Miguel Novillo Astrada scored six goals in the Flight Options win over Lechuza Caracas.
(Photo by Scott Fisher)
Flight Options (Melissa Ganzi, Fred Mannix, Miguel Astrada and Juan Bollini) just improved their stock with a 10-9 win over Lechuza Caracas (Victor Vargas, Mariano Gracida, Pablo MacDonough and Nico Espain) in Friday’s only 20-goal Joe Barry Memorial Cup action at the International Polo Club.
Lechuza Caracas got n the scoreboard first with a goal from the field from 10-goaler Pablo MacDonough in the opening 15 seconds of play. Miguel Astrada scored the only other goal of the chukker with 1:21 left on the clock. After one period of play, the score was all even at 1-1.
Lechuza Caracas team captain Victor Vargas put his team on top in the opening minute of the second chukker, 2-1. Teammate MacDonough extended the Lechuza Caracas
Lead to two goals, 3-1, with his second goal of the match. Fred Mannix kept flight Options close with the final goal of the chukker to trail, 3-2.
MacDonough scored again in the opening minutes of the third, 4-2, but was countered by goals from Juan Bollini and Astrada. After the first three chukkers of play, it was all even at 4-4.
Mannix scored the opening goal of the fourth as he carried the ball from the opening bowl-in and raced over 150 yards for the goal, 5-4. Astrada added to it by stealing the ball from MacDonough and then carrying it over half the length of the field for the goal to extend the Flight Option lead to two goals, 6-4. Astrada and MacDonough exchanged penalty goals to close out the chukker with Lechuza Caracas trailing by two goals, 7-5.
Goals from Astrada and Mannix gave Flight Options a four goal lead, 9-5, before MacDonough rallied his team. Two goals from the 10-goaler closed out the chukker with Flight Options still holding on to a two goal lead, 9-7.
Vargas scored his second goal of the game just two-and-a-half minutes into the sixth, cutting the lead to a single goal, 9-8. Astrada put his team back on top by two with a 60-yard penalty conversion. MacDonough’s seventh goal of the day had Lechuza Caracas close, but time was running out. An all effort assault resulted in a Safety, with eight seconds on the game clock, giving Lechuza Caracas a free hit from 60-yards out. MacDonough missed it and Flight Options celebrated the victory.
MacDonough led all scoring with seven goals (three on penalty shots). Vargas scored the other two goals for Lechuza Caracas. Astrada scored six times for Flight Options (twice on penalty conversions). Mannix added three goals and Bollini scored once in the win.
Joe Barry Memorial Cup action continues on Sunday with all fourteen teams in action. Games will get started with three games slated to be played at 10am (Tonkawa vs. Faraway, Las Monjitas vs. Lechuza Caracas, and Villa Del Lago/Casablanca vs. El Cabure); followed by two games at noon (Audi vs. CT Energia and Palm Beach Illustrated vs. Orchard Hill). The feature match of the day will be the 3pm stadium contest between Coca-Cola and Los Machitos, while a 3:30pm match between Valiente and Flight Options will also be played.