NEWS

On Saturday, February 24, the Stephen Orthwein Memorial Cup concluded at Port Mayaca Polo Club in Okeechobee, Florida. Honoring an American polo icon, the 10- to 12-goal sanctioned event was awarded as a 2024 Legacy Polo Series event. Stemming from a USPA initiative to recognize individual memorial tournaments at the medium-goal level, the Legacy Polo Series ties together the rich history of the sport uniting clubs around the country.

In the final, Faraway Polo (Tommy Collingwood, Julian Daniels, Hutton Goodman, Leo Mandelbaum) faced-off against Beverly Polo (Elizabeth Keys, Lucio Fernandez Ocampo, Jorge "Tolito" Fernandez Ocampo Jr., Wil Ballhaus). The two teams had already played against each other once in the tournament’s preliminary rounds, when Faraway bested Beverly, 10-8.

Meeting for the second time, Beverly was ready for the rematch. “When we played Faraway Polo in the first game of the tournament, we were up in the first half but ultimately they came back to win it,” said Keys. The team recognized their errors and studied the first game to prepare. “Going into the final, we knew that we could beat them if we all did our jobs and minimized mistakes,” said 17-year-old Balhaus. “To prepare, we watched our match against them as a team and analyzed our mistakes.”

Beverly was able to secure an early lead in the first with three unanswered goals, including two penalty conversions coming off the mallet of Tolito Ocampo and the game’s first field goal from Lucio Ocampo. Beverly went scoreless in the second chukker while Faraway’s Julian Daniels worked to close the gap posting two goals, before Collingwood secured the team’s third in chukker three. Lucio Ocampo fired off another field goal before the end of the first half, bringing the score to 4-3 in favor of Beverly.

A shift in strategy during the break helped Beverly pull away from their opponents. “We focused more on stretching the field and marking our opponents better to hopefully narrow down their chances,” said Keys. Beverly created more offensive opportunities by shooting on goal in the second half. “In our first game against them…we focused more on defense, which partially cost us the game,” said Keys.

“The biggest change in our strategy was having me switch from defense to offense as soon as we gained possession,” said Ballhaus. “For me, we talked about being more diligent on my mark, Leo Mandelbaum, a good friend of ours. I struggled with marking him game one, but after practicing and gaining more experience through the other 12 goal matches, I was able to help the team better.”

Returning from the break with a new plan, Beverly was ready for action but was forced to shift their strategy once again and play down a man after Lucio Ocampo received two yellow cards. Faraway’s Daniels was quick to take advantage, scoring the sole goal of the fourth to equalize the score 4-all. “Tolito did an excellent job with controlling the play while Lucio was gone, and Lizzie and I were able to help him,” said Ballhaus. “Not giving Faraway Polo chances to break the game open during Lucio’s penalty, as it was tied 4-4 when this happened, played a huge part in our win,” said Keys.

In the fifth, Tolito Ocampo Jr. unleashed three goals for Beverly, followed by a field goal from Keys to double the score. Keeping their momentum, Lucio Ocampo fired off his third goal of the day at the beginning of the final chukker. Daniels was able convert a penalty for Faraway Polo, but it was not enough as Tolito Ocampo Jr. scored the game’s last goal for the win, 10-5.

Most Valuable Player was awarded to Jorge “Tolito” Fernandez Ocampo Jr., who scored a combined six goals, three penalty conversions and three from the field.

Best Playing Pony honors were presented to American Dream (Street Sense x Colour Party), a 7-year-old mare played by Julian Daniels in the second chukker and owned by Bo and Hutton Goodman. Last summer was American Dream’s debut season; she was played in Kentucky by Hutton. The mare is set to play in the high goal with Pilot’s Facundo Pieres in the Gauntlet of Polo at the National Polo Center in Wellington, Florida.

“I’ve learned so much from everyone on the team and am so thankful for how much they’ve helped me on and off the field over the last couple of years,” said 20-year-old Keys. “I am extremely proud of our team and how far we have all come as players and teammates this season,” echoed Ballhaus. “This was our first Port Mayaca 12-goal win after many years of playing at the club. I think we all were fed up with losing and this was a moment we were really looking forward to!”

All photos courtesy of ©David Lominska.