SECOND ROUND
Pittsburgh Riverhounds at Richmond Kickers
Richmond City Stadium – Richmond, Va. – 7 p.m.
Broadcast: None
THIRD ROUND
Pittsburgh Riverhounds / Richmond Kickers at Columbus Crew
June 28, 7:30 p.m. ET Columbus Crew Stadium; Columbus, Ohio
Pittsburgh Riverhounds
Founded in 1999, the Riverhounds have been a member of USL, playing in the professional second division through 2003 before joining the third division flight, which it took a hiatus from in 2007. Semifinalists for a third time a year ago, they have never reached the playoffs in consecutive seasons.
Path to Open Cup: Automatic entrant from USL Pro.
First Round: Pittsburgh Riverhounds (USL Pro) 3:2 (AET) Chattanooga FC (NPSL)
The Riverhounds were the closest USL Pro team to come to being upset in the First Round, falling behind on a pair of Chattanooga goals in the 14th and 55th minutes. Jason Yeisley struck in the 79th and Stefan Lundberg found a late equalizer in the 89th to level terms, forcing overtime. Jeremy Deighton found the game winner nine minutes into the extra frame. Recap [+]
League Form: Pittsburgh was unable to find the same magic Friday in league play, falling at home 3-0 to Rochester. They are second from the bottom in league play, fifth place in the National Division with a 2-8-3 record.
Open Cup History: The Riverhounds may be most thankful to not be in the same foursome as Rochester, having been eliminated four times by the Rhinos, including the last three years (as well as in 2000). The team fell 3-0 last year and in 2008 – both in the second round – but took the Rhinos to penalties in the first round of 2009, dropping the contest after a 1-1 draw. Pittsburgh’s best outing came in 2001 when they upset the Colorado Rapids of MLS, 2-0, in the Second Round. They went on to edge league foe El Paso 2-1 in the Third Round before a Quarterfinal exit in overtime, a 3-2 loss to the Chicago Fire.
PRO ERA RECORDS: 5-6-2 (0-2 in PKs) overall | 0-0-0 vs. 3rd Division
Local History: Pittsburgh-area clubs often found Open Cup success in the 1940s and 50s. Of the 20 finals played between 1940 and 1959, teams from Western Pennsylvania were featured in eight of them, winning four titles. The Harmarville Hurricanes won two titles in 1952 and 1956 and were runners-up in 1953. Morgan Strasser won the cup in 1949 and were runners up in 1943 & 1944. Gallatin (1942 winners), and Heidelberg (1951 runner-up) also represented the Three Rivers area in Open Cup Finals.
Richmond Kickers
- After playing the El Paso Patriots to a 1-1 draw, the Richmond Kickers captured the 1995 US Open Cup title by defeating the Patriots on penalty kicks 4-2. Photo: Richmond Kickers
Founded in 1993, the club is the only other USL team to win the US Open Cup in the professional era (1995). An amateur team through 1995, the club played in USL’s top flight from 1996-2005 before joining the professional third division. It has only missed the postseason one time since 1994, winning the league title three times (1995, 2006, 2009) in eight appearances.
Path to Open Cup: Automatic entrant from USL Pro.
First Round: Richmond Kickers (USL Pro) 4:1 Dayton Dutch Lions (USL Pro)
The Kickers were well on their way to a First Round victory Tuesday against league foe Dayton with two goals from David Bulow in the first 17 minutes. The Dutch Lions answered back in the second half, but Bulow added a third from the penalty spot and Shaka Bangura finished the match in the 90th for the 4-1 win. Recap [+]
League Form: Still at home Friday, the Kickers fell 1-0 to Harrisburg on a strike just before the break to snap their three-game unbeaten streak. Richmond sits in second place in the American Division with a 7-3-2 record.
Open Cup History: The Kickers have the distinction of being the first club to win the tournament during the professional era, taking the title in 1995 when pro clubs began participating despite themselves being in the amateur PDL, where they also won the league title. Richmond won the Open Cup in penalties after a 1-1 draw against the Patriots in El Paso. Since then, the club has reached the Quarterfinals three times (2001, 2004, 2007) in 13 appearances, defeating MLS clubs twice. In 2004 the club edged DC United, 2-1, in the Fourth Round before falling 1-0 to Chicago Fire. In 2007, the Kickers nipped the LA Galaxy weeks before David Beckham’s arrival, but were eliminated by the Second Division Carolina RailHawks in the Quarterfinals, 1-0.
PRO ERA RECORDS: 19-11-1 (1-0 in PKs) overall | 4-0-0 vs. 3rd Division (as a 3rd Division club)
Columbus Crew
How They Qualified: Automatic entrant from top six MLS finish in 2010.
This Month in MLS: The Crew played their fourth match of the month against the Dynamo in Houston Saturday, winning 2-0 on goals from Andres Mendoza and Bernardo Anor. They are playing once more at home against the Colorado Rapids before the Third Round. Columbus started the month with a 1-1 draw on the road against the New York Red Bulls June 4 with Rich Balchan scoring the equalizer two minutes into stoppage time. The Crew won 2-1 four days later at home against Real Salt Lake, rallying from behind on a penalty from Andres Mendoza, who also set up Josh Gardner’s winner. The club fell at home June 12 against the Chicago Fire, 1-0.
Last Five: W-L-W-D-D | Season Record: 5-4-6 (4-1-3 Home), Third in Eastern Conference, Eighth Overall.
FIRST ROUND
Chattanooga FC (NPSL) 2:3 (AET) Pittsburgh Riverhounds (USL PRO)
Chartiers Valley Stadium – Bridgeville, Pa. – 7 p.m.
Full Recap [+]
Dayton Dutch Lions (USL PRO) 1:4 Richmond Kickers (USL PRO)
Richmond City Stadium – Richmond, Va. – 7 p.m.
Full Recap [+]
ELIMINATED TEAMS
Chattanooga FC
Founded in 2009, the new club has been a dominant force of late in the National Premier Soccer League, finishing the 2010 season unbeaten on the season.
Path to Open Cup: Hosts of the six-team tournament for the Southeast NPSL group, Chattanooga was seeded with a bye as the defending champion. They would open with a 2-0 victory over Rocket City United in the semifinal contest with two second half goals from James Moor and Chris Ochieng, who would prove to be the hero in the Final. Deadlocked in a scoreless stalemate with the Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves, who also had a first round bye, Ochieng scored with four minutes remaining in overtime to send Chattanooga to the tournament with a 1-0 win.
June News Updates: Defeated Rocket City 2-0 June 11 on a pair of goals from Michael Brooks in the final seven minutes… Suffered the club’s first loss in two seasons, falling 1-0 at home June 4 to Jacksonville United.
Open Cup History: First appearance in the tournament
Dayton Dutch Lions
Founded in 2009, the club is in its first USL season as a member of the professional third division after playing its inaugural season in the PDL where it finished third in its division.
Path to Open Cup: Automatic entrant from USL Pro.
June News Updates: Lost 3-0 in New York June 10… Fell June 8 in Harrisburg 4-1 with George Davis scoring consolation strike already trailing by four… Rallied to defeat visiting Pittsburgh 2-1 June 4 with late second half goals (74, 79) from George Davis.
Open Cup History: In its only previous Open Cup contest, the Dutch Lions fell 2-0 to the Rochester Rhinos last year in a match that could have paired them up with the Riverhounds in the Round 2.
PRO ERA RECORD: 0-1-0 overall | 0-0-0 vs. Division 3
Local History: The first known club to participate in the US Open Cup from Dayton was the Edelwiess Soccer Club in the 1970 tournament. They lost to Detroit-area club Carpathia Kickers 6-2 in their first match.