Meet the Coaches & Staff

Lou Lopez
General Manager & Head Coach

Lou was introduced to polo over forty years ago when he attended a PTF clinic as a sophomore in high school. He attended Colorado State University, where he helped to start their polo club. After graduation, he went on to teach high school in Connecticut and he leased horses from Yale to play polo with Farmington Polo Club. Lou left teaching to become coach and general manager of the Yale Polo and Equestrian Center. After winning a national championship against UVA in 1986, Lou spent the next twenty years earning his living managing clubs, training and selling polo ponies, and playing in the arena as well as outdoors. Under his leadership, Virginia has won six Women’s and four Men’s national titles.

Abbie Grant Barn Manager & Assistant Coach

Abbie grew up in I/I polo and has an impressive record of success in interscholastic competition. She started playing polo when she was young and joined the Maryland Girls Varsity team in 7th grade. She won 5 Girls Interscholastic National titles and Player of the Year in 2019. Throughout her years of polo, she has spent a lot of time at the Virginia Polo Center, first as a participant in the summer interscholastic clinics, then returned as a helper. While a student at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, Abbie continued playing polo and helped coach many of her friends through their first years of polo. She is passionate about coaching and thrilled to help the club and high school teams.

Jenny Germroth Development

Though a passionate rider growing up, Jenny was first introduced to polo at Virginia Polo while attending UVA. The program played a pivotal role in her life, and led to many great adventures in the ensuing years as she lived in Hawaii, South Carolina, and Florida working in polo. After returning to Albemarle County and managing a private horse and hunting dog program on a farm in Va and ranch in Wyoming, Jenny found her way back to Virginia Polo. She is now delighted to help current students benefit from the wonderful program she enjoyed so much and reconnect alumni with the program they love while running the club’s communications and fundraising efforts.