Valiente ride into the Everglades Classic Cup Finals – US Polo Recap
Jeff Hall scored eight times and had an assist, as Valiente edged past Little Owl to set up a finals showdown in the Everglades Classic Cup being contested Saturday at the International Polo Club in Wellington, Florida.
The strikers of Valiente displayed a wonderful show, as they marked twelve goals against the eleven of their competitor, and won the hotly contested match. The opening chukka completely belonged to Valiente, which received three goals while holding Little
off the scoreboard in the first seven and half minutes of play.
Santiago Bottaro scored one goal and brought his team into the score net. Shortly later, Jeff Hall scored thrice in the period, of which two came on penalty shots while the other from the field and expanded the lead to four goals, 4-0 after the first set
of play.
The Valiente attack came alive in the second chukka, but could only score two goals in the period. The period opened with a goal from Bottaro and it was the only offence from Valiente in the period. J.P. Uihlein and his team-mate Chris Nevins scored one
goal each for Little Owl and cut the lead down to three points, 5-2, at the end of the second chukka.
Little Owl dominated the third chukka of play and managed three goals in the period. The resilient defence of Little Owl kept Valiente off the scoreboard and tied it at five all. Nevins made a couple of penalty shots, as Joe Wayne Barry added a goal from
the field and brought it even 5-5 to end the first half action.
The attacking players of Valiente cranked up their offence in the second half, obtained four points in the fourth period, and regained the lead. Hall notched two goals while Bottaro and Ulysses Escapite added one goal each in the score. Nevins connected
on a penalty shot and led the Valiente offence in the period. The two teams headed into the second last period with Valiente holding a commanding three-goal, 9-6 advantage.
The match entered into more interesting phase in the fifth set of play and both teams started a more offensive game. Crowder and Nevins scored off one spot-shot apiece and cut the lead down to one goal. Valiente scored another goal and went up on the scoreboard
from Hall to end the period on top with two points, 10-8.
Hall connected on a long penalty shot at the start of the final round, which was countered by a couple of goals from Uihlein and Nevins. Hall scored off another spot-shot to retain the Valiente lead in the game.
The strikers of Valiente were not ready to give up, as Nevins converted a penalty shot, as the final horn sounded. Valiente rode off the field with a 12-11 victory and set a place in the final fight of the Everglades Classic Cup.
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