Tournament Summary:

Only Change Is Permanent at 2001 PowerBar Cup.

One thing was certain at the start of the sixth annual PowerBar Cup water polo tournament in Atlanta on August 25th-26th: Raider (FL) Water Polo would not add to their string of five straight championships. Everything else was up for grabs at the Dynamo Swim Center.

"It's obvious that the reputation of the PowerBar Cup event continues to grow," explains co-organizer Stuart Sheldon of Dynamo Water Polo "as we had 16 teams submit their entry fees prior to the deadline in May." The field was limited to eight, however, so there were as many checks returned as accepted, including Raider, whose amazing 24-0 PowerBar Cup record was put on hold. The stage was set for a new PowerBar Cup champion as the sun rose on Saturday.

Round robin play on Saturday yielded no upsets but did deliver a tight game between the University of Florida Gators and Downtown Orlando (FL). Just how tight was this game? There were nine ties and three lead changes over the course of four six minute quarters. If that's not enough, the Gators trailed 10-11 with sixteen seconds left in the game when Orlando's Chris Betscher was ejected. UF set up their 6 on 5 offense and went to work, but a shot with three seconds left was blocked and Orlando scratched out an 11-10 win.

On Saturday evening, Dynamo Water Polo hosted the inaugural Power Bash at the Atlanta Brewing Company. "This was much more than you usual water polo tournament social," grinned coordinator Lee Diprizito, "as it included catered food, two live bands and the obvious benefits of its location." Over 150 attended the event, which was deemed a great addition to the reputation of the PowerBar Cup.

Sunday's action featured teams play across brackets for place among the eight teams. While there were no upsets there were once again some tight moments. In the seventh place game, Ohio State University and the Atlanta Rainbow Trout were tied 1-1 at the end of one but the Buckeyes ran off six unanswered goals in the second quarter and cruised 11-2. Two traditional college club rivals, Georgia Tech and UF squared off in the sixth place game. After three seven minute quarters of ties and one goal leads the Yellow Jackets and Gators were tied. UF scored shortly after the opening sprint of the fourth quarter to snap up a slim 6-5 lead and never looked back as they won fifth place 9-7.

Orlando and Triangle (NC) had possibly the best match of 2001 PowerBar Cup as they struggled to determine which team would finish 3rd. The first three minutes of play yielded a flurry of goals and Orlando led 3-1. Triangle scored in closing moments of the first period and the opening moments of second period to knot the score 3-3 and it was a tug of war there to the final buzzer. In overtime Triangle jumped out 9-6 and, with 1:23 left in the second overtime half appeared to slip into cruise mode 83 seconds too soon.

"A few turnovers and silly fouls later and it was 9-8 with time running out" reflected Triangle goalie Jeff Doyle. Orlando stole the ball with less than :20 seconds on the clock and snapped a shot on the Triangle goal. "Orlando got off one last shot that hit the post behind me and skidded across the goal face," explained Doyle "and Charles 'Animal' Stroupe came up big [for Triangle], outracing an Orlando player to the ball and carrying it safely aware from the goal." Tight action indeed but Triangle snatched 3rd place back at the last possible moment and the pool cleared to prepare for the Championship game.

It was clear in Saturday play that Houston Obsolete Polo Squad (HOPS) and host Dynamo were headed for a first-place battle of the undefeated Sunday. HOPS advanced cleanly based on their excellent passing and ball control plus a scary man advantage conversion rate of almost 60%. Dynamo played physical, pressing defense that generated numerous turnovers and counter attack goals, combined with a markedly improved perimeter shooting attack.

The first quarter was sloppy at best, ending in a 1-0 HOPS lead. Dynamo had three quick possessions (sprint, two turn overs) but quickly gave the ball to HOPS each time. Thankfully for the home team HOPS did not convert any of these gifts. In a true display of Southern hospitality Dynamo players were ejected three times in the first quarter, but their fellow Southerners were almost as gracious and HOPS scored only once. HOPS inflicted heavy damage in the second quarter, capitalizing on five Dynamo majors to score five goals and hit half time up 6-2. There was a similar story in the third and HOPS continued to score extra man goals at an alarming rate to end the third up 10-3.

"In the fourth quarter our bench strength finally started paying off," said Dynamo player/coach Tommy Kaye, "but by then it was too little too late." Dynamo outscored HOPS 3-1 in the final quarter but when the final buzzer sounded there was a new PowerBar Cup champion: Houston Obsolete Polo Squad.

As the HOPS squad showed off their loot ($150 worth of PowerBars) you could almost hear the voice of Raider player/coach Felix Mercado floating down from the Dynadome rafters: "We'll be back next year for more yummy PowerBars."

"For the first time in the six year history of the PowerBar Cup Dynamo achieved both our objectives: host an outstanding event and play for the Championship," explained Dynamo co-organizer Tim Watson. "We'll continue to build on the tradition of excellence with the 2002 PowerBar Cup," Watson concluded.

Game Schedule and Results:

Final Standings:

1. HOPS
2. Dynamo
3. Triangle
4. Orlando
5. University of Florida
6. Georgia Tech
7. Ohio State
8. Atlanta Rainbow Trout

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