2020 I/I Magazine

I/I MAGAZINE 2020

2020 I/I MAGAZINE

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

Welcome to the 2020 I/I Tournament Season! As we gear up for another action-packed season, we can’t help but reflect on 2019. What a year it was! For the first time in history we combined the Open and Girls’ National Interscholastic Championship into the same event, and crowned Prestonwood Polo Club (Open) and Maryland Polo Club (Girls’) champs once again. The combined event made for a bigger and better tournament, with more players and horses and fun all in one weekend. At the National Intercollegiate Championships we witnessed a double-double (with a side of fries) – when Texas A&M Men and Women both repeated as National Champs. The National Alumni Tournament – the Feldman Cup – made its debut in the Mid States Circuit hosted by Detroit Polo Club, and the Middle School tournaments closed out our year with another successful season and many new young athletes coming into the sport.

In the fall of 2019 we also lost our beloved I/I Chairman David Wenning. David loved all aspects of I/I polo from the players, to the parents, the horses, and yes, even the coaches! Though he swore he had a real job, he was so invested in the I/I program that he always had time to read an email, take a phone call, and travel to as many I/I events as he could. He had a passion for youth polo and truly believed in the spirit of I/I. Starting them young was his motto, and he often joked (at least we hoped he was joking!) that his next greatest program for the USPA was going to be “Diapers & Divots.” Stay tuned….

One aspect that David championed was Equine Welfare. To him, the horses were the most important part of the team in I/I polo and he worked to be sure every decision that was made had the horses’ best interest first. One initiative coming out of the Summer Development series in 2019 was the addition of the Horsemanship Award at each of our I/I tournaments, from Middle School through our National Alumni tournament. The award will be voted on by the Host Tournament Committee and given to the player who exhibits excellent horsemanship both on and off the field. We will be naming the USPA National Intercollegiate Championship Horsemanship Award in David’s honor. David meant so much to all of us, not only on a professional level but on a personal level as well. He led by example that family comes first and spoke often and proudly of his son, Mike, and daughter, Kristen. He would have wanted to be sure we shared with you our joy as our own families grew this year, when Emily and I both welcomed daughters in 2019. Hazel (Fraser) in January, and Eleanor (Dewey) in July. I only hope I don’t embarrass my daughter too much when I’m cheering ferociously on the sidelines in I’m sure what will feel like only a few years!

As we pack up our gear bags and rack up those flight miles (“Boy, will our arms be tired!”) and prepare for another whirlwind of a tournament season, we wish all teams the best of luck this year. Have fun, play hard, and give your ponies lots of treats!

See you in the arena,

Amy Fraser Director, I/I Polo

David Wenning

I/I Chairman

1955-2019

“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.”

John Quincy Adams

Northeastern Regional Cornell University

Central Regional Texas A&M University

CHAMPIONS

Southeastern Regional University of Virginia

Texas A&M University

Western Regional Cal Poly

Christian Aycinena, Fritz Felhaber, Mariano Silva and Colton Valentine with Coach Mike McCleary

CHAMPIONS

Texas A&M University

Northeastern Regional Cornell University

Central Regional Texas A&M University

Southeastern Regional University of Virginia

Western Regional Cal Poly

Marissa Wells, Ally Vaughn, and Hannah Reynolds with Coach Mike McCleary

Northeastern Regional Gardnertown Polo Club - Varsity

CHAMPIONS

Southeastern Regional Maryland Polo Club

Prestonwood Polo Club

Niklaus Felhaber, Johann Felhaber and Vance Miller III with Coach Vaughn Miller

CHAMPIONS

2019 USPA GIRLS’ NATIONAL INTERSCHOLASTIC

Maryland Polo Club

Abbie Grant, Catie Stueck, Olivia Reynolds and Sophie Grant with Coach Kelly Wells

OPEN PRELIMINARIES

Northeastern Preliminary Yale Polo Club

Central Preliminary Commonwealth Polo Club

Southeastern Preliminary I Lancaster Polo Club - WTR

Southeastern Preliminary II Aiken Polo Club

Western Preliminary Central Coast Polo Club

WOMEN’S PRELIMINARIES

Western Preliminary Stanford University

Northeastern Preliminary Yale University

Southeastern Preliminary University of Michigan

GIRLS’ PRELIMINARIES

Southeastern Preliminary Aiken Polo Club

Northeastern Preliminary Buffalo Polo Club

MIDDLE SCHOOL

Lakeside Polo Club Blue Team

Central Coast Polo Club

South Bay Blue

Aiken Polo Club Lazy R

Houston Polo Club Houston Blue

Buffalo Polo Club Post Time

Garrison Forest School Maryland

Marlan Farm Polo Club Drumcliffe Grey

Maui Polo Club Maui White

Gardnertown Polo Club Gardnertown Dark Green

Yale Polo Club Team 5

Battlefield Park Polo Club Maryland

PTF MALE INTERCOLLEGIATE

PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Christian Aycinena

Texas A&M University

“My

I grew up in Guatemala City, Guatemala, surrounded by horses and a family that loved everything polo. For as long as I can remember my biggest role model was my father who played professional polo through his late 30’s. I grew up playing with the best coach possible to me, availabile 24/7. So from the very beginning polo was not just the sport I loved, but it was filled with people I love. Most of my favorite memories include a horse and mallet—polo has been and will continue to be my favorite outlet. As I reflect on the honor that is being named Intercollegiate Player of Year, I can’t help but think of the amazing people that surrounded me and ultimately brought me here. That is why I wanted to share my career not from my eyes but from those incredible people.

Woodfin twins were a big part of my success during my first two years at Texas A&M.

polo career at Texas A&M has been one filled with lessons, amazing people, and a lot

My first year at Texas A&M I navigated a new sport, as anyone who has played outdoor their whole life will tell you about arena. Cacho Galindo was a force to be reckoned in the arena and I was lucky to have learned by his side.

“When Christian first arrived at A&M, I knew he would have a big impact on our team that year. The year before we had made it to the finals and lost. After talking about it with my parents, they thought that our team lacked the physical toughness needed to win that game. So, when I heard we had a new player coming I was excited and hoped he could help the team. When I met Christian, knew then that this was going to be the year we would win because our team would have the talent and physical toughness to see it through. I remember the phone call with my parents after I met Christian telling them how built he was. They were just as excited as I was to have him on our team. The rest is history we won the championship that year because he was just a force to be reckoned with in the arena! He is a machine.” – Cacho Galindo I was lucky that I had an incredible team that not only became incredible role models but great friends. The

“Playing polo with Christian was an eventful time at A&M. At first, it was quite funny seeing a Guatemalan that played predominately outdoor polo try to transition to playing in the arena. We all knew when he got the hang of it, he was going to be one hard person to beat. Which is why he won three national championships out of the four years he played. Christian is an awesome guy and always fun to be around on and off the field, even though he blasted a backshot into my chest (no hard feelings). My favorite moment of the many games I played with him was at the Field Tournament at Cornell. We ended up barely losing to Cornell and I was very frustrated because I felt like we could play better. I didn’t really talk to anyone afterwards until Christian pulled me aside and said, ‘Dalton D, why are you so upset man you played the best game I’ve seen you play! If there’s anybody that should be upset it’s me and Casey, we let you down.’ To show that ownership at a young age made me respect him even more than already did. Christian showed leadership qualities both on and off the field which is why he succeeded in his four years of playing intercollegiate polo and will continue to succeed in his endeavors moving forward.” – Dalton Woodfin Since freshman year, I formed a strong friendship with Gideon, and his real passion for polo and his authentic self are some of my favorite things that he brought to the team. I was lucky to have shared a national championship on his last year of college.

of joy.”

“It’s an amazing feeling to win a national championship, and it’s a bond shared between teammates that cannot be broken. It’s something extra special and albeit rare when you get to do it with one of your best friends. Christian and I shared feeding schedules for three years, rode together, partied together, and lost games together. Yet our ability continued on page 24

DAVID LOMINSKA

DANIEL J. WALLACE JR.

FEMALE INTERCOLLEGIATE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Marissa Wells

Texas A&M University

“I have competed in I/I polo for twelve consecutive years and in that time I have made many long lasting friendships.”

I/I

polo has always been such an important part of my life and always will be. I have had the privilege of growing up playing a lot of arena polo as a child. With an arena in my backyard I had the opportunity to practice everyday which was quite beneficial. Naturally, I fell in love with arena polo.

I recall from a young age I would sit in the corner of our arena in Freeland, Maryland, watching my mom, Kelly Wells, coaching her I/I teams. I dreamed of the day I could play on the team. I started interscholastic polo in fifth grade, later the USPA made a rule that kids must be older to start. From middle school through high school I competed on the Maryland interscholastic team, winning three national championships.

After graduating from high school, I embarked on my journey to Texas A&M to play for their Intercollegiate team. In my first two years we made it to the finals but were faced with strong opponents. My last two years at A&M proved more successful and we brought home the championship. We made school history in 2018 and 2019, a rare double-double National Championship victory as both the men’s and women’s teams won. I love

my fellow Aggies and would not have wanted to win with any other teammates.

I have competed in I/I polo for twelve consecutive years and in that time I have made many long lasting friendships. I have traveled across the U.S. competing in many arenas playing on a variety of different horses. I have had some of the best experiences playing in the I/I program. I/I polo provides youth with many opportunities to play in competitive arena polo and it will continue to do so into the future. The long lasting effect I/I has on people is quite remarkable. I’m excited to be giving back to the I/I program as I have taken a position teaching youth polo and coaching three interscholastic teams in Virginia. I want to thank the USPA and the PTF for honoring me with the Women’s Intercollegiate Player of the Year and continuing to recognize arena players who work hard and love the sport. I also want to thank my mom, my first coach and my riding instructor, for providing me with the opportunity to become the strong person and player I am today.

Work hard and good things will follow! Thanks and Gig ‘em!

PTF FEMALE INTERSCHOLASTIC PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Abbie Grant

Maryland

Polo Club

Horses have been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. I started riding when I was three years old and I grew up doing hunter-jumpers with my sisters, Maddie (20) and Sophie (16). Like many other young kids, I tried other sports but I never gave up riding. To me, nothing else could compare to the rush I got when riding horses. One weekend, while my sisters and were still quite young, my family went and watched a game at the Maryland Polo Club. After that day, Maddie told our parents that she wanted to play polo. Our parents told us we could switch to polo when we were 10 years old. When Maddie started playing polo, I wanted nothing to do with it. I had my little show pony, Jack, who I was so in love with, and I couldn’t imagine giving him up. Eventually, like all younger siblings, I followed in my older sisters footsteps and decided to try polo. From that very first lesson, I was hooked.

“Polo has taught me many things, like hard work and perseverance, but the most important thing it taught me is how to believe in myself.”

A few years later, when I was in seventh grade, I was lucky enough to get a spot on the Maryland Girls Varsity team. I was so excited because I was getting to play with Maddie and Marissa Wells, two girls who I looked up to a lot. That year, our team won the 2014 Girls’ National Interscholastic Championship. I will never forget what that felt like. A year later, after Marissa had graduated, Sophie and Catie Stueck joined me and Maddie on the varsity team. After a close loss that year at regionals, we were fortunate to get selected as the wild card for Nationals. In the month leading up to Nationals, our team worked incredibly hard, and we won the 2016 Girls’ National Interscholastic Championship. Although I had won two Nationals before, this one was different. We were the youngest team to ever win Girls’ Nationals and it was even better because I got to win with my two sisters and Catie by my side. Our team stayed the same for the next three years, winning

two more national titles. The end of the 2018 season was a bitter sweet moment for the four of us because Maddie graduated. Those four years with that team hold some of my favorite memories from my years in interscholastic polo. Despite being sad that Maddie would no longer be on the team with us, I was super excited for the 2019 season because that was my first year being captain. After a long season of hard work and adjusting to the new dynamic without Maddie, we made it back to Nationals where we won the 2019 Girls’ National Interscholastic Championship. Being able to win as captain made my last season in interscholastic polo all the more special. Although I’ve had a lot of success, my career in polo has had its ups and downs. Because I started playing at a high level at a very young age, the intensity of the sport was a lot for me to handle at times. During the first few years on the team, I would often get overwhelmed at our big games and start to doubt myself. It took me many years before I could play in bigger games without the pressure I felt causing me to shut down. Throughout those years, had the constant support of my team and my coach, as well as my parents. They encouraged me every step of the way and always believed in me, especially when I was having a hard time believing in myself. Polo has taught me many things, like hard work and perseverance, but the most important thing it taught me is how to believe in myself. The 2019 National final game was a reminder of just how far I’ve come. After a close first half, instead of being worried and letting that affect how I played, I went back on the field confident in both myself and my team and it payed off.

I am incredibly honored to have been chosen as the 2019 PTF Interscholastic Female Player of the Year. I would like to thank both the USPA and the PTF for honoring me continued on page 24

MIKE RYAN

PTF RUSSELL A. SHELDON MALE INTERSCHOLASTIC PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Parker Pearce

Maryland Polo Club

I am extremely honored to be recognized as the recipient of the 2019 Russell A. Sheldon Interscholastic PTF Player of the Year Award.

Receiving this award has made me reflect on all the years of Interscholastic Polo that I have been fortunate enough to experience. I would like to share with you the passion, determination, and the village it took to earn this award. Without the dedication of my teammates, guidance from my coach, and the ongoing support of my parents, my time in Interscholastic polo would never have made such an impact on my life.

“Without the dedication of my teammates, guidance from my coach, and the ongoing support of my parents, my time in Interscholastic polo would never have made such an impact on my life.”

As a teenager, I played many sports at The Gilman School, where I spent the majority of my educational life. Sports are a requirement at Gilman and I wanted to play all of them: soccer, lacrosse, squash, rock climbing, and golf. Win, lose, or tie, I learned to share the joy of athletics with my classmates. For me, team bonding began in Middle School. As more boys entered Gilman, we found ourselves forming relationships with new players. As high school approached most of my friends began to specialize in one sport. The dynamics changed for each of us, as did our athletic interests. Some boys only had aspirations to play a sport for fun in high school, others like me, were hoping to continue to play their favorite sport in college. Unlike my college bound lacrosse and golfing buddies, I had an additional unique athletic interest outside of Gilman, polo.

Fortunately, Gilman was in full support of my passion for polo. This desire to play polo competitively led me to Marlan Farm and in September 2014, Kelly Wells, her son Brennan Wells, and Jack McLean welcomed me on to the team. I was in eighth grade and I remember jumping

right into a Middle School Tournament hosted at Marlan Farm. I had my first tournament win with new friends that I had never met before and it exploded from there. I had an interesting perspective on the game as our team was without a doubt composed of the smallest boys in interscholastic polo. Nonetheless, Kelly taught us how to play as a team and challenge ourselves to get better every day. Over time, we were able to work so well together that we knew each other’s plays before they even happened. That year we made it to Southeastern Regionals, but lost in the finals. After that game we developed a bond and combined passion to grow together and win a national title.

I will never forget the following season as we worked tirelessly every week and weekend to achieve our goal. Through a stroke of luck, we received a wild card to Nationals in Texas that year. Unfortunately, we were not able to pull out a victory, but placed third in the nation and learned a lot more from this loss than we would ever have gained from winning.

We still were not a physically big team the following year, but Brennan, Jack, and I continued to put forth an intensity and work ethic that developed our skills to new heights. While coaching three other teams, Kelly managed to take us all over the country to compete. She even arranged a few games against college teams. Eventually the time and effort we had put in paid off and after a close final against Houston Polo Club, we finally had our title.

Another year older and wiser, I began my last season with Brennan and Jack. We wanted a repeat National win more than anything as Brennan and Jack would be continued on page 24

to put our thoughts together, optimistic and ambitious is what I’ll remember the most. We were so in sync about our team goals, visualization, and leadership tactics that being on the same team felt serendipitous.” – Gideon Kotkowski

My first year as captain I had the opportunity to be the leader that the Woodfins, Cacho and Gideon had been to me. I shared the field with a completely new team during my last two years of college, but we quickly formed a good team chemistry on and off the field. Fritz’s cool demeanor and ability to ride any horse are some of the strengths that helped the team win two consecutive national championships.

“My experiences playing for the Texas A&M polo team have been incredibly vast and memorable. Having the opportunity to play alongside teammates like Christian have taught me great values and lessons. We traveled to different regions of the country for two years competing against the top teams in intercollegiate polo. All the hard work and sacrifices we had to make to be successful as a team molded me into the individual I am today. Christian set the example on how to properly balance work and play, while showing that no ambition is too high with true teamwork.” – Fritz Felhaber

Besides my teammates, I was extremely grateful to have an amazing support system outside the field. I couldn’t have accomplished all of these without my girlfriend, Sofia Gumucio.

“The way Christian plays polo is a reflection of who he is as a person. Strong, dedicated, and (for the most part) calm. No one can argue his talent and ability to manage himself through a field, but that is not what is most impressive about him. Whether it was those on his team, or those on the opposing team, everyone had the utmost respect for him because of the integrity he has. Having watched him for three years of those four at Texas A&M it has been a pleasure to watch him grow into an incredible leader for his teammates and that he brought his most special quality to polo— inspiring those around him to be better.” – Sofia Gumucio

My polo career at Texas A&M has been one filled with lessons, amazing people, and a lot of joy. I feel lucky that polo was able to be such a big part of my college career, and even more so for the fact that it gave me the opportunity to study in this country.

times “polo is a small world.” Although that was something I used to find annoying, it is now something I’ve grown to love. I can’t imagine another sport where after traveling across an ocean for university, I run into people who know the same people from polo, and that is something I think is really special about this sport.

I would also like to thank my amazing coach, Kelly Wells, for all that she has done for me. I would not be half the player I am today if not for her. When I first arrived at Marlan Farm, I could tell immediately how special it was. Kelly’s farm not only became my happy place, it became my second home and the people there, my second family. Even when I was having a bad day, always looked forward to practice. No matter what level her students are, Kelly instills a love of horses and hard work into every person that she teaches, and we are all better for having been coached by her.

To Maddie, Sophie, and Catie, thank you guys for always being there for me. Even during games when I was having a hard time, you guys always supported and encouraged me. I love you three so much, and I can’t imagine not having had you guys as teammates. Lastly I’d like to thank my parents for their constant support and love.

with this award and for providing an amazing community for me to grow in and be a part of. Through both the interscholastic tournaments and Polo Training Foundation (PTF) clinics, I’ve had the opportunity to meet many other amazing young players, some of whom have become close friends. Growing up in the sport, got told many

Parker:

going off to college the next year. With the support of my Gilman golf coach holding a spot for me on the Varsity Golf team, Kelly providing our favorite ponies, and all of us missing a week of school, our parents once again drove us to Cornell, a mere five hours away. In 2018, we finished up our four years together as National Champions once again.

I played my last year of I/I Polo with an amazing young team comprised of two girls and two boys. We travelled to Texas for Nationals and earned third place in the Open Division. My final season I found myself bonded to new teammates and grateful for the hours Kelly and our parents put in to make it all possible.

I hope others will view my I/I experience as an inspiration for young players, coaches and parents. It is now Fall of 2019, and I am fortunate enough to be reunited with Brennan and Jack at UVA as we enter our first year of intercollegiate polo together with an additional teammate and fast friend Nachi Viana. The USPA and the PTF offer an incredible platform for developing polo players and providing competitive Intercollegiate/Interscholastic polo, but the main message I wish to convey is that if you really want to enjoy I/I polo, make sure to form friendships with your teammates and opponents, respect your coach, be grateful for the animals that make our sport possible, and acknowledge the time your parents sacrifice in order for you to chase your dream.

USPA I/I vs SUPA Britain

The United States Polo Association’s Intercollegiate/ Interscholastic Polo Program provided me with an incredible opportunity last winter. I was extremely fortunate to have been selected for the 2019 International Intercollegiate Challenge Cup match. Each year, I/I and SUPA Britain (Schools & Universities Polo Association) pick teams comprised of collegiate players from participating collegiate teams to make a four-man team. Each team then executes a three-man rotation format for the arena match. The location alternates between the countries to enhance global connectivity and create a fair playing ground for each team, as the rules of the game vary between countries.

This year, the match took place on January 25, 2019, at the International Polo Club in Wellington, Florida. It was an exciting time as the new arena at IPC was just completed, and because Wellington is the Winter Equestrian Capital of the World. Team USA was comprised of Fiona McBride-Luman from California Polytechnic State University, Liam Lott from Skidmore College, Christian Aycinena from Texas A&M University, and myself from the University of Virginia. Team Britain was comprised of Robyn Evans, James (Sticky) Glew, Jamie Grayson, and Michal Zurawski. The match was good-natured and extremely competitive. The USPA and Dardo Iglesias provided us with incredible mounts. My favorite horse was Anna, who I rode in the last chukker. Team USA came out of the gates slightly flat-footed and unfortunately one of our players had a bad fall and was unable to continue the match. The way that our mentors, teammates and opponents handled the situation was with a caring nature, patience and support. Having started a little slow, being a man down with the four-man rotation, and playing against top collegiate competitors, we had to

“Establishing connections and sharing such unique experiences with one another creates a newly appreciated level of collaboration beyond the general scope.”

adjust. Even though our injured player could not play, she greatly contributed to our game strategy and supported us off of the field. As we all know, it takes a village between players, horse strings, venue, and more to coordinate a polo match, which involves many off-field components. To me, what happens off the field and in between chukkers can be what makes or breaks an individual, or team, in the game. I would like to highlight and thank our esteemed coaches and mentors for the game; without the wise words of these individuals we could not have performed as we did. Emily Dewey, Tommy Biddle, Pelon Escapite, Steve Krueger, Carlucho Arellano, and Cristina Fernandez all provided Team USA with strategic, mental, and even life advice which lead us to victory. We learned a new trick of the trade as well from Steve Krueger when he gave Liam Lott a rubber dish glove to play with in order to prevent the reins from slipping through his fingers. It was unfortunately pouring down rain for the majority of the match, but the new arena at IPC was well-suited for these conditions and allowed the ball to fly. The match was fast, furious, wet, and so much fun. It is amazing that the USPA streamed this event as well. Unfortunately, my family was unable to attend, but thanks to the livestream, they were all able to watch together in Baltimore, Maryland. The USPA Polo Network also allowed for our opponents’ families to watch from across the pond. What made it the most fun was that we were playing with and against new friends. We were able to spend a lot of time with our team and opponents which was my favorite part of the experience. Establishing connections and sharing such unique experiences with one another creates a newly appreciated level of collaboration beyond

DAVID LOMINSKA

Demitra Hajimihalis - University of Virginia - ‘20

the general scope. We all have in common this one positive, adrenaline-filled, amazing weekend and match. I think it is also what made the match so fun; the fact that we were able to get to know our opponents off the field and for us to have such great times together, makes playing a lot more fun. There was a level of respect in that arena between all players that I have never experienced before. If we would go hard into a play, we would check on each other teammates and opponents. That level of care and element of safety allowed me to truly give it my all.

Intercollegiate/Interscholastic Polo not only provided me with this incredible opportunity, but has also aided me to pursue Music, Philosophy, and Business at a premier academic institution: the University of Virginia. I/I Polo administers vital skills off and on the polo field creating

well-rounded student-athletes with exemplary mentors. I/I offers a wide range of opportunities, such as this one, for its participants. Without I/I and Virginia Polo, would not have been prepared for this experience. Without I/I and Virginia Polo, I would not have capitalized on the connections provided during this experience. Thank you greatly to Emily Dewey and Amy Fraser for spearheading this experience and making it an amazing weekend and being the ultimate team moms. Furthermore, as the best is always saved for last, I would like to greatly thank my father and my family. Without their support, I would not be where I am today or able to have experiences like these. I encourage everyone to apply for opportunities like this, even if you are not confident you will be selected, you never know what will happen! Put yourself out there and make lemonade.

CHUKKER BREAK

Interscholastic Player Pipa

Campbell gives back on a Global

Level

Pipa Campbell,(Sarasota Interscholastic Team) whose parents are originally from South Africa, has made several trips back to visit family and friends. There is a lot of poverty in Africa, with the majority of people in rural areas not having access to running water or electricity. On their most recent visit, Pippa really noticed the hardship people endured having to walk miles to fetch a bucket of water that would then have to sustain them for the week. Her 20-minute showers suddenly took on a whole new meaning. She decided she wanted to do something to at least help a few people so with the help of others she put together a polo fundraiser. Jaymie Klauber, owner of Epic Polo Club in Sarasota, Florida, helped Pippa organize the event at her club. With the generous donations of wonderful sponsors and spectators, Pippa raised over $5,000. She then sent the money to her aunt, who farms in a remote part of Zambia. Annabel and her husband Chris helped coordinate the building of the wells in two small villages and within six months the wells were up and running. Pippa’s vision and determination to make it happen has changed many folks lives in such a positive way. As you will see from the pictures, the smiles on the villagers faces speak a thousand words. One day Pippa hopes to be able to go and visit the villages and meet some of the happy village folks.

ABOVE: 2019 USPA International Intercollegiate Challenge Cup Champions: USA. Christian Aycinena (Texas A&M), Demitra Hajimihalis (UVA), Liam Lott (Skidmore), and Fiona McBride-Luman (Cal Poly). BELOW: Liam Lott from Skidmore, explodes down field. PC: David Lominska

POLO FIT

Research Study in Partnership with MSU Kinesiology Department

Anna

Munie (‘02) and Abby Pritchard (‘20) - Michigan State University

“Really? I didn’t know horseback riders were athletes! Doesn’t the horse do all the work?”

It’s a question that many polo players hear throughout their lifetime. While a polo player knows full well how mentally and physically taxing the sport can be, the general public often remains unaware of these demands.

This was the case for Abby Pritchard, a Ph.D. candidate in Animal Science researching equine exercise physiology and nutrition at Michigan State University (MSU) and member of the MSU Polo Club. She was asked this exact question when taking a Kinesiology class at MSU taught by assistant professor David Ferguson, Ph.D. After class, Pritchard approached Dr. Ferguson and gave him more background on exactly what polo requires from an athletic perspective. During this discussion, Dr. Ferguson realized that the physical requirements and exertion of a polo player seemed to have significant similarities to some of his current research measuring the human performance of race car drivers. In his research, drivers wear equipment that measure a variety of physiological responses; results are then analyzed to see how much physical stress and exertion race car drivers experience, as well as what variables influence their performance. Pritchard and Dr. Ferguson realized there was no reason that this same approach couldn’t be applied to polo, and with some volunteers from the MSU Polo Club, a semester long study on human performance in arena polo began.

The study was designed to include riding, stick-andballing, as well as playing full chukkers. During each session, participants wore specific testing equipment that allowed Dr. Ferguson and Pritchard to collect the following data on each player:

-Heart Rate

-Ventilation (volume of air passing in and out of the lungs)

-VO2 (oxygen uptake)

-Respiratory Exchange Ratio (ratio between carbon dioxide produced and oxygen used)

-Rate of Perceived Exertion (how hard the participant thinks s/he is working)

To get these measurements, players wore a sealed mask, heart rate monitor, and mobile respiratory gas analyzer underneath a protective vest. They then performed a very strict testing protocol that included timed periods of walk, trot, and canter in each direction. This warmup was followed by a “free choice” period of time in which the player could warm up for the upcoming chukker however they saw fit. Finally, full arena polo chukkers were played with other members of the study. Players continued to wear the equipment between chukkers and during cool down to determine exact differences in performance before, during, and after play.

Not surprisingly, there were a lot of challenges associated with setting up and using this specialized equipment in a polo setting. “Being in charge of organizing the study, and having to set up the equipment, was definitely the most challenging aspect” said Pritchard. “The equipment was borrowed from the MSU Kinesiology department, and it took a little while to figure out how to set it up and get it working properly in a barn environment filled with horses. This equipment had never really been used outside of a laboratory setting.” Things didn’t get any easier for the participants wearing the equipment. All MSU Polo Club members who participated in the study agreed that they had to re-adjust their entire swing while riding and wearing the equipment; the mask especially was very bulky, and restricted players’ vision of the arena, and even the ball, at times.

As if wearing what amounted to a fighter jet mask and battery pack while playing polo wasn’t difficult enough, each participating player also had to complete a VO2max test once all the data was collected. “Basically, you run on a treadmill at increasing speeds and elevation until you fall off” joked most participants as they got set up to perform the test. The VO2max test, which measures maximal oxygen uptake, allowed Dr. Ferguson and Pritchard to baseline maximum exertion efforts against what the players experienced while playing polo during the study. The next step was to take all of the raw data and run a full statistical analysis to determine the differences between

regular riding, playing polo, and resting. “We were looking for the variables that influenced performance the most” said Dr. Ferguson. “It was the same equipment standard, testing protocol, and data analysis that can be applied to any performance sport or athlete. We just adjusted it and applied it to polo in this case.”

So what were the results? Not surprisingly, polo players in the study experienced significant increases in heart rate, oxygen uptake, and respiratory rates- increases that mirror other athletic sports. Dr. Ferguson was somewhat surprised by the amount of specific cor relation there was between polo players and race car drivers. “What we saw in polo was similar to what race car drivers experience during the peaks and excitement of a race.” The initial results also left no doubt in his mind regarding the athletic ability of polo players. “It takes a lot of muscle contraction and energy to play polo. There are measureable differences in metabolic rates during chukkers versus other times. Looking more at those differences would be an interesting next step.” Pritchard agrees. “There are a lot of next steps

you could take with this data and apply to different areas of polo, including performance and metabolic differences between amateurs versus pros, men versus women, grass versus arena. This information could be very useful in how players may have to train and prepare differently.”

Regardless of potential future steps, the study is groundbreaking in terms of applying human performance testing to polo. Since 1967, there have been only ten publications on human performance testing and physiological responses as applied to horseback riding. Of those ten, only one was specific to polo in measuring heart rates. Compare that to the eight hundred publications every year on sports such as football and basketball, and it is clear that MSU Polo and MSU Kinesiology are paving new ground with regards to human performance testing in the polo world.

The study and results are currently accepted for publication by Translational Sports Medicine, and a technical poster on the initial results was presented at the American College of Sports Medicine Annual Meeting.

5QUESTIONS FOR MIA BRAY

Oklahoma State University Alum and GAUNTLET OF POLO Champion

1. How did you get started in polo and how did you find yourself playing polo at Oklahoma State?

I grew up surrounded by polo but as a kid took very little interest in the sport. My dad and brother both played professionally and my mom rode as well, so horses were a huge part of my life. When I was a young, I tended towards jumping because thought polo “was for boys,” but when finally gave polo a shot as a teenager I fell in love with the speed and intensity. I was recruited at Oklahoma State University (OSU) to compete on the equestrian team, and when I found out they also had a polo team I was sold on attending. I transferred to OSU as a sophomore and rode on the equestrian team and played with the polo team until I graduated.

2. What is your favorite thing about I/I polo and playing for Oklahoma State?

Like many collegiate teams, the OSU team was comprised mostly of beginners. I have always enjoyed being able to share the sport of polo with new members who also have a passion for horses, or members whom are often learning to ride for the very first time. But without a doubt, the best part about playing college polo is getting to be on a team and play with great friends.

3. Tell us about your opportunity to play in the USPA C.V. Whitney Cup, first leg of the GAUNTELET OF POLO series, 22-goal tournament.

After graduating and spending the next few months playing at Eldorado Polo Club then Santa Barbara Polo & Raquet Club, made the move to Florida for my first season on the East Coast. wanted to experience the Florida circuit and make connections in the polo community outside of my home clubs. During my first few weeks in Florida, my boss, Max Secunda was talking with a friend of his about substitutes for the upcoming season. His friend happened to be the manager of Pilot polo team. Max recommended me for the position to be the alternate for the sponsor during the 20- and 22-goal season.

Not long after, I was invited to play a practice and try out for the position. A few weeks went by and I received the most exciting phone call of my life. Pilot asked if I was interested in playing with them for the first game of the C.V. Whitney Cup 22-goal tournament. My teammates were Facundo Pieres, Gonzalito Pieres, and Matias Gonzalez.

4

. What was it like to play with the Pieres brothers?

My learning experience began long before I got on the field. started my morning on game day nervously sitting in the barn burning my tongue on yerba mate with some of the best minds and talent in polo. I listened as Facundo and Gonzalito discuss a game plan more advanced than I had ever heard before. They gave me instructions and their expectations before we headed to the team tent. Their high expectations of what could do on the field gave me confidence. They treated me like a true part of the team, someone that they could use on the field and count on during the game.

Every play on the field was a positive experience for me. I either made a good play and was rewarded, or made a mistake that I could learn from. Each game my team’s expectations for me grew and my job became harder. However, as I adjusted to the speed of the polo, learned how to be quicker and execute the plays better. played with determination to receive the approval of my teammates, because know it is not often a woman would be chosen for this position. It was very important to me that I made it worth their while, for myself, for the team, and for the next female player being considered for an opportunity to play high goal.

5. If you had one piece of advice for aspiring young polo players, what would it be?

The advice I would give to an aspiring young player is to seek out guidance in the sport. have been lucky enough to have many important mentors that have helped me grow as a player and in the industry of polo. Absorb as much as you can when help is offered and seek out criticism to improve your game.

DAVID LOMINSKA

U.S. POLO ASSN.

Collegiate Brand Ambassadors

U.S. Polo Assn., the official brand of the United States Polo Association (USPA), will again be outfitting competitive college polo players through its nationwide College Partnership Program (CPP). Through this partnership, complete game attire, including performance jerseys, equipment gear bags, white pants and polo shirts will be given to the participating USPA college polo teams along with a financial donation. In turn, the players will be wearing official U.S. Polo Assn. clothing while competing in games, running around campus, as well as during guest appearances and media interviews throughout the upcoming collegiate polo season.

“As the official brand of the sport of polo in the U.S. it’s important for us to give back to the young players who represent the future of the sport,” explains USPAGL president and CEO, J. Michael Prince. “The opportunity to connect with amazing young talent who represent U.S. Polo Assn. and our core values on and off the playing field is just another way for us to give back to the sport we love and connect authentically with consumers and sports fans around the world.”

A total of 29 schools have signed up to be a part of this year’s partnership program, representing 45 collegiate teams with 28 women’s teams and 17 men’s teams. The schools range from East Coast to West Coast, such as Yale and Stanford, and from large public schools to small private ones like Texas A&M and Skidmore.

“Being part of the Collegiate Polo Program is great exposure for us as students, as well as for our team and our school as we continue to play and promote the sport this season,” said Sofia Cianchi, a senior at Yale University studying economics and art history, “We love all the gear from U.S. Polo Assn., because it works very well for our games, and it looks great. Our team really appreciates the sponsorship and encouragement again this year!”

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LIFE AFTER I/I Texas Arena League

Robin Sanchez

Texas Arena League (TAL) will be starting its third year in 2020. In its beginning seasons, over fifty percent of the players in the League are current or former I/I players. Texas Arena League provides fun and competitive arena polo during the winter in Texas. Teams and players come from all around the state and beyond; Oklahoma, Arizona, New Mexico and Arkansas. There are 0- to 3-goal and 3- to 6-goal divisions and teams get points from their games at each location based on win, loss, or tie to decide overall league winners. Points are also awarded for Most Valuable Player, Sportsmanship and Best Playing Pony for end of league awards. For 2020, TAL is adding a 6- to 9-goal division, a C flight for new/ beginner players and a High Point I/I Alum award. There is also a great list of award sponsors, including U.S. Polo Assn., Catena USA, Nutrena, Jackrabbit Tack, Pro Chukker, Galvin Agency –American National Insurance, Superior Equine Sports Massage Therapy, Royal B Threads, Coldiron Cattle Company, Elite Motion, and Culture-Hype.

Texas Arena League is played over four different weekends at three locations around the Lone Star State – Two Wishes Polo Club in the Austin area (Lockhart, Texas), East Texas Polo Club at Legend’s Horse Ranch in the Dallas area (Lockhart, TX), and Midland Polo Club in West Texas (Midland, Texas). Some players and teams play throughout the entire league and others will come to one event that is closest to them.

“Brady Williams and came up with the idea for Texas Arena League because we missed that fun, camaraderie, and travel that were such a big part of college polo,” says Megan Flynn. “The League has grown exponentially every year. With the amount of interest we have for 2020, we are expecting around 90 players for the upcoming season,” Flynn continued.

“If you haven’t experienced Texas Arena League, it is better

than college polo because you don’t have to go to class the next day!” Amanda Massey says with a smile. “It’s all the friends that you played Intercollegiate/Interscholastic polo with plus new people. We all come together to play arena polo and have fun.” Amanda played for both the Fort Worth girls’ interscholastic team and Texas A&M.

Omar Polio, who started polo in college and is a recent graduate, played on the Legend’s Horse Ranch team at Two Wishes Polo Club during TAL. “When I started in the polo club at Texas A&M my senior year, one of the first things I was told was that once you get into polo, it becomes an addiction. They weren’t lying!” he laughed.

“After graduating, I knew I had to find a way to stay involved in this amazing sport and the Texas Arena League has given me that opportunity. The League has made arena polo accessible to members who wouldn’t normally

DAVID MURRELL

ABOVE: Texas Tech alum Mark Osburn was awarded the Fan Favorite in the Texas Arena Legaue. LEFT: Pete Blake (Fort Worth IS, Texas Tech) and Loreto Nativiad (Midland IS), engage in some fun competition. PC: David Murrell

CHUKKER BREAK

Faith Hufford Rangel - University of Kentucky ‘10 Piggytrons

Faith Hufford Rangel, is the co-author and creator of the polo inspired children’s book “Adventures of the Piggytrons.” Faith a graduate from the University of Kentucky, was a founding member of the UK polo team.

After graduation in 2010 she began working in polo full time as a groom. Around 2012 she was working for polo sponsors from New York, and that’s where Faith fell in love with their string of almost toy-like polo horses and they became the initial inspiration for her story.

During the 2013 Spring season in Aiken, South Carolina, Faith, working together with friend and now co-author Becky Gronczniak, started creating the storyline during morning sets and by that fall the story came to life on paper. In 2015 Faith and Becky self-published their children’s book in hopes to share their love of the sport and horses to a much younger generation.

“I grew up riding horses in Lexington, Kentucky, and had no idea polo even existed let alone was played there until the summer of my senior year of high school. My hope is that this book will inform horse crazy kids that this amazing sport is real and accessible.”

Faith continues to work in polo as a groom for Graymar Farms, a polo breeding and training operation.

“The Adventures of Piggytrons” is available for purchase on Amazon.

be able to play in real tournament settings, and it’s great to see players from all around Texas come together every year. I’m looking forward to this upcoming tournament and hope I find an opportunity to play again!”

Ashley Owen learned to play polo while a student at Texas Tech University. She went on to coach the Midland Girls Interscholastic team to a Regional Championship. “The Texas Arena League has been the first opportunity for me to play competitive polo since I played in college,” she explained. “There was a pretty good gap of time after I played college polo until playing in the Texas Arena League when it started two years ago. In that gap I was doing more instructing and coaching. This League has given me the opportunity to get back to playing arena polo competitively like I did in college.” Ashley has not only been on a League-winning team each year but was voted Players’ Choice Competitor by the other participants in TAL.

Mark Osburn is another Texas Tech grad who drifted away from the sport after college. “I didn’t live near any polo clubs, so there weren’t really any opportunities to stay in the sport. I ride regularly on the ranch though,” Osburn explained. “In 2018, my old college buddy, Seth Bray called me and asked if I wanted to play on his team for Texas Arena League in Midland. I thought ‘why not?’ and the bug bit. Last year I played on a 0- to 3-goal team with Brady Williams (Texas Tech). Then in Midland I entered a team in the 6- to 9-goal and in the 3- to 6-goal for the final leg of the Texas Arena League. bought a couple horses and Brady and I played together in some other arena and grass tournaments around Texas. 2019 culminated with the invitation to play in the National Arena Amateur Cup and was fortunate enough to be on the winning team. It has been an amazing year and my wife and kids have traveled with me to all of the events.”

Arena Leagues are becoming more popular with PCAL (Pacific Coast Arena League) in California, Texas Arena League and others starting around the country, they are a great way to stay in the sport or get back into polo after college.

August Scherer (Culver IS, SMU) puts the ball in for a score against Stephen Lacy (Culver IS, Texas Tech) PC: David Murrell

MUSTANG MADNESS

I/I Umpire Training & Horsemanship Clinic

Megan Judge - Cal Poly ‘99

Competition is the underlying commonality between all the teams at Mustang Madness, but the emphasis is community, team building and a general fun time. As a way to promote the sport on the West Coast and build stronger teams to head into regionals and nationals, the Fall Fandango and Cornell’s Field Tournament are the blueprints to the three-day tournament that has become the go-to for I/I competition on the West Coast for early in the season.

The tournament runs sun up to sundown and usually has five to six games per day. The Cal Poly team invites one or two teams from outside the region and gets Stanford to help bring horses. As a way to recruit for Cal Poly and help the high school team get competitive early in the season, we also invite four to five interscholastic teams. All the teams have duties and help with horses. Some horses are kept in stalls that are privately owned and others are kept in big pastures. We start recruiting for umpires during the summer at field and arena tournaments, looking for players that are intelligent, passionate, and ‘give back’ kind of people to be part of our clinic.

This year the USPA offered a horsemanship clinic by Joel Baker and Kathy Linfoot. Kathy Linfoot videoed all the games the first two days and Joel Baker reviewed all

the games with the coaches and the players and watched their game film with them. Each player was filmed for three minutes during game play so that each had a real opportunity for feedback on their horsemanship and game play. Yasi Ainane, Stanford women’s team captain gave accolades to the event. “Riding evaluations with Joel Baker were a wonderful experience; he took riding back to the fundamentals and really explained how you can work alongside a horse during a chukker. Being able to see our riding from earlier that day was incredibly instructive and Joel’s years of experience saw any and every small adjustment that could make a significant difference.”

Bonnie Magill from Sutter Buttes added, “I thought Joel did a wonderful job asking each young player what their goals were and what they wanted to improve upon. My players were in awe to be working with such a high rated and experienced arena player.”

The USPA also subsidized the dragging, watering, the chalk, balls and sent two top umpire instructors, Robin Sanchez and Ronnie Hayes. To help keep it all organized the USPA also sent out a tournament manager, Amy James, to help keep everything running smoothly with regards to score sheets, duties, and umpires.

“Ronnie is a knowledgeable umpire who makes learning

easy. Robin is a practical, detailed instructor that makes learning rules and execution fun. Mustang Madness was a streamlined series of fun fast games to both watch and learn as a novice umpire,” recalled Dale Johnson, an umpire trainee.

To summarize... we had 12 umpire trainees, 12 teams, and 16 games. 40 Central Coast Polo school horses and a mix of private horses onsite were utilized, and another 50 horses were hauled in. Thanks to Poway and Sherry Sheldon, Sutter Buttes and Bonnie Magill, Stanford, Empey Polo, South Bay and Francesca Finato.

Riley Spillar brought two womens teams from Colorado State and highlighted their take away. “ Mustang Madness was our first opportunity to compete this season. The video film reviews with Joel Baker and having him on the sidelines allowed us to come together as individuals and find our flow as a team. After watching the film from our first chukker to our twelfth chukker, it was apparent how much his words influenced our riding and gameplan. The progress from our first game to our last game was unbelievable. The whole weekend was such a great experience and a much needed escape away from the stress of college!”

“‘Controlled Madness’ would be another name for Mustang Madness. The amount of players, parents,

friends, and horses that were hosted over the three days at Central Coast Polo Club. As a coach of two teams attending, I was really happy to have the opportunity for my players to be critiqued by Joel Baker and filmed by Kathy Linfoot. The filming that focused on each individual really gave time to see how their horsemanship could be improved,” remarked Sherry Sheldon, coach of the Poway girls’ interscholastic team.

Maggie Hine, a Westmont junior, summed up their weekend the best. “As a new team of rookie players, attending Mustang Madness was an invaluable experience. The tournament brought together I/I teams from across the nation that don’t normally get to play together, which helps everyone kick start their season. For Westmont, it was helpful to see how more established programs operate. Additionally, being able to watch and evaluate film with Joel Baker was extremely helpful in revealing how we can improve our horsemanship and riding. Thanks to Joel, Kathy Linfoot, and Central Coast for an awesome tournament!”

It takes a village to promote and support our amazing sport of polo. It’s so great to have such a wonderful community of polo players in California! Thank you to the Polo Training Foundation, the Umpires LLC, the Polo Development LLC, and everyone that supported!

ABOVE: Stanford and CSU women compete in the 2019 Mustang Madness at Central Coast Polo Club. LEFT: All the players work together to care for the horses over the weekend. PC: Janelle Ross

WINSTON PAINTER From Middle School to NYTS Champ to Team USPA

Winston Painter’s path to polo began in the hunter ring. After taking his first polo lesson at eight years old, he quickly fell in love with the sport and never looked back. Over the past eight years, Painter participated in almost every junior program offered by the USPA and recently was named as a member of Team USPA.

Location and opportunity prove to be hurdles young players face when looking to advance in the sport. Growing up, Painter took full advantage of the polo available locally playing in the Interscholastic program at Gardnertown Polo Club. After his first year in the Interscholastic program, the USPA I/I Middle School league made its debut. He eagerly jumped in, playing in the Middle School league as well as the Interscholastic tournaments. Painter won the 2018 I/I Regionals tournament and advanced to Nationals, receiving All-Star accolades at both events. His polite demeanor and positive attitude are well known in the community. “Winston and his supportive family are the epitome of successful outcomes of the full spectrum of programs offered by the USPA and his local club Gardnertown geared toward growing polo in this country from middle school to I/I and NYTS to Team USPA. He is an incredibly talented, intelligent, and respectful young man with an unlimited future,” said former I/I Chairman and fellow Gardnertown club member Duncan Huyler.

Painter dedicated himself to improving in both indoor and outdoor polo. After making what he called a pilgrimage to watch the best polo in the country in Wellington, Florida, he realized the intense level of immersion required to make the next step in his game.

Painter’s Breakout Year

During the Junior Westchester Cup held in Wellington, Florida, in the spring of 2019, Painter connected with former 7-goal player and current professional, Luis Escobar. Escobar extended an offer for Painter to travel with his family for the summer. Though the Escobar family’s destination was not yet certain at that point, Winston was eager to play higher level polo and advance his game in the upcoming season.

Fast forward to the final day of the school year. With his final exams finished and his sophomore year complete,

Painter woke up the next morning and jumped on a plane destined for Santa Barbara. His first stop was Joel Baker’s ranch in Buellton, California, located just over the mountain from the Santa Barbara Polo & Racquet Club. Under the guiding eye of Baker and Escobar, he helped prepare a string of horses for the 16-goal tournament and began his regular practice schedule at Piocho Ranch.

Two short weeks later, Painter moved over the mountain with the Escobar family to a condo overlooking the fields at the Santa Barbara Polo & Racquet Club. He quickly immersed himself in the close-knit community at the club. In his first two weeks at the club, Painter played 16 goal practice chukkers and jumped in as a substitute in the Kopu High Goal Challenge on the main Sunday field.

The close proximity of the barns, fields and the condos where many of the players live stood out to Painter. “You get to be around great polo and great horses all of the time which has been amazing.” With everything in one location, Painter felt like he was constantly making new connections and learned how professional players structure their daily lives.

One afternoon, Painter was watching a game from the porch of the Escobar’s condo when he was asked to grab his boots and fill in for a player in the Farmers & Merchants Bank USPA America Cup. It was one of those right place, right time moments. “Playing in the 16-goal was an unforgettable experience. It is one of the main perks of being here,” said Painter, “I can always be ready to jump in.” Playing practice three times a week at Piocho Ranch helped him learn to anticipate plays and be confident in faster polo. Even with plenty of preparation, jumping into the 16-goal brought out his nerves. “I don’t think had played above 10-goal polo before this summer, but it was amazing to play with those players! The play changes so fast, the horses are going so fast. It is all around an incredible experience.” Painter also stepped in to play for an injured player in the 8-goal Summerland Cup and advanced to the final where he was awarded MVP. Aside from time on the field, Painter spent many hours with Santa Clara’s team coach Joel Baker. “I was basically attached at the hip to Luis and the Escobar family, so I was really involved in all aspects of preparing for the games

DAVID LOMINSKA

Hayley Heatley - Southern Methodist

and reviewing them after. knew all the plays the team runs. In my practices and throughout the summer, Luis had me really focus on learning how to play a disciplined one so if I got the pass it is only me between the ball and the goal.”

Painter pointed out that this year has been a transitional year for him. “I had always taken polo seriously, but this year has been quite a leap. This is the most polo and most exposure I have had in my life. I have gotten to do little pieces of all of it - take sets, play 16-goal, play 8-goal, play NYTS, hold spares. It has been a polo intense summer.”

NYTS National Championship Cecil Smith Cup MVP

Amidst his busy summer in Santa Barbara, Painter received a call notifying that he had been selected to represent the Eastern Region in the NYTS National Championship Cecil Smith Cup in Aiken, South Carolina. It would be Painter’s first year being selected to play at the National level. Painter and his teammates, Parker Pearce, Aiden Meeker and Reed Miller drew defending National Champions, the Central Region, to play against in the semifinals of the tournament. Coached by Team USPA alum, Nick Snow, the 0-goal team overcame the Central Region to advance to the final against an experienced Florida lineup. The game was tight, but the team stuck to

their game plan and defeated the Florida team. An elated Eastern Region rushed off the field, grinning from ear to ear. Painter’s excitement was undeniable. His efforts on the field earned him the Most Valuable Player award. Local Aiken resident and highly-regarded professional horse trainer Gabriel Crespo saw Painter play in the NYTS qualifier earlier in year. Impressed by his skill as a rider and player, Crespo offered to mount him for the NYTS Championship. Painter piloted Crespo’s mare Chaparra (Chalina x Casino) to Best Playing Pony honors.

Painter’s return to Argentina

Painter first traveled to Buenos Aires, Argentina, to participate in a week-long program hosted by the Argentine Polo Association in conjunction with the 2018 Youth Olympic Games being held in the capital city. As part of the experience, the junior players from around the world played a showcase game, visited the Ellerstina and La Dolfina organizations and watched several high-goal games. This fall, Painter had the opportunity to return to Argentina as part of his training with Team USPA. “I am playing 18- to 20-goal practices every other day on amazing horses and living in Centauros with so many world class players. Argentina is great!” Painter is focused on developing his game and continuing to play high level polo.

Winston Painter, (left) in the 2014 USPA I/I Middle School League tournament hosted at Gardnertown Polo Club, to (right) 2019 USPA NYTS Champion and MVP.

VIEW FROM THE CROW’S NEST

Chris Van Loon - USPA Certified Umpire

Cornell IS ‘13

My name is Chris Van Loon and I have been involved in the Intercollegiate/Interscholastic Program for many years. I have played polo since the age of eleven, but decided to focus on umpiring about five years ago. I became an umpire in order to stay involved in polo after I was no longer eligible for I/I because I wanted to give back to the polo community. That said, the traveling is a nice added perk. Every weekend I volunteer with Cornell University’s polo program, as this is the institution that started my polo career. I do not think of this as simply giving back to the community, but believe I am doing something to help the people involved. It is uplifting and fulfilling to see a student start their polo career young and inexperienced, and overtime grow in skill and character. The many people I have met and the friends I made along the way have helped shape me to who I am today. They take the time to explain the history of polo through fun and interesting stories, and have given me pointers on how to be a better umpire.

I have noticed a general trend of higher quality polo in

the past few years and I believe this is attributed to the amazing selection of coaching staff the students have readily available to them. It also seems the students’ polo careers are beginning at an earlier age. Back when I was starting my polo career, I didn’t hear much about middle school polo leagues and tournaments. Now, they are far more frequent as an increasing number of schools are making it available to younger students. One of the best things the I/I Program has succeeded in is catering polo to the younger generation. This focus has manifested itself in a stronger and higher quality collection of talent for the polo community. Everyone benefits from starting polo at a younger age.

From an umpiring standpoint, one thing that will always make a game seem like it is a high-goal match is keeping it open. The freer flowing the game can move, the better it is for the spectators, the players, and not to mention it makes our jobs as umpires a lot easier. The fewer small and slow moving fouls, the better the game is. We have come to refer to these as “ticky-tack” fouls. Every team

should strive for a fast and open game. If this held true to all the games I umpired, it would always feel like a vacation.

It has become apparent that it seems hard for some players to understand the concept of “playing the advantage.” If one team is fouled by another team but still keeps possession, then it is necessary for the offending team to “give a play” and allow the fouled team to advance with the ball for one play. Too many times a player gets fouled and then does not get the chance to play on due to another player still defending them. This concept of “giving a play” coincides with creating a game that moves and flows. This may require an advanced understanding of the game, as you need to have the presence of mind and the knowledge to register that you created a foul. Riding and hitting the ball are obviously very important to learn, but I believe learning the rules is just as important for all players.

Good luck to all teams playing in the

The Fall Fandango collegiate arena polo event fell on Veterans Day weekend once again in 2019. Several of the matches were played as USPA Admiral Chester W. Nimitz and General Lewis B. “Chesty” Puller tournaments in which each team has players with military connections through family members’ service. The JV tournament was played as a Veterans Day salute with teams representing Army (Jackson Christie, Kayla Ballero, Lizie Conrad), Navy (Jenna Gardner, Brinley Gothard, Hannah Banderord), Air Force (Melissa Lopez, Genna Bono, Kirsten Baldwin), Coast Guard (Lilly Foregger, Sofia Garvin, Adrianna Arguello) and Marines (Lexie Harlan, Hannah Tisdale, Valerie Bennett) complete with military jerseys and flags. The JV and Club members represented Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, University of Arkansas, SMU, and St Edward’s University. Karl Hilberg from the USPA Armed Forces Committee (and Navy veteran) presented trophies to the winners. Team Air Force won the A flight in a shoot-out and Team Navy took the honors in the B flight.

FROM THE HORSE’S MOUTH

UCONN Polo Ponies Retire in Style

The UConn Polo Club and UConn’s Animal Science Department have been working hard to ensure their polo ponies find new jobs after they retire from polo. The team was lucky to find Angel Horses Inc. in West Granbury, Connecticut to take their two most recent retirees. Brittney (chestnut) and Soledad (gray) both dedicated many years to the polo program, playing for the varsity teams along with all levels of community polo lessons. Both Brittney and Soledad currently participate in the many afterschool programs that Angel Horses Inc. runs; specifically, a therapeutic horsemanship program for middle school students. Brittney and Soledad are groomed and loved not only by the kids, but also by the amazing volunteers at Angel Horses Inc. every day. The varsity team volunteered at the Open Farm Day and saw the volunteers’ hard work in action. They spoke to the public about the sport of polo and how Brittney and Soledad contributed to the UConn polo program. Brittney was donated by Danny Scheraga and Soledad was donated by Leo Mandelbaum.

CHUKKER BREAK

Riley Harris - U IDAHO ‘19 Wildfire Fire Fighter

Riley Harris (University of Idaho ’19) is a Fire Fighter Type 2 (Wildland Firefighter) for the U.S. Forest Service based in the Moose Creek Ranger District on the Selway River in Idaho. This past summer was his second summer at this job and was working on seven wildfires. He was part of the initial attack module with a crew of seven other fire fighters. As initial attack, they are the first on scene to manage or suppress any wildfires in the 2,224,091acre Nez Perce National Forest. If smoke is spotted by the many lookouts on the forest, they determine a location and often hike miles to the fire or are transported by helicopter. They suppress fires by falling trees to remove fuel and construct hand line around the fire using chainsaws and hand tools to contain the fire as it burns out. If fires are larger or more complex, they can call for support from helicopters to drop water on the fire or deliver other supplies.

Since its formation, by Eugene “Doc” Hering, the Lakeside Polo Club has been a place of great memories, lifelong friendships and fantastic polo! Now, 60 years later, the Lakeside Polo Club is proud to continue supporting its youth program, the Lakeside Polo Youth Foundation, founded in 2016. Students in the program receive a once in a lifetime opportunity to learn to play this unique, prestigious sport in an edifying and encouraging manner.

CAL POLY SLO WISHES

ALL THE TEAMS

GOOD LUCK 2020 SEASON

IN THE

Interested in playing?

• Cal Poly ranked No 1 public, maste level University by U S News Wor Report’s America’s Best Colleges

• Play year-round

• 30 dedicated school horses

• Play 7 days a week

• Professional full time coaching &

• H

For admissions info, contact:

Coach, Cal Poly Polo Team (805)801-9410 Megan Judge

https://animalscience.calpoly.edu/curren tstudents/polo-team

SCHOLARSHIP

Fiona McBride-Luman

My name is Fiona McBride-Luman and I recently graduated from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo as an Animal Science major and a Spanish minor. I was fortunate enough to play intercollegiate polo during all four of my years at Cal Poly. In the fall I plan to start the veterinary program at the University of Glasgow and hope to continue playing polo at a recreational level during my time there. I began playing polo in eighth grade, continued throughout high school, and was able to play during my time at Cal Poly thanks to the USPA Intercollegiate Scholarship. The scholarship reduced my need to work while playing which helped me keep up with my studies. Receiving the USPA Intercollegiate Polo Scholarship also pushed me to keep up my polo skills and stay on the varsity level.

Intercollegiate and Interscholastic polo have given me so many opportunities throughout my high school and college years. The USPA Intercollegiate Polo Scholarship was extremely helpful in making many of these opportunities possible. Getting the chance to play under a great coach, Megan Judge, and a wonderful team of players at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. I was also able to travel with Cal Poly’s polo team to the National Intercollegiate Championship for each of the last four years. I have also played in various other tournaments and was selected to play in the USPA International Intercollegiate Challenge Cup this year which was also an amazing opportunity. This enabled me to get to know and play polo with three other US intercollegiate polo players as well as the British team. I was humbled to have been selected to represent the US in the challenge cup. Since my start with polo in eighth grade with the Oakdale Polo Club and Mike O’Ferrall up to my time with Cal Poly, I have met so many amazing people who have given me advice and just helped me along the way in polo and in life. I have also made friends for life along the way and am so grateful to have been able to play this sport for the last nine years.

DAVID LOMINSKA

OREGON STATE

CLEAN POLO BOOTS

POLO CLUB by Greenskeepers

MY YEAR by Gashi and G-Easy

GAME DAY SOCKS

CULVER CLASS RING

BREAKFAST BURRITO

BUTTER NOODLES

PONY PREP BAND ON THE RUN by Paul McCartney

LUCKY SOCKS

HEADPHONES MILIDELPHIA by Meek Mill and Swizz Beats

YELLOW SOCKS

CHICKEN ALFREDO

GRANOLA BAR

PUT GAME STUFF ON LAST MINUTE - RIGHT BOOT ALWAYS FIRST

RYAN CRONIN-PRATHER & SAYGE ELLINGTONLAWRENCE

DRINK 5 HOUR ENERGY

POLISHING BOOTS & KNEE PADS

BLAST MUSIC IN BARN OR HEADPHONES

HANNAH REYNOLDS & MARISSA WELLS

MATT COPPOLA & WESLEY BRYAN

ANNA WINSLOW & JULIA SMITH

GET(ING) IN THE GAME

College

Polo - Creating Life-Long Members

My start in polo was less conventional than most in the sport, but it shares similarities with the beginnings of many I/I players. It literally started with a sign on campus at Texas A&M University my spring semester of freshman year. The TAMU Polo Club was hosting an open barn night event for students to visit the barn, learn more about the sport, and take a quick lesson on one of their polo ponies. Growing up in the suburbs in Texas, I had never even been near a horse, so I convinced two of my roommates to go with me to their club and take one of the polo lessons. That evening when we arrived at check in at the TAMU Polo barn it had begun raining and being January in Texas, that meant it would begin to sleet as soon as the sun set. The club officers turned us away with the promise that if the weather was better later in the week, we could come back out again. By Friday that week, the rain had stopped but it was still relatively cold, so I was the only one of my friends to return to the barn to take the polo lesson. I rode one of their polo ponies named Fea who was the perfect horse for a beginner rider to walk around the arena with and practice a half swing with instruction from the Men’s and Women’s team members. Afterwards I spoke with Lara Straussfeld, Holly Boggess, and several other club members about the sport and how the club could teach me to ride and to play. I was sold. I called home to convince my parents of the idea and joined the next week. Over the course of the next two years, I rode and played in club chukkers during the spring and fall semesters every chance that could and worked summer jobs to pay for riding lessons while was home in Wichita Falls for summer break. I would drive two hours once a week down to Argyle to ride with an English trainer to improve my seat and horsemanship. By Junior year I had taken on a club officer role as treasurer, riding or playing five days a week during the semester, mentoring with the horse care officer to assist her with the horses we leased to the I/I tournaments during the spring, learning to drive the tractor in order to put round bales out in the field, and logging hours learning how to haul with the club’s truck and trailer.

The following summer I spent a week at Marlan Farms in Maryland with my teammate, Marissa Wells. One highlight of the trip was hauling up to Pennsylvania to play in an outdoor match at Lancaster Polo Club. I had never played in an outdoor match and especially not for a Sunday crowd! It was a gorgeous day for polo and a warm welcoming visit to my first polo club outside of

“Meeting their players, competing against them, and fostering lasting relationships is what is truly intrinsic about the I/I program. Most of all, I remember the players from that weekend and not the scores.”

my collegiate club. Later that summer I traveled down to Houston to meet up with another teammate, Kendall Plank, to visit the Houston Polo Club and local tack stores. It was time to make the commitment for proper polo boots to replace my well-worn paddock boots and a polo helmet. Kendall was the perfect guide for a firsttime buyer. We even hit a few rounds in Houston’s hitting cage. These two ladies along with freshman teammate Ally Vaughn and Coach Mike McCleary helped shape my senior year in ways I never would have imagined. My debut I/I tournament was the Central Intercollegiate Regional held at Brookshire Polo Club where we competed against teams in from SMU, TCU, OSU, and CSU. Meeting their players, competing against them, and fostering lasting relationships is what is truly intrinsic about the I/I program. Most of all, I remember the players from that weekend and not the scores. Our success did grant us a spot at the National Intercollegiate Championship held the following month in Santa Barbara, California. The pinnacle of I/I polo exceeded my expectations, from the host site and USPA coordinating staff to the level of competition and down to the wire buzzer beating goals that left the title within close

reach for any team. Nothing can replace what I gained from the experience of playing intercollegiate polo and opening the door to future career opportunities. After graduation from Texas A&M University, I packed up my car and drove with the caravan of twenty Team USPA polo ponies to spend the summer in Sheridan, Wyoming, as a USPA Intern. We scheduled practices with local professional players at the Flying H Polo Club to mentor and coach the players in training for the duration of the summer. It was like being transported to a whole other world. was meeting and working with renowned players that had played all over the country and the world. This broadened my understanding for the capacity of the sport. Polo goes beyond university teams and tournaments. Many of the professionals I was introduced to grew up playing with their family members and polo was essentially in their blood. That summer I formed a relationship with the Kruegers, grooming and babysitting for them and was asked by KC to join them in Houston for a fall internship at the Houston Polo Club. We spent 10 action packed weeks scheduling and managing over 200 games, closing the season with a weeklong ladies’ tournament that spanned five flights and included over 90 players. The whole experience taught me the fundamentals of managing and facilitating

the sport I love so dearly. This first stint interning in Houston led to two more seasons as an assistant manager in the spring and fall of 2018 at HPC, where I had the pleasure of working along side their wonderful staff and passionate polo members. My USPA interning also took me to Aiken, South Carolina, and to Tinicum Park Polo Club in Bucks County, Pennsylvania ,that year to further my training in the polo industry. Reflecting on these internships now as a member of the USPA staff, how each new experience led to my new role as the USPA Membership Administrator and getting to work with a team of dedicated polo players who are I/I alums from CSU, MSU, SMU, UCONN, UK, and UVA. The late David Wenning said it best in a conversation I had with him after NIC, my introduction into polo had come full circle and I had developed a passion to further the sport throughout my life because of the impact the I/I program made on me.

Taylor Smith (above) with her Texas A&M teammates at the 2017 USPA National Intercollegiate Championships. PC: Elizabeth Hedley. Smith, (below) learned how to ride and play as a Freshman at Texas A&M.

TALENT WINS GAMES BUT TEAMWORK AND INTELLIGENCE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS.

I/I Supporters Recognized with National

USPA Awards

USPA UMPIRE OF THE YEAR AWARD - 2019

Bradley Biddle

To All The I/I Teams in 2020!

USPA CLINT NANGLE AWARD - 2019 EXCELLENCE IN EQUINE WELFARE

Pam Flanagan

USPA RUSS SHELDON AWARD - 2019 OUTSTANDING CONTRIBUTION TO ARENA POLO

Danny Scheraga

MICHAEL JORDAN

2019 I/I TEAM ROSTERS

INTERSCHOLASTIC GIRLS

AIKEN

Anna Hale

Summer Kneece

Reagan Leitner

Robyn Leitner

Virginia Gwinn

BOSTON

Elizabeth Owens

Delaney Bates

Julia Schaefer

Ariadne Dogani

BUFFALO

Catherine Van Bakel

Kenzie Ridd

Melanie Fraser

Nicole Jaswal

Sabrina McLennon

Brona Mayne

CENTRAL COAST

Petra Teixeira

Taylor Olcott

Sara Espy

Charlize Bisogni

CORNELL

Susanna Manns

Jasmine Umrigar

Antoinette Miller

CULVER

Karinna Kanach

Daphne Karahalios

Xiaohui “Cici” Zhao

Samantha Leach

Celeste Tinsley

EMPIRE

Claire Jenkins

Ella Bonilla

Alyssa Garcia

Elise Pardue

GARDNERTOWN I

Emma Kriege

Katie Kriege

Elizabeth Leudesdorff

Haley Kriege

GARDNERTOWN II

Mary Duncan

Saralyn Painter

Jaidyn Scott

GARRISON FOREST

Elizabeth Bennett

Kaylin Bender

Lindsey Morris

Lael Cashen

GARRISON FOREST JV

Emma DeYoung

Madeline Radosevic

Gabriella Chiasera

HILLSIDE

Taylor Nackers

Gabrielle De Gail

Sofia Ward

Kelsey Melchert

HOUSTON A

Bridget Price

Grace Mudra

April Galindo

Cara Kennedy

Joanie Jackson

HOUSTON B

Phebe Vargas

Abigail Benton

Grace Parker

Daniella Price

Isabel Artzer

Lillian Lequerica

MARYLAND

Catherine Stueck

Sophie Grant

Abbie Grant

Olivia Reynolds

MARYLAND REBELS

Jordan Peterson

Aurora Knox

Grace Fleischmann

Brianna Jordan

MAUI

Kaya Acker

Alana Benz

Maya Miller

Sunny Diller

MOUNTAIN VIEW

Lea Jih-Vieira

Willow Longerbeam

Sierra Goff

Amelia Shaw

NEWPORT

Hannah Stowe

Ryan McNeilly

Catherine Reed

Teghan Torrey

POWAY

Sydney Morris

Hannah Stock

Jasmine Lu

Remington Glasgow

SAN ANTONIO

Georgia Stone

Stella Stone

Carmen Sauer

Aubrey McVaney

Tori Mast

SOUTH BAY

Samantha Deachryver

Blair Conlan

Augusta O’Ferrall

Magnolia Rice-Ferguson

SUTTER BUTTES

Caroline Mathews

Liliana Gonzalez

Camilla McFall

Simone Harper

INTERSCHOLASTIC OPEN

AIKEN

Mason Sease

Aiden Meeker

Michael Bradford

VIRGINIA JRs

Coco De Vink

Lauren Rapp

Emmie Golkosky

WESTERN NY

Rheanna Quinlan

Kelsi Bird

Evelyn Miller

Alison Luckenbach

WTR

Imogen Roth

Ruby Stiles

Arti Chhugani

Nahla Thomas

Marisol Jimenez

Imani Uzzell

Kaela Prescott

Josh Escapite

ATLANTA RPC

Faye Decker

Adrienne Lincoln

Caleb Cherry

Charlotte Huck

Erykah Glass

BATTLEFIELD

Harrison Thomas

Amy Kim

Maris Jones

Marykate Santos

BLUEWATER CREEK

Gracie Brown

Elizabeth Walker

Christian Pitts

Alexa Wright

BOSTON

Amar Anand

Rehan Kumble

Maria Piper

CCPC

Luke Klentner

Ruby Decker

Dylan Stern

COMMONWEALTH

Henry Beck

Angus Middleton

Ford Middendorf

Stuart Boland

Patricio Fraga

CORNELL

Drew Kessler

Phil Van der Burgt

Nicholas Paciorek

HILLSIDE

Elion Le’Flore

Melissa Filson

Gavin Marshman

CULVER

Cipriano Echezarreta

Chris Owen

Tom Ni

Zongling Shen

Maximo Gallardo

Lars Biedenbender

Ian Kosky

FRANKLIN

Zachary Wallace

Jacob Wallace

Caroline Mooney

Allyssa Morgan

GARDNERTOWN

John Dencker

Matteo Chaux

Winston Painter

Jack Whitman

HOUSTON A

Robert Price

Anson Moore

Joseph Stimmel

Charles Fridge

HOUSTON B

Christian Fridge

Lance Stefanakis

Will Mudra

Chistopher Boone

Preston Herleth

LA LOMA

Raul Molina

Ana Novales

Sebastian Aguilar

Marcella Novales

Jose Rocasermeno

MAUI

John Kirton

Daniel Miranda

Kaiana Holland

Laura Coflin

LAKESIDE VARSITY

Ian Schnoebelen

Ethan Bankhead

Joaquin Perez

Kylie Kufahl

LAKESIDE JV

David Kral

Franchesca Johannsen

Zoey Newton

Paige Kufahl

Thalia Postins

LANCASTER – WTR

Julian Penados

Esteban Penados

Justin Hall

Mosiah Gravesande

John Womble

MARYLAND

Kevin Horton

Madison Jordan

Josephine Dorsey

Parker Pearce

MARYLAND JV

Aidan Tydings

Cort Resh

Zoey Bivalacqua

Grace Beck

MYOPIA VARSITY

Grace Grotnik

Chloe Irvine

Reed Miller

Hamilton Gundlach

MYOPIA JV

Augustus Grotnik

William Grayken

James Grayken

Shane Metternick

Brynn Roberts

NEWPORT

Rohan Sampath

Anna Yalanis

Cole Kinsella

POWAY

Madeline Breitweiser

Thomas Spear

Sebastian Lopez

Emily Andre

PRESTONWOOD

Vance Miller III

Johann Felhaber

Niklaus Felhaber

ST LOUIS

Robert Mooney

Winifred Branscum

Will Smith

Joscelin Gallegos

Natalie Richter

SARASOTA

Ian Campbell

Pippa Campbell

Raj Singh

Sophie Cottrez

Jillian Beck

SOUTH BAY

Ajay Moturi

Claire Kennedy

Amy Lang

Natalie Clark

TRIANGLE

Isabella Hamon

Carson Tucker

Natalia Hernandez

WEST SHORE

Lucinda Steele

Victoria Picha

Sarah Lynch

WILLOWBEND

Maxwell Beuck

Clark Mayer

Will Walton

YALE 1

Taylor Palacios

Chris Veitch

Vlad Tarashansky

Gaston Gomez

YALE 2

Eduardo Palacios

Oliver Wieser

Connelly Cashen

Luke Howe

Kaya Brownell

Sophia DeAngelis

INTERCOLLEGIATE WOMEN

BROWN

Bryn Sullivan

Katherine Dunn

Mia Purdom

CAL POLY

Fiona McBride-Luman

Margaret Papka

Megan Wurden

Claire English

Janelle Ross

Rose Brownridge

Sydney Weise

Carter Nix

Natalie Craig

Madison Green

COLORADO STATE

Kaile Roos

Tessa Parrish

Riley Spillar

Jasmine Gallegos

Rachel Romero

Rylee Cooper

Maggie Richards

Parker Keber

CORNELL

Rachel Booth

Shariah Harris

Emily Thomas

Anna Ullmann

Kathryn Kotwick

Kyra Umrigar

Olivia Quill

Ingrid Donnan

Emma Wood

EMORY

Kimberly Eckles

Monica Schweizer

Zhiying Ren

Lillian Pang

Mary Yuan

Emily Fan

GUELPH

Rachel Kotur

Emma Langford

Casey Howard

Brittany Howard

Savannah Weber

Krista Pearce

MICHIGAN STATE

Keahna DePauw

Kathryn Pauli

Elaine Schwingel

McKenna Swanson

Stesha Payne

MONTANA STATE

Sarah Bean

Madeline Bremel

Jordan Hall

Cassandra Pfannenstiel

OKLAHOMA STATE

Theresa Sabatini

Alison Thomas

Kirsten Baldwin

Emily Nunan

OREGON STATE

Erin Bush

Anna Alex

Kaylin Alexander Abigayle Darula

Madeleine Johnson

Megan Myszka

Sarah Schneider

POINT LOMA

Molly Agee

Ellary Lentz

Jessica Bronner

Emma Thomas

ROGER WILLIAMS

Jocelyn Nogueira

Aliah Debejian

Anne Ebersold

SKIDMORE

Ruth Witmer

Freida Witmer

Isabel Carey

Emelie Stewart

Jen Maselli

SMU

Megan Rahlfs

Ting Lu

Lindsay Bellack

Kelly Klopp

Sophia Neis

STANFORD

Alexandra Littleton

Angela Wang

Isabelle Carpenter

Evgeniya Borisenko

Sarah Dobbins

Yasmine Ainane

TEXAS A&M

Marissa Wells

Alexandra Vaughn

Courtney Price

Hannah Reynolds

Emma Glynn

Ashley Dillard

TEXAS TECH

Ashley Caines

Amelia Fisher

Raeghan Eckert

Marguerite Buchmann

Sydney Flynt

Abi McVaney

UCSB

Jane Xu

Marina Akhavein

Angela Osman

UCONN

Anders Carlton

Julia Marrinan

Nicole Kula

Sage Saffran

Anna McCarthy

Rachel Beach

Julianna Gallo

Kathleen Moriarty

U of KENTUCKY

Margaret Holloway

Eva Crossman

Olivia Graham

Avery Evans

Louisa Huber

Griffin Tuftie

UMASS

Elizabeth Kelley

Hannah Okonsky

Shonali Paul

Samantha Bruha

Madison Perlmutter

Colleen McGuinness

U of MICHIGAN

Amanda Vogel

Kyleigh Cumming

Madelyn Blum

Meagan McBride

Monica Lis-Planells

USC

Annie Choi

Anya Moturi

Cory Williams

Makenzie Hajek

Ninon Cofrade

U of VIRGINIA

Demitra Hajimihalis

Meghan Milligan

Jessica Riemann

Grace Burgert

Margret Erb

Mia Sweeney

Sadie Bryant

VIRGINIA TECH

Mikayla MacNeill

Jessica Brown

Marina Meciniski

Emily Danko

Shayna Stern

WESTMONT

Maggie Hine

Keilah Smith

Emma Daniel

U of WISCONSIN

Nicola Brown

Margaret Williams

Olivia Evans

Elizabeth Sprouls

YALE

Lotta Keller

Leila Chang

Jamie Skaggs

Sofia Cianchi

Dani Schulman

Lucy Baldwin

Elizabeth Vore

CHUKKER BREAK

New USPA Young Players Committee

The Young Players Committee was formed in April of 2019 to generate a voice within the USPA to provide input on opportunities, initiatives, rules, and policies in an effort to help deliver fresh solutions to the challenges youth players face in polo today. Eight of the nine committee members have been involved in I/I programs. The members are: Jared Zenni (University of Miami), Mason Wroe (Fort Worth IS, Texas A&M), Kylie Sheehan (Garrison Forest IS, UVA), Grant Ganzi (Grand Champions IS), Jimmy Wright (Eldorado IS), Zach Grob (Yale IS, UCONN), Costi Caset, Hope Arellano (Palm Beach IS), and Todd Thurston (Virginia JRs IS, UVA). The I/I programs have been a major part of the growth of these polo players. Having sent a survey to a majority of all I/I members, the Young Players Committee is committed to listening to not only the current I/I members, but also the I/I alumni who are valuable to the sport. Despite being in its early stages, the Young Players Committee has taken a leadership position in encouraging Safe Sport Certification, something that all I/I coaches are already required to take. All Young Players Committee members are Safe Sport certified, and they look forward to continuing to lead on behalf of I/I members. The Young Players Committee encourages I/I members to reach out to them to provide insight so that they can take measurable actions to make a difference in growing the sport we all love. PC: Pam Gleason

INTERCOLLEGIATE MEN

CAL POLY

Stone Rush

Theo Anastos

Sayge Ellington

Brandon Carreon

COLORADO STATE

Douglass “Bennett” Moore

Charlie Walker

Jon Johnson

CORNELL

Jedidiah Cogan

Grant Feuer

Lorenzo Masias

Morgan Palacios

U of KENTUCKY

Benjamin Lynch

Tommy Huber

Alfred “Will” Green

Joseph Post

James Boland

Federico Puyana

Ronald “Ry” Koopman

Kurt Mion

OKLAHOMA STATE

James Armstrong

Hunter Hudson

Ibrahim Abuemah

Spencer Tuttle

OREGON STATE

Wyatt Weaver

Andrew Hobson

Joel Potyk

Mitchell Yost

ROGER WILLIAMS

George Hempt

Pedro Cabrera

Alex Conde

Matt Boccanfuso

SKIDMORE

Liam Lott

Aaron Schneider

Owen Chen

Oliver Leung

SMU

Barrett Coke

Jose “Ramon” de la Torre

Jacob “Jake” Klentner

Sloan Stefanakis

George “Nick” Salnikoff

Benjamin “Benji” Daniels

Trent Lott

TEXAS A&M

Christian Aycinena

Fritz Felhaber

Mariano Silva

Colton Valentine

TEXAS TECH

Hiram Gandara

John “Connor” Thompson

Zachary Francis

Jair De la Pena

Jeremie Morris

U OF NORTH TEXAS

Vaughn Miller Jr

Turner Wheaton

Andrew Scott

USC-AIKEN

Charlie Caldwell

Harry Caldwell

James “Jim” Deal

U of VIRGINIA

Jack McLean

Ignacio “Nachi” Viana

Brennan Wells

Simon Colloredo-Mansfeld

Antonio Mendes de Almeida

WESTERN ONTARIO

Mich Ward

Evan White

Kingsley Ward

YALE

Zodi Chalat

Benito Flores

Yan Davidoff

CHUKKER BREAK

Demolition for Donations

University of Wisconsin

The University of Wisconsin Team thinks outside the box when it comes to fundraising. Player Amy James explains: “Essentially, my family was planning to renovate our bathroom. My dad is a contractor and does most of his own work, but demolition is so hard on his body that he was planning to hire someone. I made a deal with him to make a donation to the polo club for the amount he would pay the contract company in return for us doing the demolition work!

We gutted the entire bathroom, jack hammered out all the tiling and cement and hauled away all the debris. It would have been a ton of work for one person, but with the whole team rotating through it was a piece of cake!

We’ve promoted it some since but have not gotten any other gigs (yet). It’s a new fundraising tactic I’m working on-- doing work people would pay for anyway in return for donations instead of paying a contractor.”

MIDDLE SCHOOL

Aiken Polo Club

CRESTVIEW FARM

Gavin Meeker

Bird Caro

Ramon Caro

LAZY R FARM

Tyler Runion

Daniel Arnold

Boyette Watridge

Battlefield Park Polo Club

MARYLAND REBELS

Aleem Siddiqui

Sierra Blevins

Kylie Beard

BATTLEFIELD 1

Shwati Narayanan

Anika Spaid

Rory Knox

BATTLEFIELD 2

Annie Hahn

Emma Thacker

Katelyn Pelaia

MARYLAND 2

Allegra Vercesi

Dahilia Abu Hassan

Lillibeth Wehberg

Central Coast Polo Club

CENTRAL COAST WHITE

Alyssa Neville

Charlie Brand

Vivi Klentner

SOUTH BAY BLUE

Morgan Manos

Kate Soderin

Matthew Werner

CENTRAL COAST RED

Linnea Johnson

Annabelle Mericle

Helena Bache

Gardnertown Polo Club BLUE

Saralyn Painter

Isabella Poniatowski

Michael Joseph

GREY

Henry Elser

CJ Gilbo

Evan Sayago

LIGHT GREEN

Emerson Bruce

Alex Resti

Daniel Arnold

Ali Cogan

DARK GREEN

Catelyn Godey

Sammi Iahn

Adam Wallace

Garrison Forest School

GARRISON FOREST 1

Cate Godey

Aleem Siddiqui

Josie Goldstein

WORK TO RIDE

Sophia Chiasera

Graham Absolom

Sage Lax

MARYLAND POLO

Rory Knox

Yash Chhugani

Keira Paige

GARRISON FOREST 2

Kylie Beard

Marc Anthony Harley

Alanna Forbes

WORK TO RIDE 2

Josie Smith

Isabelle Brockett

Jack Jawork

Houston Polo Club

HOUSTON BLUE

Joe Bob Lequerica

Judah Altic

Clare Bogart

HOUSTON WHITE

Quinn Van der Hoev

Caroline Karvelsson

Isabel Artzer

Lakeside Polo Club

BLUE TEAM

Emerson Bond

Luca Abboud

Jordan Pearson

ORANGE TEAM

Jordyn Griffith

Lukas Cobbs

Thomas Spear

Sebastian Lopez

Marlan Farm Polo Club

WHITE

Isabelle Brockett

Sierra Blevins

Jonathan Dingus

Emma Thacker

BLACK

Keira Paige

Kylie Beard

Russell Calkins

GREY

Aleem Siddiqui

Rory Knox

Mya Quarcoopome

GREEN

Ashby Hatcher

Tori Picha

Lily Wehberg

Dahlia Abu Hasson

Maui Polo Club

MAUI BLACK

Coco Acker

Elizabeth Miranda Kaelynn Rice

MAUI WHITE

Jayci Jay Clark

Emily Coflin

Leah Melzer

Yale Polo Club

TEAM 1

Dan Arnold

Ana Veitch

Emerson Bruce

TEAM 2

Sarayln Painter

Michael Joseph

Isabel Poniatowski

TEAM 3

Travis Soto

Trey Ramirez

Dan Coyle

TEAM 4

Brynn Whitten

Sam Iahn

Adam Wallace

TEAM 5

Malchi Light

Hannah Elliot

Evan Sayago

Buffalo Polo Club

POST TIME

Madison Haggerty

Kairi Davies

Liam Ersing

BUFFALO

Hailee DeVries

Flynn Collins

Luke Ersing

“OF

GREAT POLO BEGINS WITH I/I:

Intercollegiate Tournaments, Interscholastic Tournaments, Regular Season Champions, Middle School League, Interscholastic Varsity Letter Program, Intercollegiate Scholarships, International Challenge Cup, Funding, Clinics, Club Consults, Umpire Support and more! CONTACT: Amy Fraser, afraser@uspolo.org

- JOHN MUIR

POLO HELMET UPDATE

Beginning June 1, 2020 all players in any USPA Event or Club Event will be required to wear a helmet that passes the NOCSAE ND050 Standard Performance Specification.

HOW DO YOU TELL IF A HELMET PASSES NOCSAE ND050?

Helmets will have the SEI/NOCSAE logo attached to the outside of the helmet.