I N T E R C O L L E G I AT E I N T E R S C H O L A S T I C
Up to Middle School tournament competition starts in 5th grade By Amy Fraser
PJ DeAngelis was an all-star in his first year playing middle school tournaments.
In the spring of 2019, the I/I staff received an email from one of our I/I umpires and college alums, Jim DeAngelis. Enclosed in the email was not a question about the I/I Tournament Conditions or a suggested change, but an attachment from Jim’s son, PJ. In the letter, PJ laid out his reasons for why the I/I middle school tournaments should extend eligibility to polo players currently in the fourth grade. His justifications were genuine: some fourth graders are better players than fifth graders, some fourth graders know how to tack horses and some even know the pieces of tack better than some adults. His strongest argument though, was that
26 POLO P L A Y E R S E D I T I O N
some fourth graders just want to play! To PJ’s disappointment, the rules for middle school did not change and he was not eligible to play in the fall 2019 Middle School League. To no one’s surprise, PJ’s was the first registration the I/I staff received for the 2020 middle school season–his fifthgrade year. When the schedule shook out, PJ was able to play in three middle school tournaments during his first year of the middle school league. Polo is a family affair in the DeAngelis family, Jim and wife Julie met while playing polo in Newport, Rhode Island, and have played for years together. “I was hoping the kids would love the horses too,” remarked Julie. “We are so thankful that they do! Polo is even better playing as a family.” Older sister Sophia has played her way through the Middle School League and now competes at the Interscholastic level for the Yale Polo & Equestrian Center teams. One of the main differences between the I/I tournaments and the Middle School League is the absence of the split-string format in the latter program. Instead of the teams sharing all the horses playing in the game between themselves, Middle School League players can bring their own horses or rent appropriate ones to solely play. When asked which horses he was excited about playing at the YPEC tournament, PJ listed Bella, Ruleta, Pamela, Lohan and Paige. The advantage of playing a tournament at your home club sits in the knowledge of the horses and the facility. “I was most excited to play in the tournament at Yale because I could ride the horses that I love and [I] know the arena. Plus, I was close to home and the teams sounded fun.” I/I staff recommends players be ready for tournament polo when signing up to play in a middle school tournament. Not only do players need to know the rules, but they need to be ready to play in unfamiliar arenas and possibly new horses. PJ was fortunate enough to be able to bring familiar horses from YPEC to the tournament at Gardnertown Polo Club. “I got to play Yale horses, which was great!” he exclaimed. “Bella and Ruleta were perfect.” Horses are not the only possible new teammates at
