INDIO – A full court press by Bucephalus in the last chukker of the four-goal match Sunday sent OrePac to the trailers thinking about where their solid 3-0 half-time lead turned into a 6-5 loss.
It was near the 30-yard line at Bucephalus’ goal. Nine seconds were left on the clock.
Barnaby Levin sealed the match with an offside tap-in, the second receiver in line as Bucephalus orchestrated a clutch play for the game-winning goal at Eldorado Polo Club.
No. 1 Christian Moon, charged from the tying goal he’d just scored, bolted out of the line-up after OrePac’s No. 3 Victor Soto got the tap-away with 1:18 left to play. Soto missed the shot under pressure and Moon connected for the turnover. He spun around, looked up and passed downfield to No. 3 Erik Wright. While Bucephalus’ No. 2 Zhenya Kirueshkin-Stepanoff hazed Soto, Wright angled around the OrePac defense and found Levin breaking from the pack and headed to goal. He released the shot as Levin evaded OrePac’s Glenn Hart for the reception. Levin raised his mallet in a victory pump as the ball sailed through the posts.
That kind of magic didn’t appear for Bucephalus until the final chukker, when the team reared its namesake ox-head and saw its way clear to open themselves for a passing game. In the first chukker, Bucephalus lost ground on two penalty fives, gave ground on two turnovers and missed three scoring opportunities with errant shots on goal. OrePac’s offense was slowed considerably in the second chukker as Bucephalus foiled the teamwork of inside men Soto and No. 2 Antonio Juarez and missed just one shot on goal.
Wright said the team didn’t change its strategy at half-time.
“We were confused in the first half. We created mistakes that they capitalized on. We manned up better in the second half and that’s what created more opportunities for us.”
Kirueshkin-Stepanoff broke the spell early in the third and put Bucephalus on the scoreboard with a nearside slam on a pass from Wright. Wright converted a penalty three to go up 3-2 in a scoreless chukker for OrePac.
In the fourth and down 5-2 with 5:20 remaining, Moon swept in and picked up a dead ball left by OrePac’s Juarez for the turnover at midfield. Soto rushed up and hooked Moon before the release, but Wright, positioned at back, dropped on the line and hit an offside through the posts. Wright brought Bucephalus within one on a penalty conversion after a foul in the lineup with 2:01 remaining. Bucephalus engineered another turnover in OrePac territory as Wright, head to head with Soto, maneuvered for the hook on OrePac’s drive to goal. Soto lost possession and Moon swooped in for the steal. He turned the ball and hit as Wright knocked Soto out of the play and Kirueshkin-Stepanoff held off OrePac’s Cameron Diggin. Moon scored on a long offside shot for the tie.
BUCEPHALUS 6, OREPAC 5
Goals
Bucephalus: Erik Wright 3, Zhenya Kirueshkin-Stepanoff 1, Christian Moon 1, Barnaby Levin 1.
Antonio Juarez 1, Victor Soto 3, Glenn Hart 1, Cameron Diggin.
