Complete U.S. Open Cup Coverage

2010 Player of the Round

2010 US Open Cup Final: Sanna Nyassi of Seattle Sounders easy choice for TheCup.us Player of the Round

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Sanna Nyassi became the first MLS player to score multiple goals in a US Open Cup Final. Photo: Jane Gershovich | Prost Amerika Soccer

Sanna Nyassi of the 2010 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup champion Seattle Sounders has been voted TheCup.us Player of the Round for his performance in the Open Cup final. Nyassi scored both goals in the Sounders’ 2-1 come-from-behind victory over the Columbus Crew, giving Seattle their second consecutive Open Cup title. The club is the first team to repeat as champions since 1983 (New York Pancyprian Freedoms).

The Player of the Round award is voted on by the staff at TheCup.us and a select panel of members from the North American Soccer Reporters.

After Kevin Burns put the Columbus Crew up 1-0 in the 24th minute, Nyassi equalized in the 38th minute on an assist by Nathan Sturgis. His second goal, which would prove to be the game-winner, came in the 66th minute when Steve Zakuani’s header struck the crossbar and fell to the feet of Nyassi who powered it into the back of the net.

The Gambian not only becomes the first player in the Modern Era (1995-present) to score multiple goals in an Open Cup final, but he is also the only Modern Era player to have multiple championship game goals in a career.

The last player to score multiple goals in the Open Cup final was in 1994 when Mike Deleray of San Francisco’s Greek American AC bagged a pair of goals in his club’s 3-0 win over Milwaukee’s Bavarian SC.

2010 US Open Cup semifinals: Nate Jaqua wins second straight Player of the Round award

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Nate Jaqua scored two goals for the second straight US Open Cup game. Photo: Corky Trewin | Sounders FC

Nate Jaqua of the Seattle Sounders has won TheCup.us Player of the Round award for his two-goal performance in the semifinals of the 2010 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. Jaqua scored two of the Sounders’ three goals in a 3-1 win over Chivas USA to punch their ticket to their second straight Open Cup final. He edged out teammate Steve Zakuani for the honor, who assisted on two of the three goals.

The Player of the Round award is voted on by the staff at TheCup.us and a select panel of members from the North American Soccer Reporters.

Jaqua’s first goal was set up by Zakuani 10 minutes into the match. Zakuani made a run down the left wing and near the touch line, sent a cross into the box where he found Jaqua for the opening goal. Fredy Montero would add a second goal in the 59th (assisted by Zakuani), and Jesus Padilla pulled one back for Chivas USA in the 66th, but Jaqua would put put the game away in second half stoppage time.

With his second straight two-goal performance, Jaqua now has five goals, tying him with Miami FC’s Paulo Araujo Jr. for the tournament lead. The former University of Portland star now has seven career Open Cup goals, which ties him for 7th place on the Professional Era (1995-present) goalscoring chart.

Jaqua has a habit of scoring goals in big games in this competition. Prior to this year, his other two goals in tournament play helped his team win an Open Cup championship. Last year, he scored the opening goal in the Sounders’ 2-1 semifinal win over the Houston Dynamo. And back in 2006, Jaqua scored the first goal for the Chicago Fire against the Los Angeles Galaxy in the Open Cup final

When the Sounders take on the Columbus Crew at Qwest Field on October 5 for the Open Cup championship, it will be the fifth time in eight years that a team Jaqua is playing for has reached the final.

Nate Jaqua’s Open Cup goalscoring record

2010 Semifinals (Seattle Sounders): 2 goals in 3-1 win vs. Chivas USA
2010 Quarterfinals (Seattle Sounders): 2 goals in 2-0 win vs. Los Angeles Galaxy
2010 Third Round (Seattle Sounders): 1 goal in 1-1 draw vs. Portland Timbers (SEA advanced 4-3 in PK shootout)
2009 Semifinals (Seattle Sounders): 1 goal in 2-1 win vs. Houston Dynamo
2006 Final (Chicago Fire): 1 goal in 3-1 win vs. Los Angeles Galaxy

2010 US Open Cup Quarterfinals: Sounders FC’s Nate Jaqua scores brace and Player of the Round

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Nate Jaqua scored both goals in the Seattle Sounders FC’s 2-0 win over the Los Angeles Galaxy in the US Open Cup quarterfinals. The win not only sent Seattle to the semifinals for the second consecutive year as a MLS side (and fourth straight year under the Sounders banner), but also served as revenge against LA.

Nate Jaqua celebrates one of his two goals against the Los Angeles Galaxy in the semifinals. Photo: Seattle Sounders FC

TheGalaxy had beaten Seattle 3-1 three days before in Los Angeles. Jaqua’s clutch performance earned him the Player of the Round for the quarterfinals.

The award is voted on by the staff of TheCup.us and a select panel of members of the North American Soccer Reporters (www.soccerreporters.com).

Jaqua edged Justin Braun of Chivas USA for the award, who scored a pair of goals in the Goats’ 3-1 win over the Houston Dynamo. Both Braun and Jaqua will face off with their respective teams in the final four, which will be held at Starfire Soccer Complex in Tukwila, Wash. The game will be played September 1 at 10 p.m. Eastern Time.

Jaqua was gracious enough to make time to talk with Matt Gaschk of SoundersFC.com about his performance:

How important was the 2-0 win over LA for the Sounders?

Jaqua: It was big. Especially since we just played them and lost to them down there , so there was a bit of revenge there. There was also the Open Cup – we’re the defending champions and it’s something we want to defend. It was good for us and got us some motivation going forward. We’re in the semifinals now, so were one game away from the final and another chance to bring another championship back to Seattle.

You had two goals in that game, how were they set up?

They were both good service. One was bouncing around and I was able to get my head on it. The other one, Miguel Montano put a good ball in. If you make good runs and get to the right spots and we get good service, we’re going to score a lot of goals.

You were fresh off an injury at that point. How important was it for your confidence to go into a game and get a couple of goals?

It was big. I was trying to carry that over a little bit and had a bit of a setback with the injury, so now I’m just trying to get going again.

How much did that help the team in starting the run that you’re on now?

I can’t really pinpoint what it was that got us playing better and playing more as a team, but that was one step in the right direction. It’s something that we are trying to build going forward every game. We’re still not playing to our potential. I think we can still improve and get better and have everybody more on the same page and be the team we can be. I don’t think we’re there yet, but we’ve definitely made some good steps in the right direction.

How close does this team feel to the one that won the US Open Cup last year?

We’re really close. We’ve got the game at home at Starfire again and that will be a big lift. It’s fun playing out there. We’re definitely close. It’s just a matter of getting out and playing at home against Chivas. If we play the way we can and get that win we’ll be in the final again and anything can happen then.

2010 US Open Cup Third Round: Tim Melia of the Charleston Battery is Player of the Round

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The third round of the 2010 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup featured eight low scoring, defensive battles with only two teams pulling off upsets of Major League Soccer clubs. With that being the case, it was no surprise that it was a goalkeeper that was named TheCup.us Player of the Round. Tim Melia’s performance in net for the Charleston Battery in their upset of the Chicago Fire in round 3 was enough to get the votes for the award.

Tim Melia goes up for the ball against the Chicago Fire’s Patrick Nyarko. Photo: Brian Kersey | Chicago Fire

The award is voted on by the staff at TheCup.us and a select panel of members of the North American Soccer Reporters (www.soccerreporters.com).

Melia, who is on loan from Real Salt Lake of MLS, made 8 saves and kept a clean sheet for 120 minutes against the Fire, who were playing in front of their home fans at Toyota Park. After a scoreless draw through extra time, Melia saved Krzysztov Krol’s attempt in the penalty kick shootout while Brian McBride and Wilman Conde missed their attempts and the Battery moved on to the quarterfinals 3-0.

Melia received the vast majority of the votes, while Harrisburg City Islanders goalkeeper Danny Cepero, who shut out the New York Red Bulls in a 1-0 extra time win, finished second.

The Battery will play their second straight road game at the Columbus Crew on July 6 in the quarterfinals.

2010 US Open Cup Second Round: Portland’s Bright Dike wins Player of the Round after hat trick

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Chinedu “Bright” Dike was voted the Player of the Round for the second round of the 2010 US Open Cup after netting three goals against the PDL’s Kitsap Pumas. Dike torched the middle third of the match, scoring his first goal 37 minutes into the game, and netted two more in the opening 20 minutes of the second half to give the Timbers a 4-0 lead and seal a game that ended 4-1.

Bright Dike battles for the ball in a league match against the Tampa Bay Rowdies. Photo: Portland Timbers

The award is voted on by the staff of TheCup.us and a selected panel of members of the North American Soccer Reporters (www.soccerreporters.com).

After a rough 0-5-3 stretch in the USSF Second Division, the Timbers have used Open Cup play to propel themselves on a four game winning streak, with Dike scoring 4 goals in the last two games. However, he was quick to credit team chemistry for his success.

“The difference is really the team effort, not just about me,” said Dike, who goes by his middle name. “I think we’ve been playing together recently after we had several games when we ended up with losses or draws when we should have won. But when we are playing together better they have given me more chances to score, and that’s been the difference.”

The Timbers will host longtime rival Seattle Sounders FC in the Third Round on Wednesday, June 30, in their last match before Portland joins Seattle in MLS next year. The recent win streak has given Dike and his teammates plenty of confidence heading into the game.

“We’ve played well recently after having a series of results when we think we could have done better so this is a good time to be playing this match.”

Our thanks to Allison Andrews of SoccerCityUSA.com for interviewing Bright Dike for this story.

2010 First Round: Miami FC’s Paulo Araujo Jr. scores four in overtime to win Player of the Round

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After a record-setting first round performance against the Central Florida Kraze, Miami FC’s Paulo Araujo Jr. has been voted as TheCup.us Player of the Round. Araujo Jr. came off the bench in the second half and scored four goals in under 10 minutes in overtime to lead the Blues to a 5-1 win over the Kraze.

The award is voted on by the staff of TheCup.us and a selected panel of members of the North American Soccer Reporters (www.soccerreporters.com).

The game was a challenge for the Blues of the USSF Second Division, as the Kraze, an amateur team from the Premier Development League, took them into extra time with the score tied 1-1.

Most goals scored in a US Open Cup match
(Professional Era 1995-present)
6 – Mugurel Dimitru – San Diego Flash (vs. Arizona Sahuaros – 1999 First Round)

4 – Paulo Araujo Jr. – Miami FC (vs. Central Florida Kraze – 2010 First Round)
4 – Jorge Munoz – Jacksonville Cyclones (vs. Cocoa Expos – 1999 First Round)
4 – Welton – Miami Fusion (vs. New Jersey Stallions – 2000 Second Round)
4 – Josh Wolff – Chicago Fire (vs. Dallas Burn – 2000 Quarterfinals)
4 – Johnny Menyongar – Minnesota Thunder (vs. San Diego Gaunchos – 2002 Second Round)
4 – Melvin Tarley – Minnesota Thunder (vs. Colorado Rapids – 2005 Fourth Round)
4 – Sebastien Le Toux – Seattle Sounders (vs. Hollywood United – 2008 Second Round)

“When they tied the match, it was harder, because usually when a team scores they usually come full-attack to get the 2nd goal,” said Araujo Jr. “But I thought that took it well and eventually the game spoke for itself.”

Araujo Jr. entered the match in the 62nd minute and it wasn’t until the second overtime period until he got on the scoresheet. His first goal came in the 110th minute. “They didn’t really know anything about the match. The team has to play every game like it’s a final,” explained Araujo Jr. He was surprised the Kraze were “pretty good, and it’s always hard to play against a lower level team that’s supposedly weaker, because you never know.”

Araujo Jr.’s four goals is the most ever scored by a player in overtime since the golden goal format was dropped after the 2004 tournament. In fact, no individual team has ever scored four in extra time and only once have two teams combined for four goals in the extra session (2009 First Round: Carolina RailHawks 3:3 Wilmington Hammerheads — Match was 1-1 after full time).

Scoring four goals is not unheard of in the Professional Era, as seven other players have reached that total. One of them, Mugurel Dimitru of the San Diego Flash (A-League), surpassed that total by scoring six in a 9-2 route of the Arizona Sahuaros in the opening round of the 1999 tournament.

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