CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Cornell men's polo team remains unbeaten on the 2021-22 season after edging Southern Methodist, 7-6, on Wednesday night at the Virginia Polo Fall Tournament, hosted by the University of Virginia Polo Club, in Charlottesville, Va.

The Big Red now sits at 4-0, marking the first time since the 2016-17 campaign that Cornell has pieced together four-straight wins to open the season. That year, Cornell started the season 7-0.

In what would turn out to be a defensive battle, Cornell came out strong in the first chukker, scoring three goals as compared to SMU's two to take a 3-2 lead. Although the Mustangs got on the board first, back-to-back goals from Pablo Herrera and Taylor Palacios gave the Big Red a 2-1 advantage. SMU responded, but Herrera's second goal of the chukker gave Cornell the 3-2 lead at the end of the first.

SMU held the Big Red scoreless in the second chukker, and the Mustangs would score a lone goal to knot things up at the half, 3-3. The third chukker belonged to the Big Red, who outscored SMU, 3-1, to take a 6-4 lead heading into the final period of play. It was Palacios and Herrera once again that tallied scores, each notching a third chukker goal. A penalty goal marked Cornell's third of the chukker.

A penalty goal for SMU in the fourth chukker cut the Big Red lead to one, 6-5, but Palacios did what he does best, scoring his third goal of the game to give Cornell a little breathing room at 7-5. The Mustangs would score once more to make it a one score game, 7-6, but that's as close as SMU would get, as Cornell hung on for the 7-6 victory.

Aside from a penalty goal, Palacios and Herrera accounted for all of the Big Red's offense, finishing the contest with three goals apiece. Patricio Fraga-Errecart, Nick Paciorek, and Santiago Valenzuela all contributed to the Big Red win.

The Cornell men's polo team will be back in action at the Virginia Polo Fall Tournament when it takes on the host Cavaliers tomorrow at 6 p.m. in Charlottesville, Va.