March 12, 2021

Wellington, FL – March 11, 2021 – Beginning their quest as the only team that can capture the Gauntlet of Polo®, Park Place continued their elite play from the C.V. Whitney Cup® to capture the 11-6 victory over Cessna in their first game of the USPA Gold Cup®. Scone followed with a successful debut, bouncing back from the heart-breaking overtime loss in last Sunday’s final to defeat Santa Clara 13-8 at the International Polo Club Palm Beach.

Just four days from their exhilarating victory in the C.V. Whitney Cup®, Park Place needed the first half to rediscover their form, producing a stagnant offense that ultimately came to life at the start of the second half against Cessna. Producing an even eight shot attempts each in the first half, Park Place outshot Cessna 16-2 over the final three chukkers by dominating possession and leaving Cessna with little opportunity to match them. Ulloa produced another strong performance for Park Place with a game-high six goals, pushing their win streak to five in the Gauntlet of Polo®.

With new addition Edward ‘Camp’ Campbell, who was replacing father Chip, Cessna got off to a quick start behind the play of Ezequiel Martinez Ferrario, who accounted for both Cessna goals in the opening chukker. Organized play off the ball, Cessna kept Park Place off the scoreboard until the second chukker when Matt Coppola began to make an impact coming forward in the game, scoring one goal and assisting on another to push the game into a 2-2 tie. With very few whistles to stop play, Cessna and Park Place continued to battle in open play, with Cessna giving Park Place difficulties, finishing the first half with a 4-2 lead with three of their goals coming from Ferrario.

The momentum of the game instantly switched at the start of the second half with Park Place finding the performance that carried them through the C.V. Whitney Cup®. Scoring four unanswered goals in the fourth chukker in a complete team performance, Park Place quickly doubled their goal total from the first half in just seven minutes to take their first lead of the game. With the ball continuing to stay in the offensive half for Park Place, they extended their run to six goals before Mariano Obregon finally ended the stretch. Heavily outshooting Cessna, Park Place’s Ulloa completed a dominant second half, scoring all three goals in the sixth chukker to capture the 11-6 victory.

Though Park Place won the game 11-6, Cessna was leading at halftime. ©Alex Pacheco

Leading throughout, Scone showcased a versatile offense that dominated from the field in the first half and then moved to the penalty line in the second half where they scored five of their six goals to overwhelm Santa Clara. Peke Gonzalez finished a perfect 6 for 6 from the penalty line, all from the 30 and 40-yard lines while Adolfo Cambiaso displayed the proficient passing ability that led his team’s efficient attack in the convincing five-goal victory.

Wasting little time from the opening throw-in, Scone pressured Santa Clara with a textbook play from Adolfo Cambiaso as Poroto Cambiaso and Gonzalez cleared space for the 10-goaler, who hit a perfect pass to Gonzalez to open the scoring. Building a quick 3-0 lead, Scone kept Santa Clara pinned in their defensive half early, relying on the scoring from Poroto Cambiaso and Gonzalez. A renewed fight from Santa Clara in the second chukker, led by a goal and an assist from Vercellino, cut the deficit to two, but the end of the half displayed Scone’s father-son duo at their best. Finishing the half shooting 6 for 8 from the field, Scone received two goals from Poroto Cambiaso, both on the receiving end of passes from Adolfo Cambiaso to exit the half with a 7-4 lead.

Adolfo Cambiaso displayed superb passing ability that helped to seal the victory for Scone. ©Alex Pacheco

With the ball primarily kept moving in open play, the pace of the game slowed in the second half as Santa Clara fought to make any Scone scoring chance difficult, but the result was foul trouble that sent Gonzalez to the penalty line. Three Penalty 2 conversions along with a Penalty 3 conversion for Gonzalez over the fourth and fifth chukkers gave Scone a commanding six-goal lead as Santa Clara struggled to keep Scone away from their own goal. Despite three goals each from Vercellino and Miguel Novillo Astrada, as well as scoring in every chukker, Santa Clara could not match the offensive firepower of Scone in the 13-8 defeat.

Peke Gonzalez scored 7 goals for Scone. ©Alex Pacheco

Polo matches at IPC are not open to the general public except for ticketed Sunday brunch. Online viewing is available with a subscription at globalpolo.com.

Click here to view the full 2021 High Goal Polo Schedule.
Click here to learn more about the International Polo Club Palm Beach.
Click here to learn more about the GAUNTLET OF POLO®.

Wellington, FL – March 10, 2021 – Focusing on the second leg of the Gauntlet of Polo®, four teams made their debut in the 2021 USPA Gold Cup® beginning with Tonkawa defeating Aspen/Dutta Corp 10-7, while La Indiana returned to the win column, defeating Pilot 13-11 on the Isla Carroll East field at the International Polo Club Palm Beach.

After seeing their hopes in the C.V. Whitney Cup dashed when losing a shootout, Tonkawa returned in the first game of Bracket I, controlling possession to capture their third victory of the season. Holding Aspen/Dutta Corp to zero field goals in the first half, Tonkawa was able to build a two-goal lead and maintain the gap throughout the second half due to the seven-goal performance from Sapo Caset. Aspen/Dutta Corp had their opportunities to match Tonkawa despite their struggles from the field, but 3 for 7 shooting from the penalty line ultimately sealed their fate in the 10-7 defeat.

Entering the game as the leading scorer in the Gauntlet with 7.7 goals per game, Caset continued his scoring pace by scoring two goals in the opening chukker, while also adding an assist to erase the one-goal difference on handicap and leave the game tied at 3-3. Aspen/Dutta Corp’s Timmy Dutta converted two Penalty 3 attempts, but it was the only offense his team could produce, held scoreless into the third chukker as Tonkawa pulled ahead. Drawing attention from the Aspen/Dutta Corp defense, Caset found Escobar with a pass for his first goal of the game and then capped off a strong first half with a Penalty 2 conversion to give Tonkawa the 6-4 lead at halftime.

End-to-end polo highlighted the start of the second half as the two teams combined for 10 shots in the fourth chukker. Stewart Armstrong was able to finally end the drought from the field for Aspen/Dutta Corp, scoring their first field goal of the game, but it was met by a swift response from Caset to keep Tonkawa ahead by two. Finding some momentum in the fifth chukker, Aspen/Dutta Corp began to pressure the Tonkawa defense as they pushed to close the gap and pull even beginning with field goals from Dutta and Gringo Colombres. Trailing by just one, Aspen/Dutta Corp was a step away from tying the score when Caset once again provided an answer for Tonkawa as the 10-goaler proved to be the difference-maker in the game. The defense of Tonkawa stepped up in the final chukker, holding Aspen/Dutta Corp off the scoreboard to complete the 10-7 victory.

Tonkawa held Aspen/Dutta Corp off the scoreboard in the final chukker to solidify the win. ©Alex Pacheco

An injury to Facundo Pieres forced Pilot to bring a new line-up that included Lucas James and Matias Gonzalez, who returned to the Pilot line-up for the first time since 2019 when he was a part of the undefeated Gauntlet of Polo® team. Facing a difficult task in La Indiana, Pilot kept pace due to the accurate 7 for 8 penalty shooting from Gonzalito Pieres, but La Indiana was able to overwhelm Pilot in open play with a balanced attack, receiving goals from all four players while shooting above 50% in what turned into a high-scoring game. Holding Pilot without a field goal over the final four chukkers, La Indiana was able to overcome their foul trouble to narrowly edge Pilot and begin their USPA Gold Cup® with a 13-11 victory.

Despite the changes to their line-up, Pilot raced out of the gate thanks to the play of Gonzalito Pieres, who accounted for both Pilot goals in the opening chukker while helping to prevent the potent La Indiana attack from scoring. That quickly changed in the second chukker after La Indiana scored on three consecutive shots at goal to erase the two-goal deficit and take a 3-2 lead. The momentum swung back and forth as Pilot, once again led by Gonzalito Pieres, produced a run of four straight goals to charge back into the lead, with the fast pace suiting Pilot’s style of play. Before the end of the half, the speed of the game slowed as La Indiana found themselves in foul trouble, committing five fouls that led to two penalty conversions for Gonzalito Pieres and a 7-6 lead at halftime for Pilot.

La Indiana overcame Pilot with a final score of 13-11. ©Alex Pacheco

Held without a shot for the second consecutive chukker, Pilot could no longer hold off a determined La Indiana attack that pulled even on Polito Pieres’ fourth goal of the game. With the teams tied at 8-8, the final two chukkers decided the outcome and it was La Indiana’s defense that emerged as a storyline. Pilot produced just one shot at goal throughout the entire second half, leaving their offense to come from the penalty line where Gonzalito Pieres continued to convert with regularity. Adding three more penalty goals over the final two chukkers, Gonzalito Pieres kept Pilot even at 11-11 with time running down. However, La Indiana’s ability to control open play ultimately won in the end as Polito Pieres and Jeff Hall scored two quick field goals to end the game and secure the hard-fought 13-11 win.

Polo matches at IPC are not open to the general public except for ticketed Sunday brunch. Online viewing is available with a subscription at globalpolo.com.

The teams were tied 8-8 at the end of the fourth chukker, but La Indiana’s defense helped them to seal the victory. ©Alex Pacheco

Click here to view the full 2021 High Goal Polo Schedule.
Click here to learn more about the International Polo Club Palm Beach.
Click here to learn more about the GAUNTLET OF POLO®.