina, all of which were converted by Cambiaso to give La Dolfina the 3-0 lead. Keeping La Ensenada in their own half, La Dolfina produced 11 shots in the opening two chukkas but converted just two of those attempts to keep La Ensenada within reach. Two Penalty 2 conversions for Juan Martin Zubia proved to be the only offense for La Ensenada in the opening half, while Pablo MacDonough responded for La Dolfina scoring two goals and adding an assist to extend their lead to seven.
After Facundo Fernandez Llorente scored in the first 20 seconds, La Dolfina began a run of six unanswered goals to leave La Ensenada with an insurmountable deficit. The run was completed by three consecutive goals from David Stirling, who excelled on the receiving end of passes from his three 10-goal teammates. An organized defense limited La Ensenada throughout the game, with two late penalty conversions their only goals in the final two chukkas as La Dolfina claimed the commanding 17-5 victory.
The second game of the day between Cria Yatay and Las Monjitas began as a closely fought game over the opening three chukkas as Cria Yatay generated offense from the penalty line due to foul trouble from Las Monjitas. Improved discipline from Las Monjitas allowed them to dominate possession and go on a 14-2 run to end the game, with Sapo Caset scoring nine goals in the 10-goal victory.
Cria Yatay came out of the gate determined to control play, scoring three goals in two minutes to leave Las Monjitas stunned and facing a quick deficit. Quick passes resulted in back-to-back goals from Ignacio and Christian Laprida, but before the end of the chukka Las Monjitas brought the score back within one to trail 3-2 on the scoreboard. Scoring a penalty goal in each of the first three chukkas, Joaquin Pittaluga paced the Cria Yatay offense to give Cria Yatay a 7-5 lead and frustrate the Las Monjitas defence. Foul trouble of their own gave Las Monjitas the opening they needed to fight back into the game, scoring the final three goals in the third chukka to grab the 8-7 lead. The momentum remained with Las Monjitas in a dominant fourth chukka that saw Sapo Caset score four consecutive goals, including three from the penalty line to extend the lead to five.
The fast-paced attack of Las Monjitas began to wear down Cria Yatay as the fouls piled up and Caset continued to convert from the penalty line. Scoring his seventh and eighth goals from the penalty line, Caset led a run of 10 unanswered goals as Cria Yatay was unable to match the speed and accuracy of Las Monjitas’ passing attack. Holding an eight-goal lead, Las Monjitas fell into the discipline issues that started the game, conceding three penalty attempts, but Cria Yatay converted just one, ending any hope of a comeback. Las Monjitas finished with the 19-9 victory to begin their quest for the Hurlingham Open title.