Mokarow Farms Upsets Skeeterville 9-8 in Overtime; Las Monjitas Wins Easily on First Day of Stanford U.S. Open at International Polo Club Palm Beach

 
WELLINGTON, FL (March 30, 2006) – Newcomer Temmy Willington scored on a breakaway with 11 seconds remaining in overtime to lift Mokarow Farms over Skeeterville 9-8 in an opening-round game of the 2006 Stanford U.S. Open Championship Thursday at International Polo Club Palm Beach.
In other Stanford U.S. Open action, 9-goaler Adam Snow scored eight goals to lead Las Monjitas over BTA 12-8.

Willington took a pass from 10-goaler Carlos Gracida and outraced Owen Rinehart to produce the victory over the 2005 finalist.

“If we have a chance in the Open, we had to win this game,” said 16-time champion Memo Gracida of Mokarow Farms, who was playing in his 30th U.S. Open. “This is huge. It’s like a double win for us.”

Ten-goaler Carlos Gracida of Mokarow Farms was relieved for several reasons after the victory.

He missed three scoring opportunities in overtime, including a breakaway with 1:01 remaining.

“I never looked at the goal, I was looking at the ball,” said Gracida, a 9-time U.S. Open champion.

And his 15-year-old son, Carlitos, substituted for patron Kevin Mokarow, who couldn’t continue after aggravating a riding muscle injury in the first chukker. At 15, Carlitos Gracida, a sophomore at American Heritage in Delray Beach, is believed to be the youngest player in U.S. Open history, along with Nicolas Roldan, who was the same age when he won the prestigious title in 1998 with Escue.

“I was thinking if we lost, I hope he (Carlitos) doesn’t quit polo,” said Carlos Gracida. “He did very well. It’s more than happiness, it’s nervousness also.”

“I didn’t think I was going to play that early,” said Carlitos Gracida. “They told me to be ready. It was fun, but I was kind of nervous.” 

Carlos Gracida sent the game into overtime when he converted a 30-yard penalty shot with 2:47 left in the sixth chukker.

The game was delayed for seven minutes in overtime when Rinehart’s horse, Cortina, tripped and laid on the ground, barely moving.

“She was tired,” said Rinehart. “I knew she wasn’t going to die.”

The horse got up under its own power and walked to the pony lines where it was looked at and treated by a veterinarian. 

Carlos Gracida led Mokarow Farms with five goals while Willington and Memo Gracida added two goals each. Rinehart and Julio Arellano led Skeeterville with three goals each. Patron Skeeter Johnston scored two goals and Ignacio Toccalino did not score.

Las Monjitas scored four consecutive goals to break away from BTA, the only all American squad in the 13-team tournament.

Snow converted a five-yard penalty shot with 2:32 left in the fifth chukker and Nacho Novillo Astrada added a 60-yard penalty shot with 45 seconds remaining to give Las Monjitas a 9-7 lead. Snow and patron Camilo Bautista scored goals in a 46-second span to give Las Monjitas an 11-7 advantage with 5:30 left.

Eight-goaler Nacho Novillo Astrada scored two goals for Las Monjitas while Eduardo Novillo Astrada and Bautista added one goal apiece.

Ten-goaler Mike Azzaro led BTA with five goals, four in the first half, while Jeff Blake scored two goals and Tommy Biddle added one goal. Patron Kelly Beal did not score.

The Stanford U.S. Open quarterfinals are scheduled for Sunday, April 16 with the semifinals set for Wednesday, April 19. The Stanford U.S. Open is the culmination of the ultra-competitive winter polo season and covers the first four Sundays in April. The final, on Sunday, April 23 at 3 p.m. on Stanford Field at International Polo Club, expects to draw more than 8,000 spectators. 

Historically, the U.S. Open has always been the grand prize of polo in North America. It is one of only four tournaments played at the 26-goal echelon, the highest-rated tournament in the United States. The others are the Hall of Fame Cup and the C.V. Whitney Cup, both also played at International Polo Club Palm Beach in 2006, and the USPA Gold Cup, being played in Aiken, South Carolina later this year.

The first U.S. Open title game was played in 1904 at Van Cortland Park in New York City where the Wanderers defeated the Freebooters 4 ?-3, the lowest scoring final in the history of the tournament.

The polo matches at International Polo Club are open to the public. General admission for the Sunday games at International Polo Club Palm Beach is $15 for adults and reserved lawn tickets are $40. 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.
 
Stanford U.S. Open Schedule
                                   
Friday, March 31               1 p.m.                   San Saba vs. Orchard Hill
                                          3 p.m.                   Isla Carroll vs. Black Watch
Saturday, April 1                11 a.m.                 White Birch vs. Bendabout
                                          1 p.m.                   ERG vs. Pony Express
Sunday, April 2                  Noon                    Skeeterville vs. Las Monjitas
                                          3 p.m.                   Mokarow Farms vs. Lechuza Caracas
Tuesday, April 4                 11 a.m.                 Isla Carroll vs. Orchard Hill
                                          3 p.m.                   San Saba vs. Pony Express
Wednesday, April 5            1 p.m.                   White Birch vs. Black Watch
                                          3 p.m.                   ERG vs. Bendabout
Thursday, April 6                1 p.m.                   Skeeterville vs. Lechuza Caracas
                                          3 p.m.                   Mokarow Farms vs. BTA
Saturday, April 8                11 a.m.                 San Saba vs. Bendabout
                                          1 p.m.                   ERG vs. Black Watch
                                          3 p.m.                   White Birch vs. Orchard Hill
Sunday, April 9                  10 a.m.                 Skeeterville vs. BTA
                                          Noon                    Las Monjitas vs. Lechuza Caracas
                                          3 p.m.                   Isla Carroll vs. Pony Express
Wednesday, April 12          11 a.m.                 Isla Carroll vs. Bendabout
                                          1 p.m.                   San Saba vs. Black Watch
                                          3 p.m.                   ERG vs. Orchard Hill    
Thursday, April 13              11 a.m.                 BTA vs. Lechuza Caracas
                                          1 p.m.                   White Birch vs. Pony Express
                                                      3 p.m.                  Mokarow Farms vs. Las Monjitas

International Polo Club
Palm Beach