NEWS

Defending champions Crestview Genetics (Alan Meeker, Joaquin Panelo, Pedro Manion, Hugo Lloret) faced off against Bendabout in the National Copper Cup 12-Goal Final at Aiken Polo Club in Aiken, South Carolina. Bendabout, Gillian Johnston’s powerhouse team, featured Del Walton and the father-and-daughter duo of Julio and Hope Arellano. The 2010 Copper Cup champions seized a decisive semifinal victory on Thursday, October 6, defeating SD Farms 14-6 to secure their position in the final. Similarly, in the Friday semifinal match on October 7, undefeated Crestview Genetics overpowered LBL Polo 14-8.

The Friday semifinal was played as Hurricane Matthew swept up the coast towards South Carolina. The match started under cloudy skies and finished in the rain. Although Aiken was far enough inland to escape the brunt of the storm, Matthew veered to the west of its expected track overnight, dumping several inches of rain in the area. A fairly dry fall season combined with Aiken’s sandy soil, renowned for its drainage, made it possible to play the final as the featured 3pm ET Sunday match at the historic Whitney Field, boasting 134 years of consecutive play. The town rallied post-hurricane to witness the impressive Copper Cup competition on a gorgeous fall afternoon.

Crestview Genetics and Bendabout traded goals in an electrifying first half of play. Julio Arellano captured the first score of the game on a penalty 4 conversion. Crestview Genetics retaliated with a field goal by Joaquin Panelo and a skillfully-angled back shot goal from Pedro Manion to end the first chukker 2-1. Bendabout won the remaining two chukkers of the first half. Hope Arellano, with her signature pink polo wraps on all her horses, scored back-to-back goals in the second, capitalizing on a penalty 2 conversion, followed by a goal from the field. While Bendabout’s Del Walton came alive in the third with a total of three goals, one off a well-executed pass from Hope Arellano out of the line-up. Crestview Genetics remained steadfast in their scoring, two from Panelo and one from Hugo Lloret, to end the first half trailing by a single goal.

At the beginning of the fourth, after a solid carry to goal from Walton, Gillian Johnston tapped the ball through the uprights to widen Bendabout’s lead to two for the first time. Crestview Genetics struck back with three-unanswered goals to recapture the lead 9-8 which they sustained through the fifth. Walton equalized the score once again in the first minute of the final chukker. An uncharacteristic missed opportunity from Julio Arellano on a penalty 3 with 2:14 left on the clock kept Crestview hanging on by a thread. Neither team was able to score in the remaining thirty seconds of regulation time resulting in an overtime chukker.

The Alan Lyle Corey III Pavilion was packed with spectators on the edge of their seats. A little under a minute into the sudden death seventh chukker, 8-goaler Julio Arellano scored the winning goal, and Bendabout recaptured the Copper Cup after a six-year hiatus, defeating Crestview Genetics 10-9. “Overtime is whoever gets the first opportunity, I wanted everybody to really just mark up on their man tight, so we didn’t give them an easy goal in overtime. We got in front of their goal and after a few little battles we were able to get it in,” said Julio Arellano. When asked about what it is like to play with his daughter Hope, he answered, “I love it. It’s the best thing besides playing with all three of my kids. She’s very focused, so she gets me focused too, it’s fun.”

Most Valuable Player was awarded to Del Walton who contributed half of the total winning tally for Bendabout. Best Playing Pony honors were presented to Rubia played by Crestview Genetic’s Lloret in the fifth chukker.

All photos courtesy of Pam Gleason and Gary Knoll.