Elangeni Ranch overcomes Newport to emerge as Champions in the USPA Fall Classic: Match Analysis
The encounter between Elangeni Ranch and Newport turned out to be an exciting competition, with the former coming out victorious and winning the title in the finals of the USPA (United States Polo Association) Fall Classic Tournament.
The critical match, in which Elangeni Ranch chalked out a win by 10-9 goals, was played at the Grand Champions Polo Club, in Wellington, Florida.
The highest point-scorer of the match, Hector Galindo, evinced delighted expressions while speaking to the media.
He commented, “I felt good about the team. We were playing well together, and the horses were performing well. I knew we were going to win. I knew we had it today”.
Neither team succeeded to dominate the ball throughout the first set of play. It was a game that began with to and fro attacks from the duo.
However, the defensemen of the two sides played openly, keeping the score at a minimum level.
Elangeni Ranch began the match on a strong note, it was the first team to register its point on the scoreboard, courtesy of Hector Galindo’s goal.
Conversely, Newport answered solidly as its players started to take the ball under their control and gradually gained momentum.
Newport scored an equaliser at the hands of Paul Knapp, making a tie at one-all, after seven and a half minutes of play.
The speed of the game accelerated, with shot after shot being aggressively warded off by the defensemen from the two teams.
Gene Goldstein (Newport) and Diego Cossio (Elangeni Ranch) struck one goal in the second period, taking the score to two-all.
The third frame of play was quite a hard-hitting period where both the teams scored goals against each other.
Knapp registered a single goal for Newport but Galindo replied with a couple of goals, establishing the first lead for Elangeni Ranch by 4-3, at the end of the first half.
Newport’s Pite Merlos opened the fourth set of play, once more locking horns at four-all.
Galindo and his teammate, Jota Chavanne, gained an advantage in terms of one goal each, closing out the period with Elangeni Ranch holding the edge by two notches, 6-4.
Newport’s Merlos struck a pair of goals through penalty conversions and made the score even. Gene Goldstein and Cossio swapped one goal in the waning minutes of the period, marking another impasse at seven-all, with one chukka left to play.
The final frame saw the two teams making attacks against each other but they failed to make the game a decisive one, after the seven and a half minutes of play.
Cossio and Chavanne earned scores for Elangeni Ranch while Knapp and Merlos did the action for Newport. The nine-all deadlock pushed the two teams into overtime.
With minutes into the extra-time period, Galindo held the ball under his stick, volleying a fine shot into the goal and sealing the win for Elangeni Ranch by 10-9.
After a hard-fought game, Elangeni Ranch won the match as well as lifted the title of the tournament.
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