The U.S. defeated Trinidad & Tobago, 5-3, in the seventh-place game of an international men’s field hockey tournament at the Chula Vista Olympic Training Center with captain Pat Harris scoring three times in the final 16 minutes.
Harris’ goal in the 45th minute of the 60-minute game in Men’s World League Round 2 gave the U.S. a 3-1 lead on Sunday.
Shaquille Daniel’s goal in the 54th minute cut the lead to 3-2, but the Americans regained a two-goal lead a minute later when Harris scored again.
Daniel again cut the U.S. lead to a goal in the 57th minute, but Harris responded with an insurance goal two minutes later.
The U.S. took a 2-0 lead on goals by Tyler Sundeen in the 12th minute and Christian Linney in the 17th. Akim Toussaint scored Trinidad & Tobago’s first goal in the 41st minute.
Both of the U.S. victories in its six tournament games came against Trinidad & Tobago, which lost all six of its games, including a 7-1 loss to the U.S. in a pool play game last Sunday.
The U.S. is 27th in the rankings compiled by the International Hockey Federation, the sport’s worldwide governing body, three spots ahead of Trinidad & Tobago, th lowest ranked team in the eight-team tournament.
Ireland defeated Austria, 2-1, in the championship game, with Shane O’Donoghue scoring the tie-breaker in the 35th minute.
Canada defeated Russia, 4-1, in the third-place game to join Ireland and Austria in qualifying for the Round 3 tournaments when berths in the 2016 Olympics will be at stake. They will be played June 3-14 in Buenos Aires, Argentina and June 20-July 5 in Brasschaat, Belgium.
The assignments to the specific tournaments will be announced this month.
Chile beat Italy, 3-1, in a penalty shootout in the fifth-place game after regulation play ended in a 1-1 tie.
—City News Service
