NEWS

Returning to the Lone Star State for the first time since 2014, the Division I Men’s National Intercollegiate Championship united the nation’s top varsity talent at Prestonwood Polo & Country Club in Oak, Point Texas. Hosted by the DFW Polo Association, four teams assembled from across the country on Thursday, March 27, through Sunday, March 30. In celebration of competition and camaraderie, the battle for the John R. Townsend trophy came down to a showdown between the University of Virginia (Gaston Gomez, Makdum "Mak” Mourad Shah, Vlad Tarashansky, Iago Masias, James Grayken) and Texas A&M University (Zak Coleman, Aiden Meeker, Will Mudra, Tomas Tejera, Jose Andres Solis). A battle of stamina and determination, Texas A&M University (TAMU) took advantage of penalty opportunities while the University of Virginia (UVA) excelled in open play. Requiring overtime to settle the score, Coleman ultimately ended the stalemate in the third round of the shootout, delivering the win, 15-14.

Fueled by family ties, the University of North Texas (Mosiah Gravesande, Johann Felhaber, Niklaus Felhaber, Alec Felhaber, Cole Felhaber) featured a string of Felhabers vying for a prestigious national three-peat against UVA. Powered by the scoring duo of Tarashansky and Mourad, the Cavaliers led throughout for a 14-9 victory. Concluding Friday’s action, TAMU was pitted against University of Connecticut (Malachi Light, Joaquin Uribe, Winston Painter). Assembling a men’s team for the first time in a decade, UCONN remained competitive throughout the match, but ultimately TAMU galloped away with the 19-7 victory.

Competing in the Texas Arena League, including a recent victory in the 6- to 9-goal National Arena Delegate’s Cup, TAMU was comprised of Coleman (senior) alongside Meeker (junior) and Mudra (sophomore). Seeking to deliver UVA’s thirteenth national title, Tarashansky (first-year graduate student) led the charge with Mourad Shah (third year) and Gomez (second year).

Kicking off the competition, Tarashansky dominated the opening chukker, scoring three goals, including two from the penalty line. Coleman and Meeker responded in the second, combining to give TAMU a 5-4 lead. After a Penalty 1 automatic goal added to TAMU’s total, Tarashansky struck with a two-pointer in the final moments of the second period to level the score 6-all. TAMU rebounded quickly from Tarashansky’s strike, as Coleman converted another penalty to give the Aggies a narrow 8-6 edge at the break.

Increasing TAMU’s advantage, Meeker scored his second field goal of the day to open the second half. Unable to find the goal since the end of the second chukker, Mourad Shah broke through for UVA with two consecutive goals to bring the Virginians within one, 8-9. Coleman capped off the fourth period with two goals of his own. Each Virginia player finding the goal in the fifth, Gomez delivered a crucial two-pointer to give UVA a momentum shifting 12-11 lead.

Following the two-pointer, an injury to Gomez resulted in a double yellow on TAMU. Resuming play with five seconds remaining on the clock, Masias stepped in for Gomez, with a TAMU player serving a two-minute penalty. Shorthanded to begin the sixth chukker, TAMU remained undeterred. Following a Penalty 2 from Coleman, Tarashansky crushed a two-pointer to put UVA ahead 14-12. Back at full strength, TAMU’s third player returned to the arena. The closing minutes of regulation were long, disjointed and tense. Meeker battled through traffic to score from the field, followed by a critical Penalty 2 from Coleman to force overtime 14-all.

In the shootout, the first round was split 1-1, with UVA’s Mourad Shah and TAMU’s Coleman each finding the goal. Unsuccessful on both sides in the second round, Meeker made TAMU’s first Penalty 3 attempt of the third round. After two misses from UVA, it came down to Coleman. A national championship title on the line, a composed Coleman stepped up and sent the ball straight to goal to clinch the TAMU victory with hero status.

Sunday’s triumph marked the twelfth (1996, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2025) Division I Men’s Intercollegiate title for Texas A&M University. Coleman, Meeker and Mudra each earned their first John R. Townsend victory. In the Division I Women’s final, TAMU (Josie Dorsey, Francesca Felhaber, Olivia Reynolds) captured its sixth (1994, 1995, 2018, 2019, 2023) national title. The sweep of the competition marked a monumental moment for the Aggies, with victories for both the men and women last achieved in 2019.

Celebrating another successful collegiate season, the Intercollegiate/Interscholastic (I/I) program continues to provide unparalleled development and competitive experience for youth players. Multiple athletes in this year’s competitions are interscholastic alumni, including the entire rosters of both TAMU winning teams. Additionally, the continued growth of the sport in numerous varsity programs have attracted multiple international players, with students hailing from Peru, Guatemala, Ecuador, Pakistan and Zambia.

All-Stars were awarded to Zak Coleman (TAMU), Will Mudra (TAMU), Niklaus Felhaber (UNT) and Vlad Tarashansky (UVA). The Connie Upchurch Memorial Sportsmanship Award was presented to UCONN’s Winston Painter for his continued positive attitude, fairness and support for his peers in and out of the arena. UVA’s Vlad Tarashansky earned the David Wenning Memorial Horsemanship Award for his outstanding and consistent demonstration of riding ability and attention to equine care throughout the competition. Best Playing String was presented to Liberty Hall – Texas A&M String, while Best Playing Pony honors were presented to Arananzo owned by Texas A&M University. Rounding out the equine awards, Prestonwood Polo Club – UNT took home Best Turned-Out String.

The Division I Men’s National Intercollegiate Championship final is now available On-Demand.

All photos courtesy of ©David Murrell.