International Polo Club Palm Beach Florida

Lechuza Caracas Holds Off Pony Express 12-11 in Overtime in
Joe Barry Memorial Cup Semifinals Thurs. at International Polo Club

WELLINGTON, FL (January 26, 2006) – Five-goaler Tomas del Rio connected on a 60-yard forehand 1:04 into overtime to lift defending champion Lechuza Caracas over Pony Express 12-11 in the semifinals of the 22-goal Joe Barry Memorial Cup Thursday at International Polo Club Palm Beach.

Lechuza Caracas (2-1) advances to the final against Catamount, the 2004 champion, Sunday at 3 p.m. on Stanford Field at International Polo Club. Lechuza Caracas defeated Catamount 13-10 on Opening Day.

“I was a little bit nervous (before the shot),” said del Rio, “but I had faith it was going in.”

Lechuza Caracas almost won the game in the first minute of overtime when patron Victor Vargas took a pass from 10-goaler Sebastian Merlos but was stopped by 7-goaler Nicolas Roldan of Pony Express within 10 yards of the goal. But Roldan couldn’t completely control the ball and it went out of bounds, setting up the 60-yard safety.

Del Rio finished with a game-high seven goals and has a team-high 16 goals, including 11-of-12 penalty shots. Merlos finished with five goals and has 10 goals in three games.

Lechuza Caracas scored three consecutive goals during a two-minute span late in the fourth chukker to take a 9-5 lead. But Pony Express battled back, tying the game at 11-11 with 1:35 remaining in the game on a goal by Gonzalo Von Wernich.

“Maybe we relaxed with a four-goal lead,” said del Rio. “We knew they could come back. They are a good team. We missed one or two goals and we couldn’t stop them.”

Lechuza Caracas made seven-of-eight penalty shots while Pony Express made three-of-four penalty shots.

Roldan led Pony Express (1-2) with five goals while Tomas Goti added three goals, Gonzalo Von Wernich scored two goals and patron Marc Daniels had one goal.

The Joe Barry Memorial Cup is named after American polo legend Joe Barry, who died on May 18, 2002 at the age of 58. Born and raised in Texas, he achieved a 9-goal rating and dominated polo in the United States in the 1960s and 1970s. Barry won six U.S. Open championships, three Gold Cups, three Silver Cups as well as the Coronation and Camacho Cup trophies. One of the greatest No. 4s in polo history, Joe Barry was elected to the Polo Hall of Fame in 1999.
The polo matches are open to the public. General admission for the Sunday games at International Polo Club Palm Beach is $10 for adults. Children under 12 enter for free. Tickets may be purchased at the gate on the day of the game.
International Polo Club Palm Beach is located at 3667 120th Avenue South, between Pierson Road and Lake Worth Road in Wellington. For information, directions or ticket purchases, please call the club at (561) 204-5687 or visit the website at www.internationalpoloclub.com.

Sunday, January 29
Catamount (2-1) vs. Lechuza Caracas (2-1), 3 p.m.

International Polo Club
Palm Beach

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Photos by David Lominska

Contact Info:

For ticket information, call (561) 204-5687

Club website at www.internationalpoloclub.com.

For information about the upcoming 2005 high-goal season, including the Stanford Financial Group U.S. Open, call the club at (561) 204-5687

International Polo Club Palm Beach is located at 3667 120th Avenue South, between Pierson Road and Lake Worth Road, in Wellington.