USPA National 20 Goal Tournament

Piaget needs two overtimes to tame the Wanderers,
14-13 in National Twenty Goal Tournament

By Alex Webbe

Two more evenly matched teams would be hard to find, as the Wanderers were
pressed into double overtime before dropping a 14-13 heartbreaker to Piaget Thursday
afternoon in 2011 USPA North American Cup play hosted by the Grand Champions
Polo Club in Wellington.

The Wanderers received one goal by handicap from the 18-goal Piaget team and
watched Nic Roldan tie it up at 1-1 with the first goal from the field. Sugar Erskine
responded with a goal for the Wanderers for an early 2-1 lead.

Piaget picked up the pace in the second period, shutting down the Wanderers offense
and putting up three unanswered goals for a 4-2 advantage. Marc Ganzi exhibited
great ball control as he scored consecutive goals going from one end of the field to the
other with Roldan adding the final goal of the chukker.

The Wanderers took control of the game in the third, pressuring the Piaget defense.
Phillips converted a penalty shot and added another goal from the field. Piaget
continued to attack the Wanderers’ goal but was unable to connect and left the field all
even at 4-4.

Two goals from Erskine and a single goal from Phillips had the Wanderers ahead, 7-
4, before Piaget rallied. Roldan took advantage of a Wanderers’ foul by converting
the penalty shot and Ganzi added another goal from the field. The Wanderers held a
narrow 7-6 lead going into the fifth chukker.

Piaget’s Natascha Baecher tied it up at 7-7 to open the fifth period followed by a goal
from Roldan for reversal in fortune and an 8-7 lead. Phillips added two more penalty
goals and Joey Casey scored his first goal of the day and the Wanderers were on top,
10-8. Roldan closed out the scoring in the chukker, but Piaget continued to trail by a
goal, 10-9.

Both teams tuned up the dial for the sixth chukker with goals from Erskine and Phillips
(penalty conversion) stretching the Wanderers’ lead to three goals, 12-9, but Piaget
came storming back. With four minutes left in the period, Ganzi scored from the field
and Roldan converted a penalty shot for a goal, Piaget trailed by only one goal, 12-
11, as time continued to run down on the game clock. Phillips scored his seventh goal
of the game on another penalty shot for the Wanderers. And the lead grew back to two
goals, 13-11.

With less than two minutes in regulation time, Piaget rallied once again. Roldan made
good on a penalty shot for a goal and Ganzi scored the tying goal, 13-13, as time
expired, and both teams were hurled into a sudden-death overtime chukker.

With the light beginning to escape the sky and both horses and riders pressing
themselves to the limit, Piaget and the Wanderers battled through a scoreless seventh
chukker with the horn sounding in a 13-13 tie.

A brief intermission was allowed while riders and grooms scrambled to find the
necessary horseflesh to continue. Less than two minutes into the eighth period, Piaget
found itself on the apron of the Wanderers’ goal. Roldan backed a centering shot off
of the backline to a waiting Natascha Baecher who carried it to the goal mount before
being forced to leave it behind. A trailing Marc Ganzi made good on the follow-up shot
for the 14-13 double overtime win.

Roldan led the Piaget team with seven goals. Ganzi scored six times including the tying
goal in the sixth and the winning goal in the eighth. Baecher chipped ina goal in the
victory.

Phillips put on a stellar demonstration of horsemanship and stickwork as he tallied
seven goals for the Wanderers. Erskine scored four times and Casey added a goal.
The Wanderers received one goal by handicap.

The victory gives Piaget a 1-0 record while the Wanderers fall to 1-1.

Play in the 2011 USPA North American Cup is slated to continue on Monday,
November 14 with Piaget (1-0) meeting Port Mayaca (0-1).