Empowering Veterans Through Sport and Equine Therapy

Patriotic showdown set for noon Saturday, Nov. 8 at WestWorld of Scottsdale, just days before Veterans Day

(SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.) – The Bentley Scottsdale Polo Championships will make history this fall when it features its first-ever Army vs. Navy polo match, a patriotic showdown that will bring a longstanding national sports rivalry into one of the Valley’s signature sporting and social events.

The two teams will square off at noon Saturday, Nov. 8 at WestWorld of Scottsdale (16601 N Pima Road, Scottsdale), adding a patriotic element to the two-day event taking place ahead of Veterans Day. While the matchup promises fierce competition, it also gives attendees a chance to tip their hats to America’s men and women in uniform while gaining a front-row seat to this historic rivalry.

“We’re coming to Scottsdale for the fun, competition and camaraderie of playing on such a big stage, but we’re also here to shine a spotlight on our active service members and veterans in need,” said U.S. Army Major Mark Liarikos, who will play for the Army team. “With Veterans Day right around the corner, this match is about more than just polo – it’s about honoring those who serve and showing them how this sport – and the horses involved in it – can help heal and connect our community.”
Liarikos, the organizer of Army vs. Navy match, is a 20-year Army veteran whose service started in the Massachusetts Army National Guard and now serves as a Civil Affairs Officer and Battalion Executive Officer for the Phoenix Army Recruiting Battalion. Liarikos is also the founder of the AV (Active & Veterans) Polo, a nonprofit that provides equine therapy and other services and seeks to expand access to the sport for military members and veterans, including those with disabilities or limited resources.

Joining Liarikos on the Army Polo Team is Terrence Donahue, who served as a Cavalry Officer in the U.S. Army before spending more than five years in the 82nd Airborne Division based in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. He has since served his country as everything from a platoon leader and executive officer to an aide-de-camp, ultimately concluding his active military service after a 2015 deployment to northern Iraq. Donahue continues to serve as a reserve Army Officer, and the lifelong polo player also works for the Department of Homeland Security, where he continues to uphold his commitment to protecting the United States and its people.

Rounding out the Army Polo Team is retired Field Artillery Officer William J. Waggoner, who will join Donahue in one of the weekend’s six highly anticipated matchups. Waggoner served during Desert Storm I and later founded World Aid Runners (WAR), a non-governmental organization that delivers ambulances to war-torn areas in the Ukraine.

In 2024, he personally drove one such vehicle from Kraków to a village near the Russian border. A polo player for more than 15 years, he recently married Cecille Visser and is now the father of six.
 

Playing for the opposing side is Blandon “Nalu” Pitzel, whose polo career began in 2015. Pitzel enlisted in the Navy ahead of his 18th birthday and eventually completed college while serving in the Navy Reserve. Commissioned in the Marine Corps., he flew helicopters in Hawaii and then continued to serve as a commanding officer of his G-IV squadron after completing active duty.

“We bring the same intensity to the sport and the polo field that we do to our respective branches of service,” said Pitzel, noting that this will be his team’s first appearance at the Bentley Scottsdale Polo Championships. “While we’re all here to win, we’re also proud to be here honoring our history and putting on a show for our fans in Arizona.”
 

Joining Pitzel on the polo field for the Navy team will be Oscar Chacon-Hidalgo, an El Paso, Texas native whose family’s decorated military history includes Army, Navy and Vietnam War service.

Today, Chacon-Hidalgo channels those values into entrepreneurship and philanthropy, investing in causes and efforts that strengthen and broaden opportunities within the communities he serves.

Chris “Kit” Jones, a U.S. Marine Gunnery Sergeant and longtime polo professional, will round out the Navy team’s roster. Currently serving as the Company Senior Enlisted Advisor for MWSS 473 Detachment Alpha in Lemoore, California, Jones previously traveled the country as a combat shooting and marksmanship instructor before representing the Marine Corps Polo Team for more than 15 years in tournaments across the U.S. and around the globe. Based in Dallas, Jones is also the CEO of Dark Horse Fleet Services and plays out of the Prestonwood Polo Club.