NEWS

Five teams faced off in Owings Mills, Maryland, for Garrison Forest School’s Middle School Tournament. Arti Chhugani kicked off the scoring for Light Blue Lightning. A pony goal put Mountain View Polo on the board. This was quickly followed by a goal from Mosiah Gravesande to pull Mountain View Polo into the lead 2-1. Light Blue Lightning equalized the score with a goal from Gabriella Chiasera. In the second, Light Blue Lightning kept up steady scoring with three combined goals from Briana Jordan and Chiasera. Mountain View Polo closed the gap with two goals from Willow Longerbeam and Gravesande, Light Blue Lightning leading by one 5-4 heading into half time.

Longerbeam came out swinging in the third chukker, scoring three goals for Mountain View Polo. Light Blue Lightning’s Chiasera answered with three consecutive goals for her team. Gravesande found the goal before the end of the third chukker to once again tie the score 8-all. An explosion of offense from Light Blue Lightning in the fourth garnered four goals, contributed by each team member. Equally as strong, Light Blue Lightning’s defense held Mountain View Polo scoreless. The game ended with a final score 12-8 in favor of Light Blue Lightning securing their spot in the championship game on Sunday.

Saturday’s round-robin play determined the second finalist team. Madison Jordan scored first for The Grizzlies’ with two consecutive goals. Morgan Arrup scored three goals for The Red Devils, however three combined goals from The Grizzlies' Amelia Shaw and Jordan left The Red Devils trailing by two 5-3 at the end of the first chukker. Defensive blocking from The Red Devils' Laura Roberts and Molly Brown allowed Sierra Goff to capture the first goal in the second chukker closing the gap to one 5-4. However, stellar defense from the Grizzlies’ Georgia Schmidt and a steady flow of goals from teammates Emma McDonnell and Jordan gave The Grizzlies’ a 10-4 lead and win.

The Red Devils' Goff opened the scoring for the second round-robin matchup. The score was quickly tied up by a goal from The Lil’ Riders’ Josie Smith. A booming two-pointer by Arrup widened The Red Devils' lead 3-1. The Lil’ Riders retaliated with three consecutive goals from Lindsey Morris to take the lead. An equalizing goal from Goff tied the score 4-all at the end of the first chukker. In the second chukker, phenomenal defense from the Lil’ Riders’ Marisol Jimenez kept the Red Devils scoreless. Kym Pugh and Morris split four goals to give The Lil’ Riders their first win of the tournament 8-4.

The final two chukkers of Saturday’s round robin between The Lil' Riders and The Grizzlies determined the second finalist for the championship match. Morris found the goal twice for The Lil’ Riders before Jordan and Schmidt could counter with goals for The Grizzlies. The ponies and Jordan split goals between the teams to keep the score tied heading into the last chukker. Shaw and Morris traded goals followed by three unanswered goals by Jordan to pull The Grizzlies into the lead. Morris and McDonnell found the goal once more for each of their teams before the final horn, ending with a final score 8-5 in favor of The Grizzlies.

Sunday’s round-robin consolation pitted The Red Devils against The Lil’ Riders in the first two chukkers for a rematch of Saturday’s middle game. The Lil' Riders captured the first win with a decisive 9-2 victory. The Red Devils then met Mountain View Polo in a close match, narrowly claiming the win 7-6. The Lil' Riders competed against Mountain View Polo garnering another win 8-4 and their first place position in the consolation round robin.

The Grizzlies faced off against Light Blue Lightning in the championship final. Briana Jordan opened the scoring for Light Blue Lightning, followed by two more from teammate Chiasera to take an early 3-0 lead. The Grizzlies were awarded a penalty one and Madison Jordan scored from the field to close the gap to one. The teams traded goals throughout the second and The Grizzlies came out on top 6-5 going into the half.

The Grizzlies dominated in the third, with seven combined goals from Schmidt, Shaw and Madison Jordan widening the gap. Shaw and Madison Jordan continued The Grizzlies' spree with four goals between them in the fourth chukker, along with a penalty one. Light Blue Lightening countered with three goals before the final horn, but the Grizzlies’ team would take home the final win of the weekend.

Gabriella Chiasera, Brianna Jordan, Willow Longerbeam and Lindsey Morris were named to the All-Star team. Marisol Jimenez was awarded the Sportsmanship Award by her peers. Best Playing Pony honors were presented to Garrison Forest School’s Madeline ridden by Gabriella Chiasera of Light Blue Lightening. Middle School Tournament competition continues next weekend, October 28, at Glen Farm Polo Club in Portsmouth, Rhode Island.