Wellington, FL – March 28, 2021 – The finale of the second leg of the Gauntlet of Polo® was played on a hot, sunny day at the International Polo Club Palm Beach (IPC), with Scone producing one of their best performances of the season, defeating Tonkawa 13-10 on the Home of the U.S. Polo Assn – Field 1 to raise the USPA Gold Cup® and walk away with the $100,000 prize.
Scone asserted their offense at the beginning of the final, scoring seven of the first eight goals to leave Tonkawa trailing from behind throughout the game. The fast pace set by Scone resulted in four early penalty goals from Adolfo Cambiaso and Peke Gonzalez, adding to a strong open play performance from Poroto Cambiaso that ultimately allowed Scone to build and maintain their large lead. The trio, along with David Paradice, was able to turn their focus to defense after the offensive outburst, holding Tonkawa to just three first-half goals. With the victory, Adolfo Cambiaso captures his 15th USPA Gold Cup® title, but it may be one of the most memorable, playing alongside son Poroto for their first victory together at IPC.
Winning the first throw-in, Scone worked the ball downfield, and after missing their first attempt at goal, they regained possession, and Adolfo Cambiaso received a Penalty 1 to open the scoring. Unable to convert consecutive penalty attempts from the 60-yard line, Tonkawa was left scoreless in the first seven minutes as Scone added to their lead. Paradice left the ball in front of goal for an assist to Poroto Cambiaso, and before the end of the first chukker, Poroto struck again for his second goal and a 3-0 lead. Tonkawa fought hard to match the pace set by Scone, finally breaking through for their first goal of the game on a field goal from Caset, but the accurate penalty shooting of Scone changed the opening half. Converting back-to-back Penalty 4 conversions, Adolfo Cambiaso gave Scone the commanding 7-1 lead, putting them in a position to focus on containing Tonkawa’s elite duo of Caset and Francisco Elizalde. Beginning to chip away at the deficit, Tonkawa’s Elizalde brought his team within four, but on the final play of the half, Adolfo Cambiaso broke free for his fourth goal of the game, sending Scone into the half with the five-goal advantage.
With the victory, Adolfo Cambiaso captures his 15th USPA Gold Cup® title, but it may be one of the most memorable, playing alongside son Poroto for their first victory together at IPC. ©Alex Pacheco
Tournament scoring leader Caset sought to bring Tonkawa back in the game in a determined start to the second half that saw the opening few minutes go in Tonkawa’s favor, pulling one goal closer, but their inaccurate shooting ultimately prevented them from pulling closer. Converting just 33% of their shot attempts through five chukkers compared to 50% for Scone, Tonkawa struggled to slow the father-son duo of Adolfo and Poroto Cambiaso, who scored two goals each in the fourth and fifth chukkers to enter the final seven minutes with a 12-5 lead. Gonzalez opened the sixth chukker with a goal for Scone, all but securing the victory as time ticked down. Tonkawa fought until the final whistle, scoring two field goals and adding three penalty conversions, but the late-game run was not enough to pull within reach as the Scone organization celebrated their first USPA Gold Cup® title, defeating Tonkawa 13-10.
Most Valuable Player was awarded to 15-year-old Poroto Cambiaso, finishing with four goals in the victory. Best Playing Pony honors went to Adolfo Cambiaso and David Stirling’s Monjita Coronada, while the Argentine Bred Best Playing Pony was given to Lovelocks Camuserich.
La Indiana secured the first win of the 2021 CaptiveOne U.S. Open Polo Championship® over Santa Clara. ©Alex Pacheco
Earlier in the day, the CaptiveOne U.S. Open Polo Championship® began with La Indiana scoring a season-high 18 goals behind a dominant 11-2 second half to defeat Santa Clara 18-9. Accurate 12 for 17 shooting along with nine goals from Polito Pieres contributed to a strong final three chukkers for La Indiana as they limited Santa Clara to just three shots while dominating possession to capture the convincing victory.
Racing out to a 4-0 victory in the first chukker, all four coming from Pieres, La Indiana seemed destined to control the game from the first throw-in, but Santa Clara provided a determined response in the second chukker. Holding La Indiana without a shot, Santa Clara attacked relentlessly, pressuring the La Indiana defense and receiving three penalty attempts, converted for three goals by Felipe Vercellino to tie the game at 5-5. At the end of the first half, it was either team’s game as La Indiana and Santa Clara remained tied, trading one field goal and penalty goal each in the third chukker of what was appearing to be a close first game in the CaptiveOne U.S. Open Polo Championship®.
Polito Pieres contributed to La Indiana‘s total of 18 goals with 9 of his own. ©Alex Pacheco
The momentum swung in La Indiana’s favor in the opening stages of the second half as their accurate shooting began to wear Santa Clara down. Converting three of their four shot attempts, La Indiana’s Jeff Hall contributed two goals to give his team the two-goal lead, which was quickly extended to five in a decisive fifth chukker. Pinned in their own half, Santa Clara was held to just one penalty goal while Escobar and Pieres pushed La Indiana’s attack forward to combine for three goals, leaving Santa Clara in desperate need of offense with one chukker remaining. The frustration for Santa Clara boiled over in the sixth chukker as Felipe Vercellino was sent off for four minutes after multiple yellow cards, leaving Santa Clara one player down and La Indiana to take advantage, scoring five consecutive goals to finish the game and claim the first game of the tournament with the impressive 18-9 victory.
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.
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