By Alex Webbe
Semifinal wins in the 2010 USPA Silver Cup at the 302 Polo Club by Barrington and Orchard Hill will signal the second title match-up between the two teams this season.
In the morning contest, Orchard Hill allowed an upstart Pony Express team to take an early lead and hold on for a 5-5 halftime tie. A fourth chukker rally gave control back to Orchard Hill, however.
Orchard Hill got one goal by handicap but it was Pony Express that exploded for three first chukker goals, with Tomas Goti scoring the team’s first goal and Michel Dorignac added a pair from the field.. A single goal from Lucas Criado gave Orchard Hill two goals in the opening minutes of the game, but Pony Express left the field with a 3-2 lead.
Dorignac’s third goal of the game had Pony Express up, 4-2, when Orchard Hill came alive. Two consecutive goals from Criado and a goal from Nic Roldan gave Orchard Hill a 5-4 advantage after the first two chukkers of the game.
“We started out a little slow,” said Roldan, “and they played well in the opening chukkers of the game.”
Dorignac tied the game with his fourth goal while the Pony Express held Orchard Hill scoreless. The first half ended in a 5-5 tie.
Orchard Hill dominated the throw-ins in the opening chukker of the second half. Roldan scored three goals from the field on long runs with teammate Chris Stratemann adding another goal in the period. Pony Express was held to s single penalty conversion by Goti, and the chukker ended with Orchard Hill on top of a 9-6 score.
“We started scoring on our shots in the second half,” Roldan added, “the team worked well together, and we took control of the game.”
Another goal from Roldan in the fifth put Orchard Hill ahead, 10-6 until Goti and Dorignac scored single goals to cut the lead to two goals, 10-8, as time ran out.
Criado scored his fourth goal to open the final chukker, and Stratemann added two more from the field before Pony Express could respond. A single goal from Goti ended the scoring, and Orchard Hill celebrated the 13-9 win and a second consecutive trip to the finals this season.
Roldan set the pace for Orchard Hill with five goals. Criado scored four times and Stratemann accounted for three goals. Orchard Hill received one goal by handicap.
Dorignac was high-scorer on the Pony Express team with five goals. Goti added four goals in a losing cause.
BARRINGTON 12, WINFIELD 11
In the second semifinal of the day, Barrington had its hands full with a talented Winfield team that scored the first five goals of the game, and ran off with an early 6-0 lead.
Winfield received one goal by handicap from the 20-goal Barrington team and scored five unanswered goals to take a 6-0 lead in the second chukker. A pair of opening goals from Winfield’s Kris Kampsen and a single goal from rick Hartnett was complimented by lock down defense that held a powerful Barrington team scoreless in the first ten minutes of the game.
It wasn’t until nearly midway through the second chukker that Barrington answered with single goals from Antonio Galvan and Tommy Biddle. Winfield got two goals from Luis Escobar in the chukker, and single goals from Kampsen and Willie Hartnett to hold on to the six goal lead at the end of the period, 8-2.
“We were a little flat-footed in the first half,” offered Biddle. “We weren’t marking our men, and we were generally a little slow to the play.”
The Barrington defense showed up in the third chukker, shutting down the aggressive Winfield attack. Biddle scored three times in the chukker for Barrington (one from the field and two on 60-yard penalty conversions) while teammate Galvan added another. Winfield continued to lead, but the margin had been cut to two goals, 8-6 after the first three chukkers of play.
“We changed our lineup in the throw-ins,” said Biddle. “Arellano (9-goaler Julio Arellano) moved up front, and we eliminated their fast breaks.”
Barrington only got a single Galvan goal in the fourth, but disciplined defense kept Winfield off of the scoreboard for the second straight chukker. The Winfield lead was cut to a single goal, 8-7.
Biddle tied the game at 8-8 with a goal from the field, and Galvan gave Barrington the lead, 9-8, with his fourth goal of the afternoon before Winfield could respond. Kampsen tied it at 9-9, but Biddle closed out the scoring in the fifth with a penalty conversion, giving Barrington a narrow 10-9 advantage with just seven minutes left to play in regulation time.
Kampsen tied it at 10-10, scoring the first goal of the sixth chukker, but Barrington came back with goals from Biddle and Arellano. Kampsen tallied the final goal of the match, but it wasn’t enough, as Winfield fell short, 12-11.
Biddle led all scoring with seven goals (four from the field and three on penalty shots). Galvan scored four times and Arellano added a goal for the win.
Kampsen was the top gun for Winfield with six goals. Escobar scored twice and Winfield got single goals from Rick and Willie Hartnett.
Kampsen was named MVP for his efforts, while Barb Uskup’s Dream Catcher (ridden by Galvan), was named Best Playing Pony.
The victory placed Barrington in its second consecutive final and a rematch with Orchard Hill, whom they defeated in the finals of the 2010 USPA Monty Waterbury Cup less than two weeks ago.
Barrington and Orchard Hill will take the field on Sunday afternoon at 3 pm to do battle for the 2010 USPA Silver Cup. The match-up offers Orchard Hill a shot at redemption, after losing twice before to Barrington, while Barrington has the opportunity to sweep the table with its second consecutive tournament championship.