ITHACA, N.Y. -- The Cornell men's polo team set itself up for a great 2016-17 season by sweeping through the Virginia Fall Invitational this past weekend, defeating three of the top teams in the country en route to the tournament crown. The Big Red toppled Virginia 15-9 in the finals after dismantling SMU (25-12) and Texas A&M (14-9) on its way to the championship match.

The Masias brothers, Ignacio and Lorenzo, joined with Liam Palacios and Dan Shaw in the opener against SMU, jumping out quickly and never looking back. The Big Red led 6-2 after one, 12-7 at the half and cruised to the 25-12 win.

In the semifinals, the Big Red jumped out quickly with a two-point shot from Ignacio Masias to start a 5-0 run. The Aggies responded with a couple of goals to close to 5-2, but Cornell would end the first up 6-3. The Aggies closed to within 7-6 before Cornell separated itself with two goals to end the half up 9-6. The third chukker saw Cornell increase its lead to 12-7, and the teams traded goals in the fourth to end the day up 14-9

The Cavaliers scored first and took a 3-2 lead after one in the finals. The home team extended its lead to 5-2 when Ignacio Masias scored a two-point back shot to spark a fire, outscoring the Cavs 6-1 to close the half up 8-6. The Big Red extended its lead 13-8 by the end of the third and would bring home the victory 15-9.