The Polo Report
By Steve Crowder
The finals were just what they were, the final game of the High Goal season in Santa Barbara.It may have been a day that every ball should have been hit to Melisia Ganzi as she was on fire. I do not think she missed a goal shot and made a huge save tailing the ball. Ganzi even got a foul out of a big stick. I will stop right here and say as much as I have bad mouthed the umpiring today, like the first game last Sunday, they did a very good job. A couple calls were off, but will have to see video to really argue it: GOOD WORK today.
The first chukkar was all about Piaget and if had ended just a few ticks earlier would have been perfect. Lucchese got on the board with less than a minute to go in the 1st chukkar and got some momentum even trailing 3 to 1. The second was the only bad chukkar for Piaget as Miguel looking like maybe 10 again smoked the #4 right away. It would be the last of the chukkar for Piaget as the big Gun called Adolfo Cambiaso came out firing and Piaget did not man up well this chukkar and gave away 2 by penalties and 2 from the field to lose it 4 to 1. They gave up their lead to 5 and 4. The third chukker saw Piaget come blazing back to hard nose polo. They marked the play and took the lead winning the chukkar 3 to 2, but settled for a tie at 1/2 time at 7 all.
A very nice crowd put the field back during the divot stomp and it was off to the races again. MS. Ganzi putting a terrific shot through the post from a big angle and gave the lead back to Piaget, but Lucchese with the brilliant play of Jeff Blake on defense got it right back as Cambiaso sunk another 60 and finished the chukkar with a goal from Blake to take the lead back by 1. The fifth was a defensive war as Juan the Secretary of Defense, Bolleni kept stopping the big runs and Blake doing the same on the otherside. Jason escaped several times, but could not finish for the big one. On Thursday he could not miss, but it was not a repeat as just short. Miguel had some big runs and they just seem to be almost there, but whoops not quite. It ended 10 to 9 and the sixth was going to be big and it was but for basically 7 minutes no one could score. Piaget won the throw in 4 times in the sixth but could not hit it through. Lucchese would win and miss as well and with the finals seconds ticking it was desperate time to gamble. It was Julio Gracida sealing the deal with a huge run to end the game up by 2. Cambiaso and Blake made all 3 finals, but they one upped the others as they won the 2011 PACFIC COAST OPEN.
In the after the show awards it was ADOLFO CAMBIASO WINNING THE MVP AND JASON CROWDER WINNING THE ROBERT SKENE AWARD AND MIGUEL ASTRADA WINNING BEST PLAYING PONY AWARD. Jason and Adolfo swapped last years awards as they were also teammates last year.
WELL DONE TO BOTH TEAMS!!
CHAMPIONS :
LUCCHESE – JOHN MUSE , JULIO GRACIDA, JEFF BLAKE , ADOLFO CAMBIASO
SECOND:
PIAGET – MELISIA GANZI , JASON CROWDER , MIGUEL NOVILLO ASTRADA, JUAN BOLLINI
In New York it was a young Cirica getting the best of perenial Power Whitebirch to win the East Coast title. No results from San Diego yet or the Oyster Cup up in Petaluma.