A painful 12-11 overtime loss to Chile ended US hopes for a second World Polo Championship.
A “never give up” Chilean polo team (Mario Silva, Ignacio Vial, Felipe Vercellino and Jose Miguel Pereira) Chile scored a come-from-behind win over a strong United States team (Remy Muller, Jesse Bray, Felipe Viana and Patrick Uretz) to capture the 10th FIP World Polo Championship Wednesday afternoon at the Club de Polo y Equitación San Cristóbal in Santiago, Chile.
Both the United States and Chile entered the final game of the tournament with unblemished 2-0 records, but it was Chile that rallied for an 11-10 come-from-behind win over a talented Brazilian team in semifinal play on Tuesday.
In a tentative opening chukker, the United States team scored the only goal of the chukker on a goal from the field from Patrick Uretz, 1-0. Chile was unable to break through the US defenses and showed little spark on the field.
Second period action saw Jesse Bray convert a pair of 30-yard penalty shots that had the USA leading, 3-0. Felipe Vercellino kept Chile from being shut out with a penalty goal of his own from 30-yards, 3-1.
The US team continued to roll as third period action got underway. Bray and Felipe Viana each scored a goal from the field to go up by four goals, 5-1. Mario Silva countered with a 60-yard penalty conversion, but the US team continued to lead, 5-2.
A determined Chilean team took the field in the fourth chukker and methodically went to work. Back-to-back 60-yard penalty goals from Ignacio Vial and Vercellino were followed by a pair of goals from the field from Silva giving Chile their first lead of the game, 6-5. Remy Muller tied the game at 6-6 with the final goal of the chukker.
Muller gave the lead back to the US team with the opening goal of the fifth, 7-6. Bray followed up with a 30-yard penalty conversion, 8-6. Vercellino scored on a 30-yard penalty shot for Chile, 8-7, but Viana scored the final goal of the period for a two goal, 9-7 advantage.
An overly aggressive US team tried valiantly to put the game away, but Chile wouldn’t have it. The United States got a goal from the field from Viana and a penalty goal from Bray. Vercellino made good on a pair of 40-yard penalty shots and a 30-yard conversion. Vial scored his second goal of the day as Chile tied the game at 11-11 and forcing a sudden-death overtime chukker.
It was a foul by the US team in overtime that spelled their undoing. The Chilean Back, Jose Miguel Pereira, blasted the ball over 120 yards down the field where a streaking Silva caught up with it and drove it through the goalposts for the win. At that point the seven-thousand plus fans went wild and the US players stared in disbelief.
The US team had dominated throughout the match, but a determined Chilean team patiently waited for the opportunity and pounced.
Vercellino led the scoring with six penalty goals. Silva scored four times from the field and Vial added two goals for the victory. Bray’s five goals (three on penalty conversions) led the US attack. Viana scored three times; Muller added two and Uretz scored once in the loss.