URI hosts a polo match fundraiser

SOUTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. (AP) -- The University of Rhode Island is preparing to host two Ivy League universities for a polo match that will help fund student scholarships.

Teams from Harvard and Cornell are scheduled to compete on the South Kingstown campus on Saturday.

The event is being sponsored by the Providence-based Cavison Polo Group, whose founder is a mounted police officer for the Providence Police Department and an experienced polo player.

Sgt. Steven Courville says he was initially drawn to URI because of its athletic fields, but then realized the game could be used to help students.

Polo teams consist of four riders and their horses. Players use mallets to drive a small ball through goals 24 feet wide and eight feet high.