INDIO –- Two-goaler Carlitos Cabrera pulled the BTA Falcons to the top of the two-week bill in Eldorado Polo Club’s 12-goal tournament Sunday, scoring five goals from the field in a dizzying display of the kind of offensive savvy needed to drum worthy opponents out of the running. BTA led the match in scoring chukker by chukker, adding pressure to Stone Canyon’s defense while demonstrably weakening their ability to connect for an effective offense.
Backed by six-goaler Hugo Barabucci who scrambled to feed him the ball, Cabrera’s lightning fast reactions and ability to read the plays—and his opponents—worked a perfect storm of horsemanship that held Stone Canyon scoreless in the second and built a 6-2 lead by the half.
No. 1 K.C. Beal set the pace for BTA’s playmaking in the first 40 seconds. Stone Canyon’s Jason Crowder backed a ball popped out of lineup, but instead reached Cabrera’s mallet for a backshot toward BTA’s goal. Barabucci lined up for the carry and sent a 60-yard shot up to midfield to a waiting Beal. Alone and unguarded, Beal made an easy run for goal.
In the second half, Stone Canyon’s five-goal quarterback Augustin Zavaleta and Crowder, their four-goal back, checked, spun, bumped and hooked to stop BTA’s drives, but couldn’t connect for completions on their score-making opportunities. Zavaleta’s attempts to connect with No. 1 Brad Schlei three times in the fourth were foiled by fouls and steals. Two of Zavaleta’s shots on goal went wide.
BTA’s grip on Stone Canyon widened to a six-goal lead at 10-4 in the fifth on goals by Cabrera, Miguel Gutierrez and Barabucci.
Cabrera carried a well-positioned pass from Barabucci early in the fifth, pushed through the pack pressing toward goal and swung past Zavaleta’s hook attempt for a 25-yard offside tap-in. Barabucci scored on a turnover with 2:16 left to play on a pass from Gutierrez. Cabrera hazed Stone Canyon’s Crowder on an offensive drive and backed the ball in a pass intended for Gutierrez. Crowder turned, rode in for the steal and regained possession, but missed his second strike on pressure from Gutierrez. Gutierrez moved in, controlled the ball for time as Barabucci positioned, and then released the pass. Barabucci maneuvered and then scored unchallenged.
Stone Canyon’s Joseph Stuart scored on a breakaway from the lineup with 1:48 to play, narrowing BTA’s lead to five, and passed a long clearing shot in front of BTA’s goal to Zavaleta on the sidelines, but Gutierrez beat him to the ball and connected with a short shot for the score with 45 seconds remaining. Stone Canyon missed four shots on goal and a penalty conversion in the second half.
While the BTA Falcons missed few opportunities to capitalize on Stone Canyon’s mistakes, BTA missed seven shots on goal in the match.
BTA FALCONS 11, STONE CANYON 7
BTA FALCONS: K.C. Beal (2), Carlitos Cabrera (5), Miguel Gutierrez (1), Hugo Barabucci (3).
STONE CANYON: Brad Schlei, Joseph Stuart (3), Augustin Zavaleta (2) Jason Crowder (2).
Umpires: Graham Bray, Dan Juarez. 3rd Man: Tim Rudy.
Diane Hensley can be reached at dkheditor@msn.com.
