2012 Junior Pan American Championship (Men)
Tournament awards
Top scorer: Gonzalo Peillat (Argentina, #2)
Player of the tournament: Gonzalo Peillat (Argentina, #2)
Goalkeeper of the tournament: Kevin Pereira (Canada, #25)
Fair play: Barbados (team)
2013 Junior World Cup qualifiers: Argentina, and Canada; Chile will be the first reserve team.
First place: Argentina
How they got there: Argentina cruised through pool-play with shut-out victories over Guatemala (24-0), Jamaica (8-0), Trinidad and Tobago (9-0), and Brazil (5-0). Argentina was scored on for the first time against host Mexico, but still won by a large margin (ARG 10-1 MEX). Argentina then beat eventual fourth place finisher (8-1) to make its way into the Final match against Canada and secure a 2013 Junior World Cup birth. Throughout the tournament, it was all-around player and 2012 Olympian, Captain Gonzalo Peillat guiding Argentina to victories, especially with his beautiful penalty corner shots. Peillat not only finished as the top scorer of the tournament with 15 goals (14 off penalty corners), but Gonzalo Peillat was awarded the player of the tournament. Thus, it was only fitting that Peillat scored a penalty corner goal early in the second half of the final match that tied the match 2-2; and helped Argentina take a lead over Canada. With Argentina’s Joaquin Leonel Coelho scoring off a penalty corner goal just five minutes later in the 50th minute, Argentina had a 3-2 lead over Canada; and while they were unable to score more, the showed that they also have defensive talent as they held on to the 3-2 lead to win the gold medal.
Top scorers: Captain Gonzalo Peillat (14 penalty corner goals and 1 penalty stroke goal-1st place on the goal scorers list), Joaquin Menini (9 field goals and 1 penalty corner goal-tied for 3rd on the goal scorers list), Joaquin Leonel Coelho (8 field goals and 1 penalty corner goal-tied for 5th place on the goal scorers list)
Second place: Canada
How they got there: Canada proved it was a force to be reckoned with when it beat eventual third-place finisher Chile 8-1 in pool play. And it wasn’t just Canada’s high offensive output, led by Gordon Johnston’s hat-trick, but Canada’s strong defensive play, especially on penalty corners, led by keeper Kevin Pereira. Canada also had big pool play wins against Puerto Rico (12-0), Uruguay (6-0), and Trinidad and Tobago (5-0). Canada also won against host Mexico (3-1). Thus, Canada sailed into the Final against Argentina. Not surprisingly, it was keeper Kevin Pereira and the Canadian defense working immensely hard to hold off the powerful Argentine attack, led by top goal scorer of the tournament Gonzalo Peillat. Canada went ahead 1-0 in the 15th minute off a Johnston penalty corner goal. Canada nearly held on to this lead for the rest of the first half, but in the 35th minute Argentina tied the match. Canada came out fired up and immediately took the lead back in the 36th minute with a field goal by James Kirkpatrick. Less than ten minutes later, a Peillat penalty corner goal tied the match. Canada and Argentina traded possession, but Argentina went ahead 3-2 in the 50th minute. With Argentina defending just as well as Canada, both teams were unable to score another goal and thus, Canada finished in second place. For his efforts and skill throughout the tournament, Kevin Pereira was awarded goalkeeper of the tournament.
Top scorers: Gordon Johnston (2 field goals and 5 penalty corner goals)
Third place: Chile
How they got there: Chile may have lost 2-0 to the United States in pool play, but when it came to the Bronze medal match (and a reserve spot in the 2013 Junior World Cup) Chile was newly fired up. Like the United States, Chile relied on its keeper, Sebastian Valdes, to literally keep them in the game. With both keepers playing strong, the match was still scoreless at the halftime break. Four minutes into the second half, over, Chile’s penalty corner specialist Pablo Puercell gave Chile the 1-0 lead. The United States tied the match 1-1 off a penalty corner of their own. But three minutes later, Chile countered and again, Puercell put in a penalty corner goal to give Chile the 2-1 lead. With few minutes remaining, the United States tied the match and thus, the match went into extra time. Chile pressured in the extra time and just six minutes in, the pressure paid off. Chile was awarded a penalty stroke and Vicente Martin put in the stroke for the Bronze medal and first reserve spot in the 2013 Junior World Cup. With the win, Chile avenged its 2-0 loss to the United States in pool play. Chile had a difficult time in pool play, drawing with Venezuela (2-2), losing to second-place finisher Canada (8-1), but beat Barbados (6-1) and Trinidad and Tobago to advance to the bronze medal match.
Top scorers: Pablo Puercell (6 penalty corner goals)
Fourth place: United States
How they got there: The United States’ hard work in pool play paid off with close wins against Venezuela (4-1), Barbados (5-4), and Chile (2-0). Against host Mexico, the United States asserted itself with a big (6-2) win off goals from five different scorers, including two goals by Christian Linney. With the United States’ loss to first-place finisher Argentina, the United States went on to play Chile in the Bronze medal match. From the start, the match was a hard fought battle for possession with neither team having a clear attacking advantage. Keeper Christopher Rea made critical saves to keep Chile from scoring a goal in the first half; and the match was scoreless at halftime. In the second half, Hans Kaeppeller tied the match 1-1. Rea continued to make great saves, but the United States had trouble converting their penalty corner opportunities. With about five minutes remaining in the match, the United States removed Rea for a kicking back as they found themselves down (2-1) after Chile score another goal in the 60th minute. The substitution paid off as players quickly passed the ball down field to find Tyler Sundeen who tied the match 2-2 in the 68th minute; and Rea quickly went back in the match. Tied at the end of 70 minutes, the United States and Chile went into extra time. Six minutes into extra time, Chile was awarded a penalty stroke, which Rea almost, but did not block, that resulted in the golden goal. Thus, the United States finished in fourth place.
Fifth place: Trinidad & Tobago
How they got there: Behind the scoring of Andrew Vieira, and Nicholas Grant, Trinidad & Tobago easily won their first pool match against Jamaica (8-1). Trinidad and Tobago demonstrated its offensive versatility in its (5-0) win against Brazil where five different players scored. Similar to other teams, Trinidad and Tobago had no answer for, and thus, fell to Argentina; but won big (17-0) against Guatemala. With a (5-0) loss to second-place finisher Canada and a tough close (2-1) loss to third-place finisher, Chile, Trinidad and Tobago played host Mexico for fifth place. In the match for fifth place, Trinidad and Tobago had an early two-goal lead. Yet, Mexico tied the match in the second half and both teams came to a 3-3 draw by the end of regulation. Andrew Vieira’s penalty corner goal just two minutes into extra-time secured the fifth place finish for Trinidad and Tobago
Top-scorers: Andrew Vieira (2 field goals and 7 penalty corner goals-tied for 5th on the top goal scorers list), Shaquille Daniel (6 field goals and 2 penalty corner goals).
Sixth place: Mexico
How they got there: Host Mexico made a grand opening statement when they beat Uruguay (4-0) in their first match, off goals by Andres Rangel Martinez, Jesus Silvestre Silva Olivarria (two goals), and Captain Guillermo Antonio Pedraza Saenz. Mexico then won big (15-0) over Puerto Rico, with Rangel Martinez (four goals) and Pedraza Saenz (three goals) again leading the scoring for Mexico. Mexico lost to eventual second place finisher Canada, first place finisher, Argentina, and fourth place finisher United States. With these tough losses in pool play, Mexico moved on to play Trinidad & Tobago in the match for fifth place. Mexico fought back from an early two-goal deficit in the first half and managed to tie the match 2-2 early in the second half and took the lead late in the match, but with a few minutes remaining another Trinidad and Tobago score tied the match and pushed it into extra time. Riding their momentum, Trinidad and Tobago scored just two minutes into extra time and consequently, Mexico finished in sixth place.
Top-scorers: Andres Rangel Martinez (6 field goals and 1 penalty corner goal)
Seventh place: Barbados
How they got there: In pool play, Barbados started out with a loss (1-6) to Chile; and almost beat fourth place finisher United States, but lost (USA 5-4 BAR) after trying to come back from a three goal halftime deficit where the United States led 4-1. Barbados continued their second half heroic efforts against Venezuela and Puerto Rico, respectively. Barbados beat Venezuela 4-1 after scoring four second half goals in a span of 15 minutes. And against Puerto Rico, Barbados scored five second half goals to win 6-2. With a win against Brazil, Barbados secured the top of their pool to play Uruguay for 7th place. In a spectacular battle for 7th place, Barbados beat Uruguay in a penalty shoot-out. After being down 2-1 to Uruguay at halftime, Barbados’ Che Warner scored his second goal to tie the match 2-2 in the 42nd minute. Five minutes later, Kamar Bovell gave Barbados the 3-2 lead off a penalty corner, but Uruguay tied the match 3-3 and thus, the match went into extra time. Without a golden goal in two periods of extra time, Barbados and Uruguay squared off in a penalty shoot-out. In a thrilling shoot-out, Barbados’s keeper Keenan Knight made a couple spectacular saves to keep Uruguay from scoring some of their shoot-out opportunities. Meanwhile, Akeem Rudder, Justin Catlin, and Che Warner all scored in the shoot-out. Thus, Barbados won the penalty shoot-out 3-2 over Uruguay and secured a 7th place finish in the tournament. Barbados finished with the fair play (team) award for their clean and fair play.
Top-scorers: Che Warner (5 field goals, 2 penalty corner goals, and 2 penalty stroke goals-tied for 5th on the top goal scorers list)
Eighth place: Uruguay
How they got there: Uruguay, surprisingly, found itself on its heels early in the tournament as it lost its first matches to host Mexico (0-4) and second place finisher Canada (0-6). For the rest of pool play, Uruguay was looking to prove itself and move up in the standings. In the second round of pool play, Uruguay easily secured the top spot in its pool. Uruguay beat Puerto Rico, Venezuela, and Guatemala that assured Uruguay a place in the 7th/8th place match against Barbados.
Top-scorers: Alexis Lopez (6 field goals and 1 penalty corner goal), Matias Pereiro (2 field goals and 4 penalty corner goals)
Ninth place: Brazil
How they got there: Brazil’s keeper Victor Franco made amazing saves to hold off the Venezuela attack in the 9th/10th place match; and came to a 2-2 draw with Venezuela in regulation. Just three minutes into the extra time, Lucas Paixao had the golden goal to secure Brazil’s ninth place finish. Brazil’s biggest win came in the second round of pool play against Puerto Rico (8-1). On display was Matheus BORGES beautiful penalty corner goals as he scored 6 goals in the match, five of which were off penalty corners. Brazil continued to show its improved skills in a tough loss (3-4) to Barbados. Thus, Brazil advanced to play Venezuela in the 9th/10th place match.
Top-scorers: Matheus Borges (2 field goals, 7 penalty corner goals, and 1 penalty stroke goal-tied for 3rd place on the goal scorers list)
Tenth place: Venezuela
How they got there: Playing Brazil in the match for 9th place, behind the strong play of Venezuela’s keeper Amaldo Gonzalez, Venezuela was able to draw Brazil 2-2 during regulation. Both goals came off penalty corners by Yordano Castro. With the match tied, Venezuela went into extra time with Brazil; but was unlucky as Brazil scored the golden goal just three minutes into extra time. Venezuela’s strong play was demonstrated in its pool match against third place finisher Chile, where they finished in a 2-2 draw. Venezuela also came to a 4-4 draw against Jamaica. Venezuela then had a statement (14-0) win against Guatemala.
Eleventh place: Jamaica
How they got there: With two goals, by Captain Kemar Mitchell, Jamaica’s 3-1 win over Puerto Rico assured its 11th place tournament finish. Mitchell led the scoring for Jamaica throughout the tournament. In the second round of pool play, Jamaica had good matches against Venezuela (4-4 draw) and Guatemala (6-1), respectively.
Top scorers: Kemar Mitchell (1 field goal, 10 penalty corner goals, and 2 penalty stroke goals-second place amongst the tournament goal scorers list)
Twelfth place: Puerto Rico
How they got there: Puerto Rico had a tough first two pool games against eventual second place finisher Canada, and host Mexico, losing 12-0 and 15-0. Puerto Rico had an unfortunate narrow (1-3) loss to Uruguay; and conceded too many goals to Barbados in the second half (after being down 0-1). Against Brazil, Puerto Rico also lost by a big margin (8-1). As a result, found itself playing for 11th place against Jamaica. And again, Puerto Rico could not come back from a one goal halftime deficit. Thus, Puerto Rico finished in twelfth place.
Thirteenth place: Guatemala
How they got there: Guatemala was playing in its first international tournament in Guadalajara. Thus, it probably was expected that Guatemala would find itself a lot of defense. As expected, Guatemala had to work extremely hard defensively throughout the tournament. But the hard work paid off, as Guatemala conceded fewer and fewer goals throughout the tournament. Moreover, Guatemala earned a few penalty corners; and most importantly was able to score in three different matches. Kristhian Alexis Velasquez Letona, Cesar Etzai Paiz Borrayo, and Erik Fernando Avila Cardenas were the scorers for Guatemala.
