Lucchese 10-goaler, Pelon Stirling.
Lucchese (Tavi Usandizaga, Andres Weisz, Pelon Stirling and John Muse) scored the win of the season with their 12-9 toppling of a powerful Restoration Hardware team (Ben Soleimani, Adam Snow, Hilario Ulloa and Santi Von Wernich) in Thursday afternoon’s 12-9 upset victory in the semifinals of the 2013 Bombardier Pacific Coast Open finals at California’s Santa Barbara Polo Club.
Lucchese carried a less than impressive 1-2 record onto the field, and got off to a sticky start as they trailed 6-4 at the end of the first half before rallying to score the 12-9 win and earn a berth in Sunday’s finals.
Restoration Hardware’s Hilario Ulloa scored the first two goals of the game, one on a penalty conversion and the other from the field for a 2-0 start. Lucchese 10-goaler Pelon Stirling kept his team from being blanked by scoring a goal from the field for a 2-1 first chukker deficit.
The two teams swapped goals in the second with Ulloa and Ben Soleimani extending the Restoration Hardware lead to three goals, 4-1. Andres Weisz and Tavi Usandizaga closed out the chukker with single goals. The Restoration Hardware lead remained at one goal, 4-3.
A pair of third chukker goals from Ulloa (one on a 60-yard penalty conversion) was countered by a single goal from Stirling. At the end of the first half Restoration Hardware was sitting on a two goal lead, 6-4.
Restoration Hardware extended their lead to three goals in the fourth. Ulloa scored one goal from the field and converted a 40-yard penalty shot while teammate Santi Von Wernich scored his first goal of the game. Lucchese answered back with single goals from Usandizaga and Weisz. The Restoration Hardware lead was three goals, 9-6 with two chukkers left in regulation play.
Lucchese exploded in the fifth with Weisz scoring his third goal of the game to cut the Restoration Hardware lead to two goals, 9-7. Usandizaga added another goal from the field, 9-8, and Stirling tied it up on a 40-yard penalty conversion. Usandizaga’s second goal of the chukker gave Lucchese their first lead of the game, 10-9 while a disciplined defensive effort kept Restoration Hardware off of the scoreboard for the first time all day.
For the second consecutive chukker the Lucchese defense prevailed, blanking Restoration Hardware for the second consecutive chukker. Single goals from Stirling and Usandizaga ended the game with Lucchese earning an exciting 12-9 game and a return to the Bombardier Pacific coast Open finals.
Usandizaga was credited with a team high five goals. Stirling added four goals and Weisz scored three times in the win. Ulloa’s seven goals led all scoring, but were wasted in a loss. Soleimani and Von Wernich each accounted for a goal in a losing effort.
ERG 12, LA HERRADURA 10
La Herradura (Alberto Fernandez, Marianito Obregon, Memo Gracida and Carlos Gracida) look to everyone on the scene to be in control of the second semifinal game with ERG (Scott Woods, Sugar Erskine, Paco de Narvaez and Jeff Blake) as they rode out to a 6-4 halftime lead, but a fatal fifth period ended any hopes they had of scoring a second consecutive win over ERG and making it to the Pacific Coast Open finals.
Jeff Blake scored the first goal of the game for ERG, but La Herradura returned fire with a pair of goals from former 10-goaler Carlos Gracida. After the first seven minutes of play La Herradura held the early 2-1 lead.
La Herradura extended their lead to two goals in the second period on a penalty conversion from Carlos Gracida, 3-1. De Narvaez and Blake scored single goals to tie it up at 3-3 at the end of the chukker.
Carlos Gracida added three more goals in the third (one on a penalty conversion) while holding ERG to a single goal from de Narvaez. The La Herradura lead stood at two goals, 6-4 as the first half ended.
Goals from the field from Marianito Obregon and Carlos Gracida were answered by penalty goals from Blake and de Narvaez. La Herradura remained two goals in the lead, 8-6, with two chukkers left to play.
ERG stormed the field in the fifth, outscoring La Herradura 4-1 and taking the lead, 10-9. Single goals from Erskine and Blake and two from de Narvaez had ERG in front by two goals, 10-8. Carlos Gracida closed out the chukker with a penalty goal but La Herradura trailed for the first time first time all day, 10-9.
La Herradura fought to get back into the game in the sixth but ERG would have none of it. A goal from de Narvaez was followed by a goal from Erskine as ERG stretched their lead to three goals, 12-9. Carlos Gracida scored the final goal of the game, but it wasn’t enough as Erg registered the 12-10 win and a trip to Sunday’s finals to meet the defending championship Lucchese team.
Carlos Gracida led all scoring with nine goals (three on penalty shots). Obregon scored once. ERG got six goals from de Narvaez (two on penalty shots). Blake scored four times and Erskine added two goals for the 12-10 victory.