Lechuza to face Valiente in Everglades Classic Cup – US Polo Recap
Lechuza has emerged victorious against Goose Creek in the semi-finals of the Everglades Classic Cup being played at the International Polo Club in Wellington. The competition saw the two teams fight it out, as they needed to take the game if they wanted
to set their place in the finals of the tournament.
Lechuza has some key strokes in the second half, rolled up some points from Gaston Lisioli in the fourth and fifth periods, and preserved the lead in the final set of play to conclude a long journey with a 10-9 triumph.
The cliff-hanging game was started with both teams firing of shots on goal, but only two goals were scored in the opening seven and half minutes of action. Mason Wore opened the points of the day and scored a goal from the field for Goose Creek. Lisioli
of Lechuza in a counter-offence marked a goal and leveled the score at 1-1.
The pace of the game further accelerated in the second set of play and both teams traded three goals in the second period. Robert Orthwein notched a couple of goals from the field and put Lechuza ahead on the scoreboard. Martin Zegers connected on a penalty
shot for Goose Creek to remain in the game. Lechuza managed to sneak ahead with a narrow one-point lead, 3-2 at the end of the second period.
The game advanced for another tie-up at the end of the first half. Jose Donoso managed to score a couple of goals, one came on a penalty shot while the other from the field. Zegers added another score and established the first lead for Goose Creek. But the
lead did not last long, as Lisioli connected on a penalty shot and another from the field to make the game more interesting. The first half concluded with the score level on 5-5 with three chukkas left to play.
The attackers of Lechuza cranked up their offence in the second half and regained the lead in the fourth set of play. Zegers managed another two points through penalty conversions and put Goose Creek ahead. The Lechuza trio of Toto Collardin, Orthwein and
Lisioli scored once each and over-took Goose Creek on the scorecard.
The two teams exchanged one goal each in the second last chukka and headed into the final action with one goal difference. Lisioli nailed a goal at the start of the fifth period and stretched the Lechuza lead up to two points, 9-7. Wore of Goose Creek managed
a solitary point and trailed one score, 9-8 with one period left to play.
Collardin scored another goal in the final set of play to increase the Lechuza lead to two goals, as another Goose Creek goal went up on the scoreboard from Zegers, but to no avail. Lechuza won the game by one goal and will face Valiente in the finals of
the Everglades Classic Cup.
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