NEWS

Article courtesy of Grand Champions Polo Club.

The stage is now set for the semifinals of the National Twenty Goal® on Saturday, November 23, at Grand Champions Polo Club in Wellington, Florida. Audi (Sugar Erskine, Nic Roldan, Brandon Phillips) edged out their opponents in a close game to defeat Montemar (Mackenzie Weisz, Sterling Giannico, Pelon Escapite, Pablo Dorignac) 14-12, advancing into the semifinal against the French Team.

In the opening semifinal at 10am, Aspen Valley (Grant Ganzi, Juancito Bollini, Horacio Heguy, Jeff Blake) will play Sebucan (Pablo Pulido, Kris Kampsen, Jason Crowder, Tommy Biddle) for a spot in the final on Wednesday, November 27, at 3:00pm. All games will be live streamed on USPA Polo Network with Toby Wayman announcing the action.

Montemar started off with three goals on handicap, but Audi quickly leveled the scoreboard with three goals of their own, trailing by one after the first chukker. "I think you come out very attentive and focused on the details when the other team starts off with so many goals," Erskine said. "Once the lead begins to disappear the team starts to play a little bit more open."

Scoring three goals in the second chukker, Rodan lead Audi to outscore Montemar 4-1 to establish a 7-5 lead after two chukkers. The offensive battle continued in the third chukker with Montemar outscoring Audi 3-1, with goals from Dorignac, Giannico and Escapite to tie the game at halftime 8-all.

Regaining their momentum in the second half, Audi outscored Montemar 2-1 after Roldan found an opening to score with 1:31 remaining in the fourth. Both teams battling for control, Escapite successfully tied the game in the fifth chukker 10-all with 5:21 left. Retaliating with skilled precision, Audi scored four unanswered goals, creating a gap that Montemar could not close.

"It was an interesting game," Roldan said. "We started off playing really well, but I think we became a little comfortable in the middle of the game and they put some pressure on us. After halftime we reevaluated our strategy and decided to be closer with our men and keep moving the ball," Roldan continued. "Luckily, we were able to maintain a decent lead until the end."

As the French Team prepares for the upcoming International Cup, Roldan acknowledged that they would be a fierce opponent to contend with in the semifinal. "It was a great foursome to play with,” Roldan said of his team. “There are some tweaks we have to make in preparation for the next game. The French Team is going to come out very hungry so hopefully we can beat them and get into the final."