Valley 559 FC pulled off a 1-0 upset against AV ALTA FC on Wednesday night at Lancaster Municipal Stadium to advance to the second round of the US Open Cup in their tournament debut. The teams went back and forth in the first half, looking for that opening goal. Left back Alfredo Ortiz failed to open the scoring for AV ALTA from the penalty spot, which proved fatal in the end. Valley 559 Forward Quincy Amarikwa finally broke the deadlock in the 65th minute with a diving header at the back post. Valley 559 held onto the lead for the rest of the game, securing their first-ever win in their first-ever appearance in the US Open Cup.
When it comes to cupsets, AV ALTA FC is no stranger. In their first US Open Cup appearance last year, the Lancaster side notably defeated Orange County SC to advance to the round of 32.
From kickoff, Valley 559 got to business, forcing mistakes from AV ALTA, winning duels, and nearly opening up the scoring. In the 12th minute, Forward Roberto Ordonez saw his header met with a diving save by AV ALTA Goalkeeper Denzil Smith. AV ALTA seemed to wake up, with Forward Godwin Antwi putting one just over the goal a minute later.
Roberto Ordonez tried his luck from a long-range free kick in the 27th minute. Denzil Smith again stopped his left-footed effort to keep the game scoreless.
For a moment, it seemed the tides were going to turn in favor of AV ALTA. In the 31st minute, Valley 559 Center-Back Aaron Huerta fouled right-back Nick Relerford in the box. The referee pointed to the spot, and Alfredo Ortiz stepped up to take it for the home side. Ortiz’s left-footed strike hit the upright, letting the visitors off the hook.
Valley 559 remained strong and pushed for the opening goal. In the 36th minute, Midfielder José Carrera-Garcia set up Forward Jose Serrano on the left side of AV ALTA’s box. Serrano struck it high with his left foot, but again Denzil Smith was equal to it.
With time winding down in the first half, AV ALTA charged ahead. In the 43rd minute, Nick Relerford struck one from the top of the box, aiming for the upper right corner. Goalkeeper Mark Gamez got a hand to it to keep Valley 559 in the game.
AV ALTA knew that the semi-pro Valley 559 side was not going to let them walk all over them. By the start of the second half, AV ALTA looked more composed. Just four minutes in, Nick Relerford nearly broke the deadlock from mere yards away, only to be denied by the boot of Mark Gamez. Gamez again was called into action in the 54th minute, denying AV ALTA Midfielder Cesar Bahena’s effort from inside the 18.
Whatever AV ALTA threw forward, Valley 559 threw right back at them. In the 62nd minute, Valley 559 Midfielder Jose Tovar struck one low and hard for the bottom right corner. Denzil Smith parried it away into the path of Jose Serrano. Serrano’s effort deflected out for a corner kick.
With both teams going back and forth, the deadlock was finally broken in the 65th minute by Valley 559. The ball was flicked on to Forward Michael Gonzalez, who’d only just been subbed on. Gonzalez teased the AV defense before crossing to the back post. Running in and completely unmarked was Forward Quincy Amarikwa. Amarikwa made a diving header to give Valley 559 the lead. A former professional soccer player himself, Amarikwa scored his 4th career goal in the US Open Cup.
AV ALTA were now on the receiving end of a cupset. As the game went on, the home side kept asking questions and Valley 559 were answering them. In the 85th minute, AV Alta’s Steven Ramos made a run into the box, with a chance to tie the game. That’s when Valley 559 Center Back Alex Culwell made a last-ditch tackle to block Ramos’ shot.
AV ALTA’s closest chance to tie the match up came in the first minute of stoppage time. Right-Back Christian Ortiz ran onto a long ball, squaring it to Forward Renden Thomas. With the goalkeeper out of position, Thomas hit it on his left foot. Valley 559 Center-Back Aaron Huerta stuck out a leg and got just enough on it to block a sure goal.
With just 4 more minutes left in added time, AV ALTA just could not break through the Valley 559 defense. The referee blew his whistle, and Valley 559 emerged victorious.
Valley 559 head coach Milton Blanco commented that this was the team’s first win in their first US Open Cup match.
“We have a good group. We have a lot of guys that have played in the Open Cup before, but as a team, this is our first time. So we had a lot of experience, myself included… so I was confident in the group.”
Despite being a semi-pro team going against a professional team, Milton was undeterred.
“We all bleed the same, we all do the same rondos, the same passing drills, the same shooting drills,” he remarked. “I think if anything, it’s more nerve-wracking for them because they have more to lose than us. And I told them, go in there, have fun… fight for each other, sacrifice… and they did that today, and I’m very happy for them.”
Valley 559 truly did fight for each other tonight in Lancaster. With their first Open Cup victory secured, they’ll head back to Fresno with momentum for Round 2.