Friday wins by Tonkawa (Jeff Hildebrand, Jimmy Seward, Pablo Spinacci and Carlitos Gracida) and Valiente (Bob Jornayvaz, Roberto Zed
Tonkawa team captain Jeff Hildebrand will be leading his team against Valiente in Sunday’s final.
da, Augustine Nero and Marc Ganzi) at Tonkawa Polo Club in Aspen, Colorado in the opening round of play in the 2015 Mount Sopris Cup set up Sunday’s 3pm finals at the Aspen Valley Polo Club between the two powerhouses.
Friday’s opening matches were played on the Tonkawa field in Aspen, and the home team took advantage of familiar surroundings by jumping out to a 4-1 first chukker lead over La Karina (Melissa Ganzi, Brian Boyd, Juan Bollini, and Nic Roldan). Nic Roldan got La Karina on the scoreboard, 3-1, but a final first chukker goal had Tonkawa firmly in control, 4-1.
Two more second chukker goals from Hildebrand stretched the Tonkawa lead to five goals, 6-1, before La Karina could get back on the attack. A goal from La Karina’s Brian Boyd closed out the second period with Tonkawa on top, 6-2.
The La Karina attack stirred up some offense in the third chukker. Goals from Melissa Ganzi and Boyd went unanswered as the La Karina attack was supported by shutout defense. At the end of the first half it was Tonkawa in front, 6-4.
Tonkawa came out in the second half with guns blazing. Consecutive goals from Hildebrand were followed by a goal from Gracida that extended the Tonkawa lead to five goals, 9-4. A goal from Melissa Ganzi got La Karina on the scoreboard but after four periods of play Tonkawa was firmly in the lead, 9-5.
A pair of goals from the field from Tonkawa’s Jimmy Seward left little doubt as to the outcome of the game as La Karina was held scoreless for the first time all day. With one period left to play, La Karina trailed by six goals, 11-5.
La Karina continued to press into the sixth period picking up penalty goals from Boyd and Roldan, 11-7, but it wouldn’t be enough. Tonkawa held the scoring to a minimum and rode off the field with the 11-7 victory.
Hildebrand led his team with five goals on the day. Gracida and Seward scored two goals apiece and the team received one goal by handicap. Boyd set the pace for La Karina with three goals. Melissa Ganzi and Roldan each scored a pair in the loss.
Valiente 7, FlexJet 6
Valiente scored a 7-6 win over FlexJet (Grant Ganzi, Juancito Bollini, Lucas Lalor and Stewart Armstrong) in the second match of the day, but it was far from being a blowout.
Rated at an unassuming 11-goals, FlexJet received two goals by handicap from the Valiente lineup. They could do little more than watch as Valiente got goals from Agustin Nero and Bob Jornayvaz (a 30-yard penalty conversion). The first period ended with the score all even at 2-2.
Both defenses stepped it up in the second period as players on both sides found few scoring opportunities. At the end of seven minutes of lay the score remained all even at 2-2.
The FlexJet defense continued to pressure Valiente in the third, with Nero scoring Valiente’s only goal of the frame. FlexJet was unable to mount a successful attack and fell behind 3-2 at the end of the first half.
Marc Ganzi’s first goal of the day opened the fourth chukker and extended the Valiente leaded to two goals, 4-2, but FlexJet had no quit in them. Goals from Juancito Bollini and Stewart Armstrong ended the chukker in 4-4 deadlock between the two teams.
Grant Ganzi put FlexJet in the lead, 5-4, with a 30-yard penalty goal in the fifth, but the advantage was short-lived. Grant’s father, Marc Ganzi, leveled the score once again with a 40-yard penalty score for a 5-5 tie.
It all came down to the final period of the game, with Grant Ganzi scoring his second penalty goal of the period for a 6-5 lead. Valiente fought back as they picked up a tying goal from Nero and got the winning goal from Roberto Zeda for the 7-6 victory.
Nero led the field in scoring with three goals. Marc Ganzi scored twice while Jornayvaz and Zeda each added a goal for the win. Grant Ganzi’s two penalty goals led the FlexJet offense. The team received two goals by handicap and got goals from Juancito Bollini and Stewart Armstrong. Action continues on Sunday at the Aspen Valley Polo Club with games at 11 a.m. and featured game at 3 p.m. La Karina will face FlexJet in the early game while Valiente and Tonkawa will face-off in the final at 3pm.
The Aspen Valley Polo Club is located at 3275 County Road 100, Carbondale, CO 81623. The games are free of charge and spectators are welcome. The Polo Hotline, (970-710-1663) will be available to offer game times and locations. E-mail correspondence should be sent to aspenvalleypolo@bellsouth.net.