Weekends don’t bring much uncertainty for men’s and women’s head coach David Eldredge ’81. Victory is nearly certain for his lady riders and their male counterparts have shared the same success as of late.
Coming off a break-out season that saw its championship drive stopped just short, the men’s squad faces its first formidable task of the season when it travels to Charlottesville to face top-ranked stud Virginia tonight at 7:00 p.m.
“This should be a real interesting game. There is a little apprehension,” Eldredge conceded.
The Cavaliers return their two strongest players last year. Both are former Cornell recruits – a sign of their polo eminence. The Red has had moderate success with UVA in recent history, sweeping last season’s home-and-home series before bowing to Virginia in the playoffs.
Yet the forecast seems promising for the Red who turned in strong practices this past week.
“The guys are playing well. The attitude is very team orientated and they are passing well,” the head coach lauded.
Senior Colorado State transfer standout Jeff Embow has an additional year of play with his teammates on the East Hill under his belt and classmate Ben McClintic has shown tremendous improvement on the young season.
The riders will be well rested for the contest. Today’s contest at Virginia will mark the first action the club has seen in two weeks. The club defeated M-Power on October 20.
The game should, in fact, provide the Red with the best competition it will face all season. The next following two weeks follow much weaker Yale and Skidmore squads.
The women’s team should have no problem handling their weekend opponent Skidmore. Cornell pummeled the Thoroughbreds last week by a 27-4 count. The two squads will again do battle on Saturday evening at 8:15 p.m. at Oxley Equestrian Center.
“We expect to do very well,” a confident Eldredge remarked.
The contest will provide Eldredege with an opportunity to provide some of his alternates playing time. Senior Ali Tracey, coming off a solid four goal effort against Skidmore will be paired with junior Jennifer Barnes and sophomore transfer Audrey Roberts. The sophomore defected from Skidmore and will see her first playing time in her Cornell career this weekend.
Tomorrow’s match should provide a tune-up for the Red’s next opponent, Virginia. The Cavaliers thwarted Cornell’s championship ambitions two seasons ago but fell to the lady riders in last year’s title game. With the rivalry brewing, the contest should prove to be very exciting.
Archived article by Gary Schueller