Hosted by Port Mayaca Polo Club in Okeechobee, San Saba (Dawn Jones, Santiago Zubiaurre, Alfonso Pieres and Steve Krueger) went head-to-head against ConcordEquityGroup.com (Dana Barnes, Jeff Hall, Nicolas “Nico” Escobar and Lucas Escobar) in the Heritage Cup final on Sunday, Jan. 5 at the National Polo Center-Wellington (NPC) on U.S. Polo Assn. Field One.
San Saba set the tone early in open play, as a balanced performance culminated in all four teammates reaching the scoreboard. Earning its reputation as a strong second half team, the Escobar brothers set their sights on delivering ConcordEquityGroup.com a comeback.
San Saba managed to withstand the late pressure and reclaim the podium’s top spot for the first time since 2023.
Igniting San Saba’s hot start, a seemingly unstoppable Zubiaurre quickly put the white team in control 3-0. Following a goal from San Saba’s Krueger to open the second chukker, ConcordEquityGroup.com responded with back-to-back drives from Hall and Nico Escobar.
Continuing to dominate play with confidence and synergy, Pieres and Krueger each found the posts to close out the second chukker 6-2 in favor of San Saba. Trading goals between Hall and Jones in the third period, San Saba entered the half doubled up with an 8-4 edge.
Regrouping during the break, Hall opened fourth chukker scoring, but Jones was back on the attack to counter once more for San Saba.
Fresh off its overtime victory in the George Miller Memorial, ConcordEquityGroup.com mounted its second late game rally in two weeks. Led by the Escobar brothers, Lucas kick-started the rebound from the field, as older brother Nico made back-to-back conversions to bring the team within one, 8-7.
Utilizing the momentum generated in the fifth chukker, Lucas Escobar sent one more goal through the posts early in the sixth period to tie the match 8-8. Unable score since the beginning of the second half, Pieres finally broke the stalemate and pulled San Saba ahead once more 9-8. Regaining the upper hand in the final minutes of the contest, a momentous goal by Zubiaurre sealed San Saba’s 10-9 victory.
Leading San Saba in scoring with three field goals in the final, Zubiaurre was named Most Valuable Player.
Best Playing Pony was awarded to Jeff Hall’s 9-year-old mare Machitos Teca, played in the fifth chukker.
The season’s 16-goal action continued with the Joe Barry Memorial, the first qualifying event of the NPC 16-Goal Championship. Play began Wednesday, Jan. 8 and will conclude Sunday, Jan. 26 at NPC on U.S. Polo Assn. Field One.
Also underway is the 16-goal Ylvisaker Cup, which started Thursday, Jan. 23 and continues until Sunday, Feb. 16. Learn more at www.nationalpolocenter.com.
