The men’s and women’s polo teams split this weekend with a Toronto club team. The men defeated their neighbors from the North, 17-6, while the women lost in a tight, injury plagued contest.
Junior Senter Johnson earned all the first-half points, as Cornell ended the first half with an 8-4 lead. Despite the numbers, the game got off to a slow start. Head coach David Eldredge ’81 blamed spacing for the sub-par performance, noting that the men became “very bunched up.”
Things seemed to turn around in the next two chukkers, however. Sophomore Jeff Markle opened the lead up with five points in the third chukker. Cornell led 15-5 at the half before tallying two more for the win.
“Coming into Eastern regionals this weekend, I was really glad to see where the boys are,” said Eldredge.
With juniors Harriet Antczak and Molly Buck out with injuries, Cornell’s team was led by junior Marisa Bianchi, and seniors Audrey Robertson and Taylor McLean. Together, the trio held its own in a fast and furious match.
The game was close throughout the entire first half, with an even score after the first two chukkers. Things opened up for Toronto, however, in the third, as it turned Cornell’s mistakes into a four-goal lead.
“We had some communication issues at the end of the third,” said Eldredge. “[Toronto] capitalized on it.”
The fourth chukker remained heated, as both teams traded several goals. Toronto went up by one in the closing minutes and added an insurance goal with just seconds left to seal the deal. The loss was just the women’s second of the season.
Overall, Eldredge felt the match was a great start for regionals, citing it as motivation.
“In losing, it just kind of eats Taylor,” he said. “She hates it, and I feel sorry for all the intercollegiate teams we will face from now on because they are going to feel it.”
Archived article by Matt Janiga