By Alex Webbe
The Grand Champions Polo Club closed out its spring season in style with Piaget Black (Melissa Ganzi, Gene Goldstein, Juan Bollini and Juan Batista) and Piaget White (Marc Ganzi, Alessandro Bazzoni, Nacho Badiola and Lucas Lalor) emerging as the finalists from a field of six teams IN THE 2012 Memorial Cup presented by Piaget.
A pair of first chukker penalty goals from Gene Goldstein and a one goal handicap had Piaget Black ahead early, 3-1. Alessandro Bazzoni scored Piaget White’s only goal of the chukker on a shot from the field.
Goldstein converted two more penalty shots for goals in the second frame, but Piaget White responded with a penalty goal from Marc Ganzi and single goals from Nacho Badiola and Lucas Lalor. Piaget Black continued to lead, 5-4.
Piaget Black extended its lead in the third period on goals from had a stellar third chukker, picking up another penalty goal from Gene Goldstein. Single goals from Juan Bollini and Juan Badiola gave Piaget Black a three goal, 8-5 halftime lead. Nacho Badiola scored Piaget White’s only goal of the chukker.
Piaget White returned to the field in the fourth chukker with a vengeance. Two goals from the field from Nacho Badiola were complimented by a penalty goal from Marc Ganzi and a single goal from Bazzoni. Piaget Black was shut out for the first time all day and trailed 9-8.
Marc Ganzi added a penalty goal in the fifth and Bazzoni scored his third goal of the game for Piaget White, but Goldstein tied it up at 11-11 with a pair of goals from the field and a penalty conversion.
Bazzoni put Piaget White back on top in the sixth chukker with a pair of goals from the field. Goldstein’s ninth goal of the game cut the Piaget White lead to a single goal, 13-12. A goal from Juan Badiola had it all even at 13-13, and Bollini’s second goal of the day had Piaget Black ahead, 14-13 with just over a minute to play in regulation time. Nacho Badiola saved the day for Piaget White with a mad rush down the field for the tying score with time running out. With the score knotted up at 14-14, the teams would retire to the sidelines to obtain fresh horses and return for a sudden-death overtime period.
Nacho Badiola reprised his role in the sixth chukker by battling through the Piaget Black defense to score the game-winning goal in a 15-14 Piaget White victory.
Goldstein led all scoring with nine goals (seven on penalty shots) and was named MVP amateur. Teammates Bollini and Juan Badiola scored two goals apiece and Piaget Black received one goal by handicap.
Nacho Badiola scored six times for Piaget White (once on a penalty shot), and was named MVP. Bazzoni was credited with five goals, Marc Ganzi scored three times on penalty shots and Lalor added a goal in the win.
Bazzoni’s eight-year-old mare Chispa received Best Playing Pony honors. The thoroughbred carried Bazzoni in the first and sixth chukkers of play.
SANTA CLARA 11, TUFF RIDER 8
Santa Clara (Ron Dagger, Jason Crowder, J. J. Celis and Francisco Escobar) got the day started with an 11-8 win over Tuff Rider (Timmy Sharma, Omar Sosa, Horton Schwartz and Joey Casey) in the Consolation Final.
Tuff Rider got opening goals from Omar Sosa and Timmy Sharma, but one goal by handicap and a goal from the field from New York’s Ron Dagger had it all even at 2-2.
Santa Clara galloped out to a 5-3 lead in the second period with a pair of goals from J. J. Celis and a single goal from Jason Crowder. Tuff Rider managed a single goal from Sosa and fell behind by two goals, 5-3.
Three more Santa Clara goals in the third gave Santa Clara a commanding 8-4 halftime lead. Celis scored two more from the field with Dagger adding his second of the game. Tuff Rider was limited to a single penalty goal from Sosa but trailed by four goals.
Fourth chukker goals from Sharma (penalty conversion) and Horton Schwartz cut into the Santa Clara lead, but a goal from Celis kept Tuff Rider trailing, 9-6 with two periods left to play.
Both defenses tightened in the fifth, with Crowder managing the only goal of the period. Santa Clara was ahead by four goals once again, 10-6.
Joey Casey and Sosa scored single goals for Tuff Rider in the sixth chukker with Santa Clara responding with a single goal from Crowder for the 11-8 win.
Celis led all scoring with five goals. Crowder added three goals and Dagger scored twice. Santa Clara received one goal by handicap.
Sosa scored four times (once on a penalty shot) to lead the Tuff Rider attack. Sharma added two goals and Schwartz and Casey added single goals in a losing cause.
KIG/ALEGRIA 12, RUBY Q 11
In the final match of the day, KIG/Alegria (Bash Kazi, Julian Mannix, Joaquin Panelo and Jeff Hall) defeated Ruby Q (Brian Street, Hannah Buchan, Diego Cossio and Kris Kampsen) 12-11 in the final seconds of play in the subsidiary final.
Ruby Q received three goals by handicap from the 13-goal KIG/Alegria foursome and added a single goal to it with Hannah Buchanan taking the ball from the opening throw-in and racing 150 yards down the field for the score. Julian Mannix responded with KIG/Alegria’s only goal of the chukker as they trailed 4-1 after the first period of play.
Two penalty goals from Kris Kampsen in the second period gave Ruby Q a 6-3 advantage with KIG/Alegria picking up single goals from Mannix and Joaquin Panelo.
KIG/Alegria got right back into the game in the third, with Jeff Hall scoring twice from the field and Mannix adding his third goal of the match. Buchan scored the only goal of the chukker for Ruby Q, who held on to a narrow 7-6 halftime lead.
Consecutive goals from Hall in the fourth had KIG/Alegria ahead for the first time all day, 8-7, but the celebration was short-lived. A penalty goal from Kampsen had it deadlocked at 8-8 as the chukker ended.
Buchan’s third goal of the day had Ruby Q back on top, 9-8 before KIG/Alegria answered back. Two goals from Mannix and a goal from the field from Bash Kazi boosted KIG/Alegria back into the lead, 11-9 to end the period.
Buchan opened the final chukker with a goal from the field. Kampsen tied it up with a penalty goal, 11-11, and it looked like the game was going to be going into overtime when Mannix broke loose. With time running out Mannix raced down the field to score the winning goal, 12-11, with three seconds on the clock.
Mannix registered six goals for KIG/Alegria. Hall accounted for four scores and Panelo and Kazi added single goals in the win.
Buchan and Kampsen (all penalty goals) scored four goals apiece for Ruby Q. The team received three goals by handicap.