By Alex Webbe
Diogo Galego scored the first goal of the game for Santa Clara, and Jeff Hall responded with three consecutive goals (two on penalty shots, one from the field) for Valiente who went on to register a 12-5 win in the opening round of the 16-goal Everglades Classic at the International Polo Club in Wellington.
Galego opened the second period with a goal, with Hall scoring the only other goal of the chukker for a 4-2 lead.
Kris Kampsen scored his first goal of the game in the third chukker to cut the Valiente lead to a single goal, 4-3, but Hall closed out the scoring with his fifth goal of the day for a 5-3 halftime lead.
Tommy Biddle finally got on the scoreboard in the fourth, and Kampsen added a goal on a penalty shot for Santa Clara. A penalty goal from Robert Jornayvaz kept Valiente ahead, 6-5 going into the fifth chukker.
“We were doing fine,” said Biddle, “I brought my best horse onto the field in the fifth and then everything seemed to go wrong,” he said. “Sometimes the ball just doesn’t bounce right for you, and it was just one of those days.”
Valiente picked up five goals in the chukker with every member of the team getting on the scoreboard. Ulysses Escapite scored twice and Jornayvaz, Hall and teammate Santiago Bottarro each scored a goal. The period ended with Valiente boasting an 11-5 advantage.
Escapite scored the final goal of the game in the sixth as a disheartened Santa Clara looked for answers.
“We just put it to them,” said Hall, who led Valiente in scoring. “The team went well,” he smiled.
Hall scored six times for Valiente. Escapite added three goals; Jornayvaz scored twice; and Bottarro added a goal in the win.
Galego and Kampsen scored two goals apiece. Biddle added a goal for Santa Clara.
GOOSE CREEK 17, VILLA DE LAGO 11
Villa de Lago jumped out to an early 3-1 lead after the first chukker of play and led 4-2 through much of the second period when it happened.
In a race for the ball, Villa de Lago’s Facundo’s horse tripped Martin Zegers mount sending Zegers to the ground. Unconscious for three or four minutes, Zegers was air lifted from the field and disciplinary actions were taken. A penalty was awarded and Facundo Obregon was sent off of the field with no replacement allowed. Five-goaler Brandon Phillips was brought in for Zegers and the match continued with four players for Goose Creek playing Villa de Lago’s three players, Jared Zenni, Agustin Obregon and Pelon Escapite.
“It wasn’t intentional,” said Third Man, Eddy Martinez, “but we had to go by the rules and send Facundo (Obregon) off the field.”
Phillips paid immediate dividends for the Goose Creek team, converting a penalty shot to tie it up at 4-4 by the end of the second period.
Phillips added two more goals to the Goose Creek total in the third, and Donoso scored his second of the day. Goose Creek led by three goals at the half, 7-4.
Single goals from Jared Zenni, Agustin Obregon and Pelon Escapite were offset by goals from Goose Creek’s Mason Wroe and Phillips. Goose Creek took a 9-7 lead off the field with them after four.
Donoso lit up the scoreboard in the fifth, scoring four times while holding Villa de Lago to a pair go penalty goals from Escapite. With one chukker left to play, Goose Creek cruised along with a 13-9 lead.
Goals from the field from Donoso and Wroe were complimented by a pair of goals for Phillips, Villa de Lago got a pair of penalty goals but the game belonged to Goose Creek, 17-11.
Donoso contributed seven goals to the Goose Creek win. Phillips added six in four short chukkers of play and Zegers and Wroe added two goals apiece.
Zenni, Escapite and Facundo Obregon scored three goals apiece for Villa de Lago. Agustin Obregon added two in a losing effort.
Zegers is reportedly doing well, was not hospitalized, and should be back in the saddle in a couple of days.