Mansour tramples Merchant Hub 16-10 in America Cup finals

By Alex Webbe

After battling Merchant Hub (Matias Bullrich, Toto Collardin, Michel Dorignac and Luis

Escobar) to a 6-5 halftime lead, Mansour (Ben Soleimani, Hilario Ulloa, Adam Snow

and Santi Von Wernich) scored ten goals in the second half to capture the 2013 USPA

Lucchese America Cup Sunday afternoon at the Santa Barbara Polo Club.

Mansour took an early 2-0 lead on goals from team captain Ben Soleimani and former

10-goaler Adam Snow.  A tepid first chukker offense by Merchant Hub kept them

scoreless in the first seven minutes of the game.

Second chukker goals from Merchant Hub’s Toto Collardin and Michel Dorignac were

countered by a 60-yard penalty conversion from Snow and a goal from the field from

Soleimani.  After two periods of play, Mansour held its two goals lead, 4-2.

Third chukker goals from Hilario Ulloa and Snow had Mansour up by four goals, 6-2

before Merchant Hub answered the call.  A pair of goals from Luis Escobar and a single

goal from Collardin cut the Mansour lead to, 6-5, to end the first half of play.

Escobar tied it up in the opening minutes of the fourth chukker, 6-6, on a 40-yard

penalty conversion before consecutive goals from Ulloa had Mansour back in the

lead, 8-6.  Dorignac and Snow exchanged goals in the final minutes of the period and

Mansour left the field with a 9-7 advantage.

Mansour owned the field in the fifth chukker.  Five unanswered goals left Merchant Hub

in a tailspin as Mansour extended their lead to seven goals, 14-7.  Ulloa scored twice

while teammates Soleimani, Santi Von Wernich and Snow (penalty conversion) added

single goals.

Escobar opened the final chukker with a goal, 14-8, followed by a pair of goals from

Soleimani, 16-8.  Escobar and Collardin scored single goals to end the match with

Mansour celebrating the 2013 USPA Lucchese America Cup Championship.

Soleimani, Ulloa and Snow scored five goals apiece.  Soleimani was named MVP for

his efforts.  Von Wernich added a goal in the win.   Escobar was credited with five goals

for Merchant Hub.  Collardin added three goals and Dorignac scored twice in the loss.

Hilario Ulloa’s mare Simpatica was honored as Best Playing Pony.

LUCCHESE 11, ERG 10

Lucchese 10-goaler Pelon Stirling scores eight times in leading Lucchese (Andres

Weisz, Tavi Usandizaga, Pelon Stirling and John Muse) to an 11-10 win over ERG

(Scott Wood, Sugar Erskine, Paco de Narvaez and Jeff Blake) in Sunday morning’s

consolation match.

Pelon Stirling scored six of his game high eight goals in the first three chukkers as

Lucchese built up a comfortable 8-4 halftime advantage over ERG.

Sugar Erskine helped power ERG back into the game in the second half with three

more of his six goals on the day, but ERG fell just short in the 11-10 Lucchese victory.

Five of Stirling’s game high eight goals came on penalty shots.  Tavi Usandizaga scored

twice and Andres Weisz added a goal in the win.  Erskine’s six goals from the field set

the pace for ERG.  Paco de Narvaez scored twice and Scott Wood and Jeff Blake each

added a goal in the loss.