Fri 9th Nov 2018U.S. Open Women’s Polo ChampionshipBrits vs Brits in Sunday’s Final
Despite the wet weather Houston Polo Club has been experiencing, nothing could dampen the spirits of the ladies teams taking part in the 2018 U.S. Open Women’s Polo Championship, which began on Tuesday 6 November. Due to the heavy rain expected, the open matches were rescheduled in favour of two consecutive days of play. Rocking P and Midland Polo Club kicked off the back-to-back competition on Tuesday 6 November, due to poor weather Midland Polo Club had only managed one practice before the tournament and this was evident in the final score of 6-1 in favour of Rocking P. Meanwhile, BTA armed with British 10 goaler Nina Clarkin, secured a 7-4 win over San Saba. The action continued the following day, Wednesday 7 November, with Rocking P facing San Saba. Unfortunately, San Saba’s Lia Salvo suffered a fall when her horse tripped, which meant she was unable to continue playing, and with just half of the first chukka behind them, San Saba decided to forfeit the match. The same day, BTA faced Midland Polo Club, and with San Saba out of the tournament and Rocking P holding a 2-0 record, the winners of the match would earn a spot in the Final against Rocking P. Midland Polo Club had an uphill struggle ahead of them as they were a 20 goal team facing the 26 goal BTA. BTA’s Lucy Coddington kicked off the scoring, and after two chukkas Lucy’s goal remained the only one on the scoreboard. However, the combination of a yellow card sidelining BTA’s Nina Clarkin and two penalties in favour of Midland Polo Club, allowed the, to get back in the game. A goal for each team followed, with the third chukka ending 3-2. BTA added another goal to the scoreboard in the fourth chukka, but Midland Polo Club’s Izzy Parsons refused to be defeated and notched up back-to-back goals to clinch her team the win and the spot in the Final on Sunday 11 November. Will Midland be able to secure victory or will it be a repeat of their previous 6-1 loss to Rocking P? U.S. Open Women’s Polo Championship Teams: Midland Polo Club (20): Molly Smith (3), Tiamo Hudspeth (5), Dayelle Fargey (6) & Izzy Parsons (6) Rocking P (23): Courtney Price (3), Lottie Lamacraft (5), Hazel Jackson-Gaona (9) & Tiva Gross (6) BTA (26): Chrys Beal (3), KC Krueger (7), Nina Clarkin (10) & Lucy Coddington (6) San Saba (26): Dawn Jones (6), Mia Bray (4), Sarah Wiseman (8) & Lia Salvo (8) Photograph: Rocking P and Midland Polo Club will face each other in Sunday’s Final. By ©Kaylee Wroe Photography |