Valiente and Pilot Victorious
The first game of the day saw a back and forth affair between Pilot and Carillon Miami, in a game that saw 29 fouls. A consistent offense attack from Gonzalito and Facundo Pieres provided difficulties for their opponents throughout the game, as Pilot used a combination of accurate shooting and drawing penalties to score 12 goals in the game. Despite shooting a perfect 7 for 7 from the penalty line, Hilario Ulloa was unable to carry Carillon Miami to victory, as missed opportunities from the field in the first half was ultimately the difference.
Facundo Pieres led the way for Pilot in the first half scoring two goals in the third chukka to finally provide Pilot with a two-goal lead in a game that had been tied after the first two chukkas. Shooting just 2 for 6 from the field in the opening half, Carillon Miami struggled to create good scoring chances against a tough Pilot defence that received a strong contribution from youngster Timmy Dutta. The pace of play slowed in the second half, as both teams committed numerous fouls and it was Ulloa that kept his team in the game converting every penalty attempt including an impressive 4 for 4 from the 60-yard line. However, just shooting at goal once from the field in the entire second half, Carillon Miami lost the possession battle to Pilot and the Pieres’ brothers, failing to utilize their set plays effectively and often finding themselves on the defensive. Led by six goals from Facundo Pieres and four goals from Gonzalito Pieres, Pilot finished off their second win in the 2018 Ylvisaker Cup with a 12-10 victory over Carillon Miami.
The second game of the day saw Valiente survive a tough game against GSA, to hang on for the narrow 7-6 victory, needing a late goal from patron Bob Jornayvaz with under two minutes remaining to seal the game. A physical game that was primarily played in the middle of the field, saw limited chances throughout the game but GSA was able to score one goal in every chukka, with all but one of their goals coming from the field. Holding Valiente to zero field goals in the opening two chukkas, GSA held an early 2-1 lead thanks to the work of Henry Porter, who was a standout player for GSA throughout the game.
Valiente found their stride in the third chukka, outscoring GSA 3-1, with Adolfo Cambiaso, Bautista Panelo and Santi Torres all scoring one goal each to provide Valiente with their first lead of the game. Cambiaso built on that momentum to begin the second half, scoring two of his four goals on the day, to increase Valiente’s lead to two. The work of Porter brought GSA back into the game as goals in the 5th and 6th chukkas, bringing his total to four goals in the game, tied the game up with minutes remaining. The low-scoring affair avoided overtime as Bob Jornayvaz jumped on a ball inside the 30-yard line to score his first goal of the game and seal the 7-6 victory in a hard fought game.