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Grand Champions Polo Club

USPA Eastern Challenge final set

Pony Express & Longfield/Equine Law will decide competition

By Alex Webbe

Under threatening skies, five teams filled out the field at the Grand Champions Polo
Club in Wellington for the 2010 USPA Eastern Challenge Friday afternoon where they
competed in head to head play and a round-robin competition to decide who would
participate in Sunday's finals.

Longfield/Equine Law (Hannah Buchan, Jason Crowder, Jeff Hall and Avery Chapman)
scored a narrow 14-13 win over Newport/Tuff Rider (Gene Goldstein, Timmy Sharma,
Nacho Badiola and Joey Casey) to open the day.

Newport/Tuff Rider received two goals by handicap from the 14-goal Longfield/Equine
Law team and added a penalty goal by Timmy Sharma to the pot in the opening
chukker. Longfield/Equine Law team picked up a penalty goal from Jeff Hall and a goal
from the field from Jason Crowder. Newport/Tuff Rider led 3-2 after the first period.

Sharma added two more penalty goals to the Newport/Tuff Rider total in the second, but
a pair of goals from Hall and a single goal from Crowder tied it up at 5-5.

Newport/Tuff Rider bounced back in the third period, scoring three unanswered goals
for an 8-5 halftime lead. Nacho Badiola and Gene Goldstein scored single goals from
the field while Sharma added his fourth goal of the day on a penalty conversion.

Hall led the Longfield/Equine response in the second half with a pair of fourth chukker
scores (one from the field and one on a penalty shot). Avery Chapman scored his first
goal of the afternoon to tie it up at 8-8. Sharma closed out the chukker with his fifth goal
of the day for a 9-8 Newport/Tuff Rider lead.

Crowder scored twice and Hannah Buchan scored once in the fifth chukker as
Longfield/Equine Law charged ahead, 11-9. Goldstein, however, scored back to back
goals for Newport/Tuff Rider to even it up at 11-11 with one chukker left in regulation
time.

Goldstein scored to open the sixth chukker as Newport/Tuff Rider took a narrow 12-
11 lead. A penalty goal from Sharma had them ahead, 13-11, but Longfield/Equine
Law wasn't finished. Two goals from Hall tied it up at 13-13 with Crowder scoring the
winning goal in the 14-13 Longfield/Equine Law victory.

Hall led all scoring with seven goals (two on penalty shots). Crowder scored twice with

Chapman and Buchan adding single goals in the win.

Sharma set the pace for the Newport/Tuff Rider lineup with six goals (five on penalty
shots). Goldstein was credited with four goals and Badiola added a goal in a losing
effort. Newport/Tuff Rider also received two goals by handicap.

PONY EXPRESS RIDES INTO FINALS

Pony Express and Cinque Terre ended Friday afternoon's round-robin with identical 1-
0-1 records with Pony Express earning a berth in Sunday's finals by virtue of net goals
scored.

Cinque Terre (Juancito Bollini, Lucas Lalor, Kris Kampsen and Marc Ganzi) opened
the round-robin play with a 5-4 win over Ruby Q (Brian Street, J. J. Celis, Diego Cossio
and Joaquin Panelo) with Marc Ganzi scoring three of Cinque Terre's five goals (two
on penalty shots). Kris Kampsen and Juancito Bollini added single goals. J. J. Celis
scored three times for Ruby Q (twice on penalty conversions) and Joaquin Panelo
added a goal in the loss.

Ruby Q held the field for the ensuing three chukkers and was soundly drubbed by Pony
Express, 6-2. Bob Daniels and 7-goaler Tomas Goti each scored three goals in the win
(two of Daniels' goals came on penalty shots). Celis scored both of the Ruby Q goals.

Undefeated Pony Express and Cinque Terre faced off in the final match of the round-
robin that ended in a 4-4 tie. Cinque Terre got two goals from Marc Ganzi (one by
penalty), and single goals from Lucas Lalor and Juancito Bollini. Tomas Goti led the
Pony Express attack with three goals (one by penalty). Juan Bollini scored once in the
tie.

By virtue of net goals, Pony Express earned a spot in Sunday's 11:30 am 2012 USPA
Eastern Challenge finals against Longfield/Equine Law while Newport/Tuff Rider,
Cinque Terre and Ruby Q will compete in a 9:30 am round-robin subsidiary.