Heathcote wins opening game of 2013 East Coast Open

By Alex Webbe

A full day of polo was on hand at the Greenwich Polo Club on Sunday with a morning

contest in the 2013 East Coast Open featuring Heathcote (Steve Lefkowitz, Naco

Taverna, Tommy Biddle and Nick Manifold) and Airstream (Peter Orthwein, Kris

Kampsen, Guille Aguero and Mariano Gonzalez) followed by a game in the 20-

goal Tommy Glynn Memorial Cup with Cinque Terre (Alessandro Bazzoni, Gringo

Colombres, Joao Ganon and Brandon Phillips) against a re-shuffled White Birch lineup

(Felipe Viana, Naco Taverna, Matias Magrini and Remy Muller).

In the morning contest Heathcote won the opening match of 2013 East Coast Open

in a back and forth game.  Rebounding from a 9-7 halftime deficit, HeathcotehhhhH

Heathcote scored a 12-11 win over Airstream.

The 17-goal Heathcote team received three goals by handicap from the 20-goal

Airstream lineup, but watched as Mariano Gonzalez scored the first goal from the field.  

Tommy Biddle converted a 60-yard penalty shot to put Heathcote ahead, 4-1.  Guille

Aguero scored the final goal of the chukker but trailed 4-2.

Kris Kampsen scored twice from the field and once on a penalty shot for Airstream, but

a pair of goals from Heathcote team captain Steve Lefkowitz (one on a penalty shot)

and a penalty goal from Biddle preserved the two goal Heathcote lead, 7-5.

Airstream owned the field in the third chukker.  Kampsen scored three consecutive

goals (two on penalty shots) and Aguero scored a fourth goal from the field.  Heathcote

was unable to get on the scoreboard in the third, giving up the lead to Airstream, 9-7.

“I’m not really sure what happened,” said Biddle.  “We were playing well together and

then all of a sudden we were trailing.  I know we missed a number of easy shots on the

goal, but don’t have a real clear answer as to why we fell behind.”

Biddle scored the opening goal of the second half, cutting the Airstream lead to a single

goal, 9-8, but it wasn’t enough.  Kampsen converted a 30-yard penalty shot followed by

a goal from the field from Gonzalez.  The fourth chukker ended with Airstream leading,

11-8.

The Heathcote defense stepped it up in the fifth, shutting down the Airstream attack,

but managed just one goal on a shot from the field from Biddle.  Airstream continued to

lead, 11-9, going into the final chukker.

Once again, the Heathcote defense did their jobs.  For the second straight chukker the

Airstream offense was unable to score.  Naco Taverna scored his first goal of the game

to cut the Airstream lead to a single goal, 11-10.  Biddle followed up with a pair of goals

from the field for the 12-11 win.

Kampsen led all scoring with seven goals (four on penalty shots).  Aguero and

Gonzalez added two goals each in a losing effort.  Biddle led the Heathcote attack

with six goals (two on penalty shots), including the tying and winning goals in the sixth

chukker.  Lefkowitz scored twice and Taverna added a goal for the win.

WHITE BIRCH 12, CINQUE TERRE 11

The Greenwich Polo Club’s 3PM contest pitted Cinque Terre (Alessandro Bazzoni,

Gringo Colombres, Joao Ganon and Brandon Phillips) against an irregular White Birch

lineup that included only one member of its original lineup (Matias Magrini).  filling out

the roster for the day were Felipe Viana (4), Naco Taverna (6) and Remy Muller (2) in

the last of the preliminary 20-goal Tommy Glynn Memorial Cup.

Cinque Terre received one goal by handicap from the 20-goal White Birch team

and quickly added to it.  Brazilian 7-goaler Joao Ganon converted a penalty shot

followed by a goal from the field from Gringo Colombres for an early 3-1 advantage.  

White responded with consecutive goals from Naco Taverna, Matias Magrini (penalty

conversion) and Felipe Viana (penalty conversion).  The first chukker ended in a 3-3 tie.

Cinque Terre got into their rhythm in the second period, outscoring White Birch 4-

1 on a pair of goals from Colombres and single goals from Ganon and team captain

Alessandro Bazzoni.  Magrini managed the only goal for White Birch as Cinque Terre

rode off with a 7-4 lead.

The makeshift White Birch team got their groove on in the third.  Former 10-goaler

Magrini scored four consecutive goals (one on a penalty shot) and Viana added a

penalty goal as they combined shutout defense with an unstoppable offense.  At the

end of the first half, White Birch was in front by two goals, 9-7.

“We really weren’t playing that well in the first half,” offered Cirque Terre’s Brandon

Phillips.  “We were struggling to get the team to gel, in the second half it happened,” he

beamed.  “I feel real good about our chances moving forward.”

The Cinque Terre defense did its job in the fourth, shutting down the White Birch attack,

but only picked up one goal (Colombres).  With two chukkers left to play, White Birch

led by a single goal, 9-8.

Goals continued to be hard to come by in the fifth.  Magrini scored his seventh goal of

the game for White Birch’s only production of the chukker while Ganon responded with

a goal for Cinque Terre.  Cinque Terre continued to trail, 10-9.

“I thought we had it going our way in the second half,” said Ganon.  “We had good ball

movement and the pace was fast.  I really thought we were going to be able to take the

lead back.”

Magrini opened the sixth chukker by converting a 60-yard penalty shot to put White

Birch in the lead by two goals, 11-9, when Cinque Terre fought their way back into the

game.  Consecutive goals from the field by Phillips had it all even with time running

out.  A great individual effort by Magrini gave White Birch the go-ahead goal, and time

expired on a determined Cinque Terre foursome.

“We might have lost,” said Phillips, “but I really think we have the team figured out now,

and I know that we’re going to be playing better with every game.”

The semifinals of the Tommy Glynn Memorial Cup are scheduled to be played on

Wednesday, July 3 with White Birch meeting Heathcote and Cinque Terre facing

Airstream-times to be determined.

The balance of the schedule for the East Coast Open has yet to be determined.

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