Valiente Begins U.S. Open Polo Championship® Bid
Day three of competition in the U.S. Open Polo Championship® at the National Polo Center – Wellington pitted current C.V. Whitney Cup champions Valiente (Bob Jornayvaz, Mariano ‘Peke’ Gonzalez, Lucas ‘Luckitas’ Criado Jr., Adolfo Cambiaso) against Gauntlet newcomers Palm Beach Equine (Facundo Llosa, Jesse Bray, Raul ‘Gringo’ Colombres, Scott Swerdlin).
Kicking-off the action on Field 3, Valiente got out to an early advantage on goals from Criado Jr. and Cambiaso. Aiming to make an instant impression, Palm Beach Equine’s Bray responded on back-to-back goals the second. Taking advantage of space in the field, Cambiaso added three to the scoreboard, but a combined effort of Llosa and Colombres tied the match 6-all at the horn. Taking advantage of Palm Beach Equine’s second half foul troubles, Criado Jr. went 3 for 3 at the line, as Cambiaso hit his seventh goal of the day. Trailing by six to open the final chukker of regulation, Palm Beach Equine made a push on back-to-back efforts from Colombres, followed by drives from Llosa and Bray. Despite bringing Palm Beach Equine back within striking distance, Criado Jr. sent his fifth conversion through the posts to end the match 16-12 for Valiente.
Best Playing Pony was awarded to “Dolfina Lapa C07 Clone,” played by Adoflo Cambiaso and owned by La Dolfina.
Upcoming Schedule:
Friday, March 31
Scone (0-0) vs Tamera (0-0) at 11:00am ET
All games of the U.S. Open Polo Championship will be livestreamed exclusively on the USPA Polo Network.
Photo Credit: David Lominska