Lexington Sporting Club made history by setting a franchise record for the most goals in a single match in their 9-0 win over Flower City Union on Thursday night in Round 1 of the 2026 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup.
Flower City held LSC for 30 minutes, but once the ball hit the back of the net, the floodgates opened. A dominating night for the Greens, which saw eight different players etch their names onto the scoresheet.
“We told ourselves before this game we wanted to dominate this game, and obviously with nine goals, I think we did that,” said right back Xavier Zengue. “I think it’s a good shut-out that we got two shutouts in a row. So, I think we’re building on something really important here,” he added.
At kickoff, you had the makings of a compelling match. The Greens revealed their intent by rolling out a similar lineup to the one in their match from this past weekend against Sacramento Republic, making only three changes. Flower City pressured early on, getting an interception in their opponent’s half, then taking a shot in the 2nd. Just a few minutes later, in the 6th minute, Flower City received a free kick that ultimately led to Rodrigo Almeida, FC’s top goalscorer the past two years, heading the ball just at the post.
But it wasn’t long for Lexington to gain some momentum. Chance after chance, you could feel the game boiling over. In the 14th minute, LSC’s Aaron Molloy played a through ball to Marcus Epps, leaving him one-on-one with the keeper, but Michael Mija quickly cleared the ball.
Shortly afterwards, Alfredo Midence ripped a shot that hit the far post, leaving it recoiling. Again in the 20th minute, Midence lasered the ball, this time hitting the near post. Lexington could not buy a goal at this point.
Ultimately, it was Xavier Zengue who, in the 30th minute, crossed an inviting pass into the box. Nick Firmino smashed the ball into the side netting, breaking the stalemate and putting the Greens up 1-0.
From this point forward, it was all Lexington. Off a defensive clearance, Molloy collected a Flower City clearance and unleashed a shot just outside of the box, giving Lexington another goal in the 36th minute.
The first half was capped off with an additional goal for Lexington from Marcus Epps in the 41st minute. The right midfielder managed to score off his own rebound.
In the second half, Lexington took control early with a goal from Firmino, securing his brace in the 48th minute.
“It feels good to see the ball go in the back of the net,” Firmino said.
Flower City never managed to grab a true foothold in this match. Any attempt to gain some ground was quickly met with pressure from Lexington, which ultimately led to them regaining possession. The Greens, on the other hand, went on to score five more goals, which came in all different fashions. In the 68th minute, Blaine Ferri scored a goal directly from a free kick. The last goal of the night came in the form of a penalty taken by Tarik Scott.
“It feels great, we’ve been waiting for a win for a while. Just really proud of the group to put together a professional performance,” said LSC head coach Masaki (Mac) Hemmi. “We want to win every trophy there is, so looking at the locker room, you know we have a chance to win it (US Open Cup).”