ITHACA, N.Y. -- The Cornell men's polo team went 2-1 at the William S. Field Polo Invitational this past week at the Oxley Equestrian Center, earning a pair of hard-fought victories over Kentucky (23-17) and Colorado State (24-20) before falling in the finals to Virginia (19-10). Cornell improved to 5-3 with the victory.

First up for Cornell was Kentucky. The Big Red split with the Wildcats in a home-and-home series a year ago, but jumped out to an early 6-3 lead after the first chukker. In a fast-paced game that Cornell never trailed in, the Big Red was able to close out the visitors to bring home a solid 23-17 victory.  Colorado State, who had earlier defeated Kentucky as well, jumped to a 4-0 lead, but the Big Red stayed calm and fought back to tie it at 6-6 after one.  Once again in the second, the Rams scored three quick goals and had Cornell down. Again, the Big Red would fight back to tie it at 10-10 and, with some last-second dramatics, took the 11-10 lead into the break. Colorado State came out running in the third, outscoring Cornell for the chukker and retaking the lead into the fourth at 16-15. The home team would not be denied as it put together a strong fourth chukker. Led by Max Constant, who scored five of the nine goals in the fourth, Cornell secured the game with a great 24-20 win.

Reaching the finals was Cornell's goal, but once in it, the Big Red had its shot at No. 1 Virginia. Cornell scored first, but Virginia quickly turned that lead into a 3-1 deficit. The Big Red hung tough though and ended the first chukker down 3-2. In the second, Virginia scored first to make it  4-2,  but Cornell answered with four of the next five goals and took a lead into the half at 6-5. The third chukker saw Virginia break through. The Cavaliers came out strong and won the chukker 7-2, taking a 12-8 lead into the fourth. They would match their third chukker totals with another 7-2 edge in the fourth to take home the trophy with a 19-10 victory.