By Alex Webbe
Coca-Cola (1-1)made up for the 15-8 shelling it suffered at the hands of Lechuza Caracas (2-0) last Thursday by dealing a 14-7 beat-down to Orchard Hill (0-2) in 2012 USPA Piaget Gold Cup play at the International Polo Club in Wellington Tuesday afternoon.
Coca-Cola took an early 3-2 lead on first chukker goals from Luis Escobar, Gillian Johnston and Hilario Ulloa. Orchard Hill managed a 60-yard penalty goal from Mariano Gonzalez and a goal from the field from Pablo Macdonough.
Two more goals from the field from Escobar in the second period were joined by a 60-yard penalty goal from Julio Arellano for a 6-4 lead. Orchard Hill was held to penalty goals from Gonzalez and MacDonough.
Shutout defense by Coca-Cola and a goal from Hilario Ulloa watched the lead expand to three goals at the end of the first three chukkers of play, 7-4.
Orchard Hill tried to climb back into the fray in the second half, keeping Coca-Cola off of the scoreboard, but managed only a single goal from Gonzalez. Coca-Cola continued to lead, but Orchard Hill had cut the spread down to two goals, 7-5.
Goals from Ulloa, Arellano and Escobar went unanswered in the fifth chukker as Orchard Hill continued to have trouble organizing an effective attack. The Coca-Cola lead was five goals now, 10-5.
Orchard Hill scored the first two goals in the opening 60 seconds of the sixth chukker, but that would be the end of the mini-rally. A goal from the field from MacDonough just thirty seconds into lay was complimented by a 60-yard penalty conversion from Gonzalez twenty-nine seconds later. The Coca-Cola lead was narrowed to three goals, 10-7. A pair of goals from Arellano (one from the field and one on a penalty) and a single goal from Ulloa closed out the game with Coca-Cola riding off with a convincing 14-7 win.
Ulloa scored six times for Coca-Cola. Escobar added four goals; Arellano was credited with three goals (two by penalty) and Johnston added a goal in the win.
Four of Orchard Hill’s goals came from Gonzalez (three on penalty shots). Macdonough added three goals (one by penalty).
VALIENTE II 8, LAS MONJITAS 6
In a low-scoring battle between the talented lineups of Valiente II (2-0) and Las Monjitas (0-2), Valiente II emerged victorious with an 8-6 win.
It was nearly two-and-a-half minutes into the game before Alejo Taranco scored the first goal of the game for Valiente II. Las Monjitas managed s single goal from Javier Astrada with 90 seconds on the clock and the teams deadlocked at 1-1.
Las Monjitas went up 2-1 with a penalty goal from Eduardo Astrada, two minutes into the second period. Pelon Stirling responded with a goal from the field for Valiente II just a minute later, and the score stood. The teams were all even at 2-2 after the first two chukkers.
Las Monjitas got two more goals in the third on penalty conversions from Eduardo Astrada, but Valiente II wasn’t a spectator in the game. A penalty goal from Taranco and a pair of goals from Adolfo Cambiaso (one on a penalty shot and one from the field) had Valiente II sitting on a narrow 5-4 halftime lead.
Two goals from Stirling in the fourth were scored against a silent Las Monjitas offense as Valiente II stretched their lead to three goals, 7-4.
The Valiente II defense scored a second consecutive shutout of the Las Monjitas attack in the fifth, but managed just a single goal from Stirling. The Valiente II lead had now ballooned to four goals, 8-4, with seven minutes left to play.
Javier Astrada and Inaki Laprida had both scored goals earl in the final chukker, but that was where it stopped. The Valiente II defense ate up precious time while controlling the ball for much of the final chukker as Las Monjitas suffered their second loss in an 8-6 Valiente II victory.
Stirling led the Valiente II attack with four goals (one on penalty). Cambiaso and Taranco each scored two goals (each of them had a penalty goal).
Javier Astrada set the pace for Las Monjitas with four goals. Eduardo Astrada and Laprida added single goals in the loss.