Bendabout,
Catamount, Everglades and Lechuza Post Wins To Reach Finals In 26-Goal
C.V. Whitney Cup At International Polo Club Palm Beach
WELLINGTON,
Florida Ten-goaler Adam Snow scored on a 10-yard neck shot
91 seconds into overtime to lift Bendabout over Isla Carroll 12-11
in a quarterfinal match of the 26th annual C.V. Whitney Cup 26-goal
polo tournament Sunday at International Polo Club Palm Beach.
In
other C.V. Whitney Cup quarterfinals, 10-goaler Mike Azzaro scored
10 goals to lead Catamount past San Saba 16-8, Lucas Monteverde
converted a 30-yard penalty shot to lift Everglades over White Birch
12-11 and Lechuza scored the last five goals en route to an 11-9
victory over defending champion Las Monjitas.
In
Wednesdays semifinals, Bendabout plays Lechuza in a matchup
of two teams each with a pair of 10-goalers and Catamount plays
Everglades. Game times and fields will be announced Tuesday.
Bendabout
scored the final three goals in regulation, the last one a 60-yard
penalty shot by 10-goaler Miguel Novillo Astrada with 2:54 remaining,
to tie the game at 11-11. Bendabout had two excellent chances to
win the game in regulation, but Memo Gracida backed away a ball
near the goal line with 1:28 left and Astrada sent a forehand wide
with 20 seconds remaining.
Snow
likened the quarterfinal match to the 2002 U.S. Open final when
his team, which included Astrada, rallied from three goals down
in the sixth chukker to win.
Because
of that, I have confidence we can come back from anything,
said Snow, one of only two American 10-goalers.
We
tried to hit the ball quicker in the second half to put (patron)
Gillian (Johnston) in the game, said Snow. Although Johnston
did not score in the second half, she was more involved.
Snow
finished with a team-high six goals while Astrada finished with
five and Johnston scored one. Alejandro Novillo Astrada did not
score.
Pancho
Bensadon led Isla Carroll with seven goals, five on penalty shots.
Gracida added three goals and Sugar Erskine scored one for Isla
Carroll while patron John Goodman did not score.
Carlos
Gracida, patron Scott Devon and Carlos Gracida scored two goals
apiece for Catamount, which led 8-5 at halftime and coasted to victory.
Agustin Merlos led San Saba with four goals while Hector Galindo
added three goals and patron Tommy Lee Jones had one goal.
Monteverde
and patron Skeeter Johnston scored four goals each to lead Everglades
while Tomas Llorente and Owen Rinehart added two goals apiece. Mariano
Aguerre led White Birch with five goals, all in the second half.
Lucas Criado and Del Walton scored three goals each while patron
Peter Brant did not score.
Lechuza
trailed 8-6 after Javier Novillo Astrada converted a 30-yard penalty
shot in the fifth chukker but then dominated the rest of the game,
scoring once in the fifth and four consecutive goals in the final
chukker. Astrada led Las Monjitas with five goals while his brother,
Nacho, and Gigi Aguero, scored one goal each. Patron Camilo Bautista
did not score.
Thirteen
teams entered the tournament, which is a prelude to the Stanford
Financial Group 100th U.S. Open Polo Championship, the most
prestigious polo tournament in North America. The C.V. Whitney Cup
final is slated for Sunday, March 21 at 3 p.m. at the International
Polo Club Palm Beach stadium.
The
tournament is named in memory of Cornelius Vanderbilt Sonny
Whitney, who along with his brother John Hay Whitney, were important
polo patrons in the 1930's. The son of Hall of Fame patron Harry
Payne Whitney, C.V. won the U.S. Open three times (twice against
his brother), and was a renowned owner and breeder of thoroughbred
racehorses.
The
polo matches are open to the public. Tickets for the Sunday games
at the International Polo Club Palm Beach are available at the gate,
beginning at $10 each. For information or advance tickets, call
(561) 204-5687 or visit the club website at www.internationalpoloclub.com.
International
Polo Club Palm Beach is located at 3667 120th Avenue South in Wellington.
From I-95, take the Forest Hill Boulevard exit and go west approximately
12 miles. Turn left onto South Shore Boulevard and go two miles.
Turn left onto Pierson Road, travel about one mile and then make
a right onto 120th Avenue South. The club is on the right. From
Floridas Turnpike, take Exit 93 (Lake Worth Road) and go west
about six miles. Make a right onto 120th Avenue South. The club
is on the left.
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