The Third Round of the 100th edition of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup wraps up tonight with seven games involving lower division teams against Major League Soccer. Five of the seven games feature teams that had to travel over 1,000 miles. Will the extra miles make an impact?
Follow all the action on Twitter tonight either by following @USOpenCup to get score updates, or use ethe hashtag #USOC100 to read all the discussion and updates about the games and about the tournament in general.
First the important information:
2013 US Open Cup results
2013 US Open Cup bracket
2013 US Open Cup goalscoring leaders
Player of the Round: Brandon Fricke (Des Moines)
The First Cup series (1913/14)
Things you should know about Round 3
Notable upsets from US Open Cup Round 3
| ROUND 3 BROADCASTS (All Times Eastern) Chicago Fire at Charlotte Eagles (7:00) VIDEO Los Angeles Galaxy at Carolina RailHawks (7:15) VIDEO Dayton Dutch Lions at Columbus Crew (7:30) VIDEO Seattle Sounders at Tampa Bay Rowdies (7:30) VIDEO Reading United at New York Red Bulls (7:30) VIDEO FC Tucson at Houston Dynamo (8:30) VIDEO Wilmington Hammerheads at Portland Timbers (10:30) VIDEO #USOC100 |
Here is the schedule for the rest of the Third Round (All Times Eastern):
Chicago Fire (MLS) at Charlotte Eagles (USL Pro)
Winthrop University Stadium – Rock Hill, SC – 7 p.m.
Broadcast: VIDEO
If Charlotte wins: Road game vs. Dayton/Columbus
If Chicago wins: Home game vs. Dayton/Columbus
Charlotte: Downing the PDL’s Sounders U23s 3-0 at home last week in the Open Cup was a far easier task than what was ahead for them in league play as they headed west for a pair of games. The first came Thursday against Phoenix, who was idle Tuesday because they had lost in the previous round of the tournament. Charlotte (3-1-4) took the lead twice on goals from Christian Ramirez and Sergio Villasenor only to see the hosts answer back as all four goals in the 2-2 draw came in the first half. Two days later it was Charlotte fighting to rally after giving up the first three to LA, including an own goal opener. Jorge Herrera scored from the spot, but his second and Stefan Smith’s late goal were not enough with LA adding one more in the second half to hand Charlotte their first loss, 4-3.
Chicago: The Fire (2-7-2) ended a three-game losing streak with Quincy Amarikwa’s 84th minute equalizer at Real Salt Lake Saturday in a 1-1 draw. The team’s big news in the past week is the acquisition of Mike Magee from Los Angeles in exchange for the rights to Robbie Rogers. The Chicago native, who says he is ready to make his Fire debut in the Open Cup, had six goals this season for the Galaxy, a tally three times that of Chicago’s leading scorer Maicon Santos, who was the only one on the roster with two goals.
LA Galaxy (MLS) at Carolina RailHawks (NASL)
WakeMed Soccer Park – Cary, NC – 7:15 p.m.
Broadcast: VIDEO
Winner gets: Home game vs. Chivas USA
RailHawks: Carolina (3-1-2) was idle over the weekend for the NASL, making their 3-1 dispatching of local PDL side Carolina Dynamo their most recent action. The off week allowed Atlanta to pass them in the standings, but the RailHawks remain the only team in the league with just one loss on the ledger.
Galaxy: The Galaxy (6-4-2) are coming off a huge 4-0 home victory over the Sounders, who were on a six-game unbeaten streak in comparison to a rough patch for the Galaxy that had seen them lost three of their last four. Robbie Keane helped set up the opening goal by defender Sean Franklin before scoring the next three himself before the intermission. The three goals put him within one of former team scoring leader Mike Magee, who was traded to Chicago late last week with six goals on the campaign in exchange for the rights to Robbie Rogers, whom the team signed and played off the bench Sunday. Rogers’ entry marked the first time an openly gay athlete played in a game within the major American sports leagues.
Seattle Sounders (MLS) at Tampa Bay Rowdies (NASL)
Al Lang Stadium; St. Petersburg, FL – 7:30 p.m.
Broadcast: VIDEO
Winner gets: Portland Timbers (MLS) or Wilmington Hammerheads (USL Pro)
Rowdies: After dispatching their cross-bay USL Pro foes VSI Tampa Bay 2-1 on the road last week, the Rowdies played host to Minnesota United, who they beat on the road 3-2 the previous weekend. Minnesota, however, avenged the loss by the same score in St Petersburg. Georgi Hristov did his best to prevent it with an early equalizer, and after falling behind by two he pulled them back within a goal with a second. Tampa Bay (3-2-2), however, were unable to find another equalizer in the remaining hour of the contest.
Sounders: After a horrible start to the season, the Sounders (5-4-4) are among the hottest in the league right now with a 4-1-2 record in the last seven. The team, however, is coming off a big 4-0 defeat in Los Angeles on Sunday to the Galaxy, showcasing the team’s inconsistent scoring issues. The Sounders are led by Eddie Johnson’s four goals with Lamar Neagle and Obafemi Martins each having three.
Dayton Dutch Lions (USL Pro) at Columbus Crew (MLS)
Columbus Crew Stadium – Columbus, OH – 7:30 p.m.
Broadcast: VIDEO
If Dayton wins: Home game vs. Charlotte OR Road game at Chicago
If Columbus wins: Home game vs. Charlotte OR Road game at Chicago
Dayton: The Dutch Lions (4-2-1) needed overtime to get past USASA entry Dearborn Stars, who fell apart in overtime of their Open Cup contest last week to the tune of a 4-1 result. The team then played host to pointless Antigua, picking up a 3-1 victory with goals from Joey Madigan, Eli Garner and Remco Klasse.
Columbus: After suffering just one loss in their first six (2-1-3), things have cooled off for the Crew (4-4-4), who are coming into the match on the heels of a 2-2 showdown at home with New York in which they led twice and saw a victory stolen from their grasp in stoppage time. The magic of Federico Higuain and Jairo Arrieta of a year ago has waned a bit this year with Dominic Oduro providing the leading scoring touch with six goals. Higuain is still no slouch with three goals and three assists, but defender Josh Williams also has three goals.
Reading United AC (PDL) at New York Red Bulls (MLS)
Red Bull Arena – Harrison, NJ – 7:30 p.m.
Broadcast: VIDEO
Winner gets: Road game vs. New England Revolution
Reading: Perfect. The PDL affiliate of the Philadelphia Union have blanked every team they have faced this year, downing Lehigh Valley of the NPSL in the First Round and stunning USL Pro Harrisburg in the Second Round to reach Wednesday night’s match against the Red Bulls. After posting previous 8-0 and 3-0 wins at home in previous weeks of league play, the club went on the road for the first time this year and were 4-0 winners against the New York Magic with first half goals from Jason Plumhoff and Patrick Slogic along with two from Dante Marini off the bench.
New York: The last seven games (5-0-2) have certainly been a huge improvement over the first eight (2-4-2) for the Red Bulls who come into the match with a 2-2 draw against Columbus in which they equalized twice through Thierry Henry and defender Jamison Olave, including in stoppage time. Henry is the leading scorer with six goals but Tim Cahill has been a major contributor with four goals and three assists. Olave has also been a big influence, chipping in four goals in addition to his primary role.
FC Tucson (PDL) at Houston Dynamo (MLS)
BBVA Compass Stadium – Houston, TX – 8:30 p.m.
Broadcast: VIDEO
Winner gets: Road game vs. FC Dallas
Tucson: Road weariness may become an issue. After advancing in San Antonio last week via penalties (4-3) after a 2-2 draw against the NASL Scorpions, the club ventured the other direction over the weekend for a double dip in California. They fell to fellow Open Cup participant Ventura County 2-1 Saturday and played the OC Blues Strikers to a 1-1 draw Sunday. David Clemens scored in the loss and Open Cup hero Conner Bevans tallied the equalizer in the second outing, giving them a 1-1-2 league record.
Houston: A top team since the season opened, the Dynamo (6-4-3) are in a bit of a slump winless in their last three (0-2-1). Brad Davis provided the lone goal in their 1-1 draw Sunday against Houston, giving him three goals and three assists on the year. Ahead of him on the team scoring charts are Will Bruin (4g, 4a) and Giles Barnes (4g, 2a).
Wilmington Hammerheads (USL Pro) at Portland Timbers (MLS)
Jeld-Wen Field – Portland, OR – 10:30 p.m.
Broadcast: VIDEO
If Hammerheads win: Road game at Seattle OR vs. Tampa Bay Rowdies (Venue TBA)
If Timbers win: Road game at Seattle OR home game vs. Tampa Bay Rowdies
Wilmington: The struggling Hammerheads (2-7-0) got a lot of help from Austin in their 2-0 Open Cup road win against the Aztex last week. The road trip continued with a double dip in league play over the weekend in Florida where they were drubbed by league-leading Orlando 4-1 and narrowly topped 1-0 by Tampa Bay. Paul Nicholson scored the lone tally in Orlando.
Portland: Welcoming the road-weary Hammerheads will be the only team in MLS with just one loss on the campaign as the Timbers (5-1-7) enter the match not having lost since the second game of the season. Portland are returning from the east coast where they blanked DC 2-0 on goals from Rodney Wallace and Darlington Nagbe, who both join Ryan Johnson (who also has four assists) for second on the team in goals with four. Will Johnson is the team’s top scorer with five on the season. It also should be noted Diego Valeri is close behind with three goals and four assists.