Source: www.guardian.co.tt
T&T’s senior men’s hockey team will be hoping to stop a two-match losing slide when it comes up against host USA at Moorpark College in Moorpark, California, USA from 1.30 pm today. This after the “Calypso stickmen” surrendered a 1-0 lead in a last-minute 3-2 loss to the Americans in their second of four matches on Thursday night at the same venue. The star of the night for the host was veteran player Pat Harris who scored three penalty corner goals, including a last-minute item. Early on in Wednesday’s encounter, it seemed as though the Kwandwane Browne-led T&T squad would level the series at 1-1 after it dominated the first ten minutes before going ahead 1-0 via a Mickel Pierre chip finish over the dive of goalkeeper Andrew Zayac.
However in the 24th minute USA secured a penalty corner which was converted by Harris only for T&T to respond less than a minute later when Atiba Whittington capitalised on another American defensive error, to beat Zayac from a one-on-one play. Just before the interval, T&T goalkeeper Karlos Stephens pulled off a stunning save from a penalty corner to preserve his team’s 2-1 cushion at the half. The second half opened with much of the same back and forth play, but it was the Americans who stuck first in the thirty-ninth minute when Harris once again drag flicked a shot past Stephens to level the score at 2-2. As the match continued both sides saw scoring opportunities go unrealised and it appeared as though the game was on the verge of being a draw.
But it was not to be. One last USA penalty-corner was granted in the sixty-ninth minute and, as he had done earlier, Harris once again beat Stephens to give USA a 3-2 advantage and the victory. On Wednesday in the first match, USA came away with a 4-2 triumph after T&T had also taken the early advantage. Akim Toussaint fired T&T ahead as early as the fifth minute with a quick flick from close range that whisked past Zayac. But the Americans did not sit idly by, as Will Holt teed up Harris for the equaliser in the 14th minute.
USA then went ahead when Ian Scally tipped in a rebound in the 24th minute before Harris scored on his own penalty corner rebound in the 32 minute for a 3-1 lead at the break. On the resumption, T&T started aggressively and reduced the deficit to 3-2 as Toussaint picked up his second goal of the day when he hit a quick, high shot into the net. With momentum swinging towards the T&T, USA stepped up and used a long ball by Scally to set an unmarked Harris free. The USA ace player did not disappoint as he used a one-time sweep pass to hit Jon Ginolfi for the fourth USA goal of the day in the 41st minute.