The final two games of bracket play in the 2020 Ylvisaker Cup tournament at the International Polo Club Palm Beach provided an exciting conclusion Sunday, Jan. 26 to determine the semifinalists.
The featured game saw Stable Door Polo complete an impressive comeback against Pilot to claim a 12-10 victory on U.S. Polo Assn. Field 1.
Stable Door Polo and Pilot both held a 1-1 record, with the victor advancing to the semifinals. Without Gonzalito Pieres, Lucas Escobar, and Alfonso Pieres, who were replaced by Robi Bilbao, Nico Escobar and Tomas Pieres, Pilot dominated the opening half, holding a six-goal lead. That’s when Stable Door Polo responded with a dynamic team effort that saw four goals each from Santino Magrini and Robert Orthwein to produce a thrilling comeback for the exciting 12-10 victory.
Pilot held one goal on handicap to start the game, but it was Tomas Pieres who stepped up offensively for Pilot, scoring three straight goals, all from the field as part of a dominant first chukker. Holding a 5-0 lead, Pilot extended it further on Bilbao’s first goal of the game, remaining fully in control through the opening two chukkers. Orthwein finally broke through for Stable Door Polo to get his team on the scoreboard, but the impressive Pilot performance overwhelmed to hold a commanding 8-2 lead at halftime.
The game turned in the second half, with Stable Door Polo holding more possession and utilizing a balanced team performance to fight their way back into the game. A 3-0 fourth chukker in favor of Stable Door Polo, which received a goal each from Henry Porter, Orthwein and Matias Magrini, cut the deficit in half.
End-to-end action in the fifth chukker didn’t see a foul on either side of the ball as Nico Escobar and Santino Magrini traded goals back and forth, leaving Stable Door Polo still trailing by two. With a spot in the semifinals on the line, Stable Door Polo finished with an incredible sixth chukker behind the duo of Orthwein and Matias Magrini, who scored two goals each to complete the comeback and capture the 12-10 victory. Orthwein was named MVP, while Matias Magrini’s Mini A was awarded the Best Playing Pony honors.
In the day’s earlier game, Patagones captured a 10-9 victory on the field over Daily Racing Form, but the latter was declared the winner due to an ineligible substitution by Patagones.
Trailing throughout the entire game, Patagones took its first lead over Daily Racing Form in the sixth chukker, fighting their way to victory behind seven goals from Santiago Toccalino, who entered the game for injured Tomas Garcia del Rio in the second chukker. Overcoming inaccurate 5 for 20 shooting, Patagones relied on four penalty goals in the second half, while four missed penalty attempts for Daily Racing Form proved to be the difference in the narrow one-goal defeat.
While Daily Racing Form was awarded the victory despite the 10-9 loss, with a 2-1 record, Patagones still advanced into the semifinals.
Ylvisaker Cup action continues this weekend at IPC. Visit www.internationalpoloclub.com for more information.
