The final eight teams took to the field in hopes of advancing to the Semifinals of the 2022 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup and continuing their quest to add a trophy to their cabinets. Five MLS and two USL (one Championship and one League One) teams competed in this dramatic quarterfinal round. This round had it all: a blowout, a lopsided Hudson River Derby, a USL upset, and penalty shootout that came down to the wire.
At the end of the round, three MLS teams and one intrepid USL team emerged victorious to advance to the final four of the 107th edition of the tournament, which will take place July 27.
The Player of the Round award is voted on by TheCup.us staff and a select panel from the North American Soccer Reporters but if YOU had a vote, which player do you think should win?
Here are the finalists (in alphabetical order):
Luis Felipe
Sacramento Republic FC (USL Championship)
Felipe took a shot from way outside the 18-yard box to beat the keeper to the lower corner in the 70th minute. The goal ended up to be the game-winner, giving Sacramento the huge upset on the road against the LA Galaxy (MLS) and cemented their spot as the only USL team remaining in the Open Cup tournament.
Pedro Gallese
Orlando City SC (MLS)
Gallese made five saves in Orlando’s narrowly-decided clash at home against Nashville SC (MLS). After finishing 1-1 after 90 minutes, the game went scoreless through extra-time into a penalty shootout. There, Gallese saved the seventh Nashville penalty kick in sudden death, winning the game for the players in purple in front of their home crowd.
Felipe Hernandez
Sporting Kansas City (MLS)
Herenandez provided the corner kick assist for the second goal and scored the final brace as Sporting KC emphatically crushed any hopes of a road upset from Union Omaha (USL League One) with a 6-0 home win. He beat two defenders to a ball in the box in the 66th minute to score his first of the game and 15 minutes later slammed in his second from the top of the box, putting the final nail in the coffin for Omaha.
Lewis Morgan
New York Red Bulls (MLS)
Morgan scored the opening goal, which turned out to be the game-winner, in an Open Cup edition of the Hudson River Derby. He made a near-post run in the box to sneak a ball headed from a free kick past the New York City FC (MLS) keeper, giving the Red Bulls a 3-1 home win in the rivalry.
Rodrigo Schlegel
Orlando City SC (MLS)
Schlegel scored a dramatic game-tying goal in the fourth minute of stoppage time to propel the game against Nashville SC (MLS) into extra-time. The defender pounced on a ball that had been headed down by his teammate off a free kick after the Nashville keeper missed the clearance in traffic, knocking the ball in with a little hop and his right foot. Orlando would go on to win the game in a penalty kick shootout to advance to the semifinals.0
Khiry Shelton
Sporting Kansas City (MLS)
Shelton provided the assists for Sporting KC’s first and third goals (both to Daniel Salloi) and scored the fourth in the MLS side’s dismantling of Union Omaha (USL League One) in a 6-0 win at Children’s Mercy Park. Shelton received a long ball and shot from the top of the box as he slid to the ground, kissing the ball off the inside of the far post to add to the goal tally of the home team.
