Valiente defeats Windsor Capital 10-8
By Diane Hensley
INDIO – Four-goal front man Roberto Zedda put away nine of Valiente’s 10 goals Sunday at Eldorado Polo Club, defeating Windsor Capital 10-8 in the second week of the February 12-goal league. The win lifted Valiente to 2-2 in the standings along with Windsor Capital, High Prairie and Cotterel Farms as the Hawks and Palm Desert are locked in a dead heat for first at 3-1 apiece. Wash. Lettuce remained out of contention trailing 0-4.
Mistakes and missed opportunities plagued Windsor Capital throughout the match, despite consistent just-in-time positioning and accurate passing that’s become characteristic of Windsor’s back doors, six-goaler Jason Crowder and three-goaler Joseph Stuart. Windsor Capital trailed five of six chukkers, showing the most promise for a turnaround in the third as the team held Valiente scoreless as they gained a one-goal lead.
Battling back from a two-goal deficit in the first chukker, Stuart’s clever showmanship drew a foul 50 yards short of goal with 5:20 remaining. Moving to receive a well placed 100-yard pass from Crowder, Stuart angled toward the pass, connected, and dropped the ball just right of his pony. Maneuvering in the rapidly assembling Valiente crush of No. 3 Santiago Bottaro, No. 1 Alvaro Tadeo as teammate and patron Pat Nesbitt rushed in, Stuart, already facing goal, maintained possession and turned a complete 360 for the shot on goal. Bottaro took the bait and Crowder converted the penalty five for a 4-4 tie. Windsor Capital’s No. 2 Clemente Zavaleta picked up Nesbitt’s pass for the go-ahead goal with .46 remaining.
Zedda made short work of the comeback midway through the fourth on an offside tap-in, but Crowder answered with a penalty conversion on a line foul by Valiente’s No. 4 Bob Joynayvaz. Bottaro tied the match at six apiece on a huge offside from midfield, then Zedda scored on a break straight out of the lineup to regain the lead. With 1:48 left on the clock, Zedda hooked up again on teammate Tadeo’s pass. Zavaleta converted a penalty four to narrow the lead at 8-7.
Both teams canceled efforts in a scoreless fifth chukker and in the sixth, Windsor consistently lost ground to Valiente on shots straying wide of goal and failed penalty conversions. Zedda carried Valiente to the winner’s champagne on clear-sailing back-to-back goals.