
In search of their second victories, Great Oaks LL and Talandracas met in the Cartier Queen’s Cup, competing into overtime where Guillermo Terrera scored the golden goal to give Great Oaks LL the 12-11 victory.
A battle between brothers, Bartolome and Camilo Castagnola led their teams with six and eight goals respectively, fighting to propel their teams to victory. Producing nearly identical statistics from the field, Great Oaks LL held the edge from the penalty line, converting five goals on eight attempts in what proved to be the narrow difference in the game. A thrilling sixth chukka featured seven goals between the two teams to send the game into overtime, but it was Great Oaks LL who continued to pressure Talandracas to emerge as the winner in the hard-fought 12-11 win.
Moments into the game, Camilo Castagnola opened the scoring for Talandracas, but a quick response from Great Oaks LL pushed them into the lead after goals from Bartolome Castagnola and Terrera. The fast pace in the first chukka left the teams deadlocked at 2-2, but Talandracas ran into foul trouble, conceding three penalty attempts to Great Oaks LL in the second chukka. Despite converting just one of the three penalties, the possession advantage for Great Oaks LL pushed them ahead by two goals. Deploying a strategy of Felipe Dabas passing from the back, Talandracas tried to inch closer at the end of the half, but their three goals in the third chukka were matched by Great Oaks LL, leaving the score at 7-5.
For the first time in the game, the Great Oaks LL offense slowed, unable to find the goal from the field over the fourth and fifth chukkas. Cruz Heguy’s Penalty 4 goal proved to be Great Oaks LL’s only offense in the opening two chukkas of the second half, giving Talandracas the opportunity to even the score. However, despite one goal each from Camilo Castagnola and Dabas, Great Oaks LL maintained a slim lead, entering the sixth chukka ahead by one. An exciting final chukka featured the Castagnola’s at their best, scoring five of the seven goals in the chukka as the score moved in and out of a tie. Three penalty consecutive penalty goals for Great Oaks LL and Talandracas left the former ahead by one with time running out, but Diego Cavanagh scored at an opportune time to send the game into an extra chukka.
The first chance saw Bartolome Castagnola on an open run to goal, but the ball bounced just wide, giving Talandracas hope of marching downfield for the golden goal. A defensive stand from Great Oaks LL provided a second opportunity and Terrera came through, running the ball through the goal to secure the 12-11 victory.