The opening day of the Hockey competition at the Pan American Games witnessed 32 goals in just four matches as the women’s competition got off to a flying start in Guadalajara, Mexico.
Incredibly, 21 of those goals came in the first two matches, as Argentina and Canada asserted their dominance in Pool A with big victories.
Six-time Pan American champion Argentina trounced Trinidad & Tobago 11-0 in the opening match, with the world’s top-ranked team rattling in six goals before the half through Soledad Garcia (2), Carla Rebecchi, Rosario Luchetti and Noel Barrionuevo. Las Leonas continued their stranglehold in the second half, with penalty corner expert Barrionuevo adding three more goals before Rebecchi scored her second and Delfina Merino completed the rout.
Canada appears to be Argentina’s main rival for top spot in Pool A, after a stunning 10-0 triumph over Barbados. Like the Argentineans, Canada scored six times before the break and reached double figures in the second half. Brienne Stairs hit a hat-trick for her team, with other goals coming from Katie Baker, Thea Culley (2), Kate Gillis, Hannah Haughn, Diana Roemer and Abigail Raye. Argentina and Canada meet on Friday in a match that will almost certainly decide which team will top Pool A.
USA and Chile were the big winners in Pool B, establishing themselves as early frontrunners to secure a place in the Semi Finals. USA produced a sterling performance against host Mexico, surging to a 5-0 win in front of a big crowd. Katie Reinprecht set her team on the way to victory with open play strikes in the 9th and 11th minutes before Shannon Taylor scored a third just before half time. Steph Laubach and Katie O’Donnell chipped in with second half goals to seal a convincing victory.
In the final match of the day, Chile proved to be too strong for Cuba. The South Americans scored three goals in each half, with Manuela Urroz, Maria Jose Fernandez and Denise Infante hitting the target in the first period before a Javier Villagra double and a solitary strike by Christine Fingerhuth rounded off an entertaining first day at Guadalajara’s impressive Pan American Hockey Stadium.
Thursday, men’s competition begins with reigning champion Canada opening proceedings in Pool A taking on Kwan Browne’s Trinidad & Tobago at 09:00 (GMT -5). That match is followed by Chile against Barbados (Pool A – 11:00) before Argentina play Mexico at 14:00 (Pool B). The final match of the day will be contested between USA and Cuba (Pool B – 16:00).
The fixtures for Wednesday and Thursday can be found below. All official tournament information including results, tables, match sheets, reports and photos can be found on the website of the Pan American Hockey Federation by clicking the following link: http://www.panamhockey.org/en/competitions
Results - Wednesday 19th October 2011
09:00 Women's Group A Game 1 Argentina v Trinidad & Tobago 11-0 (6-0)
11:00 Women's Group A Game 2 Canada v Barbados 10-0 (6-0)
14:00 Women's Group B Game 3 United States v Mexico 5-0 (3-0)
16:00 Women's Group B Game 4 Chile v Cuba 6-0 (3-0)
Fixtures
09:00 Men’s Group A Game 1 Canada v Trinidad & Tobago
11:00 Men's Group A Game 2 Chile v Barbados
14:00 Men's Group B Game 3 Argentina v Mexico
16:00 Men's Group B Game 4 USA v Cuba
All times are local (GMT -5)
Hockey at Guadalajara 2011
Who: The Men and women of Argentina, USA, Canada, Mexico, Chile, Cuba, Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago.
Where: The Pan American Hockey Stadium, Revolución Sports Complex, 3232 Pablo Neruda Avenue, Providencia Zone, Guadalajara, Jalisco, México. (Capacity: 1870)
When: 19th - 29th October 2011
The Prize: The men’s and women’s Gold medalists will secure a place at the London 2012 Olympics.
The FIH website will be posting regular updates of the hockey action from Guadalajara. More information about the 2011 Pan American Games can be found at the official event website: www.guadalajara2011.org.mx
