2013 US Open Cup
2013 US Open Cup First Round: Laredo Heat shuts out PSA Elite to reach Round 2
The Laredo Heat advanced to the second round of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup for the second consecutive year, downing California amateur club PSA Elite 2-0 Tuesday night at Texas A&M International University. Laredo product Danny Garza and Brazilian forward Leo Madeiros, a rising senior at NAIA Texas-Brownsville, accounted for the Heat goals on either side of halftime.
The Heat, in their third Open Cup appearance, will travel to face the NASL’s Fort Lauderdale Strikers on Tuesday, May 21, in second-round action.
Like Laredo, PSA Elite reached the second round last year thanks to an opening-round win over the Portland Timbers U23s. A team made up mostly of former California college players, Tuesday’s squad included former U.S. U-17 international and current Akron standout Alfred Koroma at forward and American Samoa international Rawlston Masaniai alongside former Charleston Battery standout Darren Spicer in midfield.
Laredo was dangerous down the flanks in the early going, and forward Ljubomir Kocic, an indoor standout who played at Division II Incarnate Word in San Antonio, rang the crossbar with a shot in the 12th minute. The Heat came close to the opening goal again just three minutes later, but midfielder Hector Vallejo fired a shot high.
PSA’s best chances came mostly from set pieces, but Laredo goalkeeper Emmanuel Frias was rarely troubled, making just two saves for the game at the same field on which he played his college soccer. At the other end, former Cal State Fullerton goalkeeper Trevor Whiddon had his hands full, stopping a shot from Medeiros in the 30th minute.
Laredo’s breakthrough came shortly before halftime, when a corner kick fell to Garza at the top of the box, and his left-footed drive slipped through the hands of Whiddon for the opening goal, deflating PSA Elite’s halftime emotions.
The Heat put the game away early in the second half, as Cuban outside back Yosmel De Armas got forward to deliver a cross to the back post, where Medeiros fired a volley into the side netting to double Laredo’s lead. Whiddon had one more big save in him, stoning substitute Alejandro De la Garza in the 70th minute to finish with four stops, but Laredo breezed to the win.
The Heat are now 2-1 all-time against USASA teams in the Open Cup; Laredo beat ASC New Stars last year but fell in penalty kicks way back in 2006 at the beginning of Dallas Roma’s Cinderella run. Laredo will get its second crack at an NASL squad next week and will hope to improve on last year’s 2-0 loss at the hands of the San Antonio Scorpions.
PSA Elite 0:2 Laredo Heat
May 14, 2013 — Texas A&M-International University Soccer Complex, Laredo TX
Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup — Round 1
Scoring Summary:
LAR — Danny Garza 1 (Leo Medeiros 1) 44
LAR — Leo Medeiros 1 (Yosmel De Armas 1) 47
PSA Elite — Trevor Whiddon, Joel Bagby (Mitch Boland 65), Everett Pitts, Ryan Lee, Marco Franco, Rawlston Masaniai, Darren Spicer (Brandon Mulhall 84), Enrique Cardenas, Omar Jessey (Jesse Escalante 59), Athony Hamilton, Alfred Koroma.
Substitutes Not Used: Brent Reis, Lee Nishanran, Ray Estrada.
Laredo Heat — Emmanuel Frias, Yair Hernandez, Felipe Souza, Carmilo Botero, Yosmel De Armas, Gregory Mulamba, Juan de Dios Ibarra (Omar Lopez 84), Hector Vallejo, Daniel Garza (Daniel Navarro 89), Ljubomir Kocic (Alejandro De la Garza 57), Leonardo Medeiro
Substitutes Not Used: Jesus Cisneros, Placide Buduri, Eusebio Garcia, Eduardo Gonzalez.
Misconduct Summary:
LAR — Felipe Souza (caution) 26
PSA — Ryan Lee (caution) 51
LAR — Hector Vallejo (caution) 74
Referee: Kyle Phillips
Referee’s Assistants: Chris Gordon; Midge Van Es
4th official: Benny Del Castillo
Attendance: 734
2013 US Open Cup First Round: David Geno of Sounders U23s makes history in route of Doxa Italia
The Seattle Sounders Under-23 team did not waste time booking their place in the Second Round of the US Open Cup, scoring five goals in the first half to defeat Doxa Italia 5-1 in Sumner, Wash. The Sounders will travel to North Carolina to face the Charlotte Eagles of USL Pro in the next round on May 21.
Seattle’s Darwin Jones opened the scoring in the 13th minute before David Geno tallied four goals in a span of 26 minutes. Doxa’s Bryan Byrne added the consolation strike for the California amateur side in the second half.
The Sounders controlled the game early on, with Jones getting isolated repeatedly on the left wing. On one of those occasions, he beat his man, and finished to the far post past the keeper to give the Sounders a 1-0 lead.
Doxa’s Kyle Holland responded immediately after with a shot barely kept out by Sounders keeper Zac Lubin, and for a few minutes it looked like Doxa might be able to make a game of it.
But Geno stopped any momentum from building with his first goal in the 19th minute. The buildup began with an Aodhan Quinn cross to Mauricio DeLeon, whose initial shot shot was blocked by Doxa keeper Justin Commins. But Geno was on hand to smash home the rebound and double the score.
Seattle kept pressing, with several chances, including a DeLeon shot that fizzed across the face of the goal. Any doubts about the match were put to bed in the 36th minute when Geno scored again. Jones sent in a cross to the wide-open Geno at the far post, who had a simple tap-in finish.
Geno completed his hat trick three minutes later, when he audaciously flicked a DeLeon pass up and over the goalkeeper with the side of his foot and into the net. He added his fourth goal just before the end of the first half on a breakaway, which he slotted past the onrushing Commins.
With the game’s outcome no longer in doubt, the Sounders stepped off the gas pedal a bit in the second half, substituting Geno out and ceding more of the possession to Doxa Italia. The amateur side started to take advantage, creating more opportunities than they had in the first half.
With his four-goal performance, Geno became the first player on an amateur team to score four goals in a game in the Modern Professional Era (1995-present). Only 9 other players have scored four goals in a game since 1995, and none of them played for a team lower than Division II.
One of those ended in Byrne grabbing a goal to salvage some pride when he reacted quickly, ran onto a deflected free-kick and knocked it into the net in the 68th minute. He nearly pulled back a second goal 12 minutes later, when his header was barely kept out by a diving Lubin.
But in the end, it was a comfortable 5-1 victory for the Sounders U-23 side, moving them on to the next round of competition. They will have just seven days to regroup before flying across the country to face Charlotte, a team that made a surprise run to the Quarterfinals last year.
Scoring Summary:
SEA – Darwin Jones 13′
SEA – David Geno 19′
SEA – David Geno (Darwin Jones) 36′
SEA – David Geno (Mauricio DeLeon) 38′
SEA – David Geno 45′
DOX – Bryan Byrne 68′
Sounders FC U-23 – Zac Lubin, Michael Uyehara, Mark Lee, Chris Brundage, Lucas Baldwin, David Geno (Ian Lange 45), Aodhan Quinn (Michael Gallagher 59), Darwin Jones (Michael Harris 73), Mauricio DeLeon, Steve Mohn, Adam West.
Substitutes Not Used: Ben Dragavon, Abdul Aman, Michael David, Miles Byass.
TOTAL SHOTS: 16; FOULS: 12; OFFSIDE: 3; CORNER KICKS: 5; SAVES: 4.
Doxa Italia – Justin Commins, Justin Valashinas, Ryan Purtell, Joe Cartlidge, Nissa Hatifie (Eddie Pinto 45), Devin Toohey, Steve Chirgwin (Sean Lockhart 64), Greg Piechota, Kyle Holland, Bryan Byrne, Ryan Taylor (Ilia Nazarov 64).
Substitutes Not Used: Devin Shrade, Ricky Figuerod, Richie Million, Matt Urton.
TOTAL SHOTS: 5; FOULS: 5; OFFSIDE: 0; CORNER KICKS: 0; SAVES: 4.
Misconduct Summary:
Sounders FC U-23: Michael Uyehara (caution) 71′
Doxa Italia: Sean Lockhart (caution) 72′
Doxa Italia: Joe Carlidge (caution) 89′
Referee: Katja Koroleva
Referee’s Assistants: Baboucarr Jallow, Ray Moffit Jr.
4th Official: Timon Berry
Attendance: 473
Time of Game: 7:00 p.m. PST
All statistics contained in this boxscore are unofficial
2013 US Open Cup First Round: Austin Aztex blanks NTX Rayados despite playing down a man
The 100th edition of the US Open Cup had its first round on Tuesday and Austin Aztex won their first US Open Cup game since the squad’s rebirth thanks to a 3-0 win against amateurs NTX Rayados despite playing with 10 men for a majority of the contest.
Andres Cuero scored in the first half and Tony Rocha added one in the second half for the Aztex while the team benefitted from a Rayados own goal in the first half.
Austin will play the Wilmington Hammerheads in the second round on May 21 at House Park in Austin.
It was all Austin in the early going but the USL PDL team that opened its season on Saturday could not find a final touch to put the ball in right away.
In the third minute Austin’s Kris Tyrpak got the ball on the right of the box and hit a powerful shot in space that came back off the crossbar allowing North Texas to clear safely.
North Texas had a chance in the 10th minute as Victor Pinal broke free but timed his run poorly as he was flagged off for an offside.
Austin took the lead in the 14th minute after a shot from Chuy Cortez was saved but the Rayados failed to clear, which allowed Cuero to sneak the ball in. North Texas’ Raul Herrera made the save after it crossed the line.
Cortez nearly had a goal of his own as the roles were reversed with Cuero on the edge of the box volleying across for Cortez before shooting over the bar.
Later, Austin’s Aaron Guillen was shown a straight red card for contact with Herrera, who rolled around theatrically. To the referee’s credit Herrera was also shown a yellow for simulation.
The Aztex replaced Cortez with Walker Hume to cover Guillen’s position at the center defense in an effort to keep their passage into the second round safe.
Austin doubled their advantage in the 33rd minute as Tyrpak’s shot was redirected by Clifford Spencer into the back of his own net.
The second half started nervously with neither side really taking charge in what was an end-to-end period that produced little in a final product.
Austin had the first chance of the second half after a fluid series of passes allowed Tyrpak space in the box but he went wide of the post with his shot.
After the opening ten minutes of the half, North Texas saw plenty of the ball, but the closest it got was a solid shot from Alberto Rodriguez that could only find Austin keeper Josh Mikolewicz’s hands.
Austin looked content with a two-goal lead and a man disadvantage as they held off the Rayados and operated on the counter.
In the 72nd minute, Cuero ran at goal from the right and had a powerful low shot blocked away by Herrera over the crossbar.
Austin had a corner that almost went in off the foot of Rocha, but the ball was pushed out before the same happened again on the resulting corner. North Texas was able to recover in the scramble and clear the ball.
North Texas had a good chance in the 77th minute as Reese Wilson got through and saw his initial effort saved before the rebound was cleared by Zach Pope.
Austin added a third in the 85th minute as Rocha’s footwork bamboozled the Rayados defense before squeezing it through Herrera.
Herrera came to the rescue in stoppage time to prevent a fourth as Max Gunderson made a superb run and crossed for Jacob Powell but quick work from the keeper allowed him to make the stop.
2013 US Open Cup First Round: Georgia Revolution holds off Real Colorado Foxes rally, escapes with 4-3 win
It was a game of two halves as the Georgia Revolution held off a thrilling comeback from the Real Colorado Foxes and advanced to the next round of the US Open Cup with a 4-3 win. The Revolution will host the Atlanta Silverbacks for the 2nd year in a row in the 100th edition of the tournament.
The Revolution held a 3-0 lead at halftime following a standout performance from Ghanian forward Kwadwo Poku with two goals an an assist.
His first goal came in the 15th minute with a strike in the top right corner and it was assisted by Rene Enang.
In the 40th minute, Poku assisted an Emeka Maduka goal slotted in the bottom right corner.
Minutes later, Poku put the Revs up 3-0 in the 43rd minute on an unassisted goal where he stole the ball from the Foxes back line and slotted through on a breakaway.
In the second half, the Revs were on the scoreboard first and it was yet another unassisted Poku goal. The hat trick was complete as he put the Revs up 4-0 in the 56th minute and they looked set to cruise.
The Foxes would have other plans, and Alex Tarnoczi made the score 4-1 in the 63rd minute on a shot that was deflected in.
One minute later, the game was on with yet another Colorado goal, this time scored by Chris Salvaggione assisted by Aaron Skipworth and that cut the lead to two.
The comeback continued with another Foxes goal, this time Skipworth converted on a headed cross from Luigi Clendening in the 79th minute. Now the score was 4-3 and the Foxes had 11 minutes plus 3 minutes of injury time to equalize.
The neutral fan would have loved some extra time, but the final whistle ended the match with the Revolution edging out the Foxes, 4-3.
The player of the match was undoubtedly Poku, who contributed to all four goals. For the Foxes, the substitute combination of Skipworth and Clendening in the 56th minute changed the match as they combined for a goal and two assists.
Stats:
Revs- Foxes
Shots: 11-8
Corners: 5-0
Saves: 2-3
Fouls: 5-5
Offsides: 3-3
2013 US Open Cup First Round: Dayton Dutch Lions open tournament with 3-0 win over River City Rovers
On a night when the most of the four USL Pro clubs struggled against amateur opposition (1-1-2 with two advancing in penalties), the Dayton Dutch Lions were the only club to earn an outright victory, downing River City Rovers of the PDL Great Lakes Division 3-0 on goals from three different players.
It did not take long for the USL Pro side to take the lead, finding the opener just eight minutes into the contest when the ball popped up at the top of the penalty area. Irakli Khutsidze leaped into the air to meet the ball with a shoulder high volley that he drove past the visiting keeper from 17 yards.
In the 27th minute, Eric Kissinger doubled the advantage when he picked up a loose ball and ripped a shot from the edge of the box just a couple yards away from where the first goals came from, firing it inside the post from 18 yards.
The game nearly turned into a rout in the first half, but River City goalkeeper Taylor Hafling made several quality saves to keep the gap at two goals going into the break.
Hoping to rally, the Rovers came out looking to attack at full steam. It backfired, however, as the offensive pressure allowed Dayton to fly down the field on a quick counter three minutes into the period, with Charles Hertsenberger working with scorer Tjeerd Westdijk in the final third to lock the game up as things went quietly the rest of the way.
The Dutch Lions, who are 3-2-0 in league play, will host the USASA’s Dearborn Stars in Round 2 on May 21. The winner will take on a club from Major League Soccer in the Third Round on May 28. Last year, Dayton was one of the surprise teams of the tournament, upsetting the Columbus Crew and reaching the Quarterfinals despite finishing in the bottom half of the league table.
Scoring Summary
DAY: Irakli Khutsidze – 8th min.
DAY: Eric Kissinger – 27th min.
DAY: Tjeerd Westdijk (Charles Hertsenberger) – 48th min.
Rovers starting line-up: Taylor Hafling; Peter May, Aljosa Stankovic, Luis Ramirez, Robertson Tarver; Lindokuhle Mfeka, Callum Tychowski, Dean Abdehov, Pierce Kiembi, Richard Ballard, Lwandiso Gonya
2013 US Open Cup First Round: Dearborn Stars defeat giant-killing Michigan Bucks 2-0 in Open Cup debut
The Dearborn Stars made their first appearance in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary and the amateur club made quite an entrance.
The Stars defeated the Michigan Bucks 2-0 courtesy of a pair of goals by Niki Djokic at the Ultimate Soccer Arenas in Pontiac on Tuesday night. The Bucks, who are known throughout the country as giant killers, exit the tournament in the opening round for just the third time in club history. The Bucks, an amateur team in the Premier Development League, have upset more professional teams than any other club at their level, including two Major League Soccer teams (New England Revolution in 2000, Chicago Fire in 2012).
The Stars move on to Round 2 where they will travel to Ohio on May 21 to play the Dayton Dutch Lions, the USL Pro team that eliminated the Bucks in last year’s tournament.
The first half started with the Bucks making Dearborn chase shadows. As the half went on, the Stars began to look more comfortable, even when the Bucks turned up the game’s speed. It was a sign of things to come when the Stars’ Mo Kaba broke through on goal but had his shot saved. Though the Bucks created a few chances, notably in the last five minutes of the first half, Dearborn remained strong as the teams went into the halftime break scoreless.
In the second half, Dearborn came out strong and were willing to take the game to the Bucks. It paid off when Dearborn scored their first goal in the 58th minute, when a rebounded Stars shot fell to Djokic who scored the goal against his former club.
The Bucks however, created a few chances of their own, including a one-on-one opportunity that Stars goalie Vito Longoria stopped. The Bucks also swarmed the Stars’ box but they remained strong defensively.
Djokic would strike again in the 90th minute to put the game away when he scored from open play to give the Stars a 2-0 lead and the victory.
Stars coach Sam Piraine was pleased with the result.
“I’m glad we did it for as long as we did, I didn’t know it was going to be that intense,” Piraine said.
Piraine said that at halftime, they decided to go for it.
“We went in thinking to defend the whole game, we held them strong. At halftime we said, it’s even, we can try to go at them,” Piraine said.
“Defensively, I thought we were very strong,” Piraine said.
Gary Parsons, who announced earlier in the day that he was stepping down as head coach, spoke in place of newly-named head coach Demir Muftari.
“We didn’t create enough chances in the box and we didn’t put enough pressure on them to crack them. We didn’t get a lot of quality chances,” Parsons said.
2013 US Open Cup First Round: Not quite a high mark for Riverhounds who escape loss to RWB Adria in penalties
Highmark Stadium held its first Open Cup game on Tuesday and it did not hold back on the dramatics as the USL Pro’s Pittsburgh Riverhounds defeated amateur side RWB Adria 5-4 in penalty kicks after ending regulation tied at 1-1.
Riverhounds goalkeeper Greg Blum – who last faced a shootout in college at Slippery Rock University – was shaky, never making a stop. Matthew Dallman put Pittsburgh ahead and Kevin Kerr clinched the victory after Adria’s fourth shooter, Johnny Morris, hit the crossbar.
“The win doesn’t feel as good as I thought it was going to feel,” said Pittsburgh coach Justin Evans. “We still have a few things to look at.”
A group of 1,400 people saw Pittsburgh stay unbeaten through four matches this season, the last two being victories at home. The Riverhounds are currently 10th in the USL Pro table, with a 1-4-3 record. The Riverhounds move on to play the Ocean City Nor’easters in the second round on May 21.
Adria took an early lead, with a goal from Carlos Munoz as he slipped through the Riverhounds defense to catch them off guard and to go up 1-0 in the 17th minute. Despite the lead, Pittsburgh leaded in shots (5) and corners (4) at the break.
Pittsburgh found an equalizer in the second half.
Seth C’deBaca scored from the top of the 18-yard box on a play that started from a Rob Vincent corner in the 53rd minute. After a redirect and an assist from Mike Green, C’deBaca notched his first of the season.
“It’s something I’ve needed,” he said about the goal.
The rest of regulation was very back and forth as fatigue started to settle in for both sides. That led to a few injury stoppages and cautions from the referee. All the yellow cards came in the second half and beyond, with Adria totaling four and to Pittsburgh three, all of which were labeled as unnessecary behavior.
Extra time is where the Riverhounds almost took the victory. They registered five shots in the overtime periods, with three of them coming from forward Jose Angulo.
It was also some impressive goalkeeping from Adria’s Igor Dimov that kept the Chicago-based side in through the tail end of the game.
SHOTS: Pittsburgh: 17, RWB Adria: 4
SAVES: Pittsburgh: 2, RWB Adria: 6
CORNERS: Pittsburgh: 15, RWB Adria: 2
FOULS: Pittsburgh: 19, RWB Adria: 19
OFFSIDES: Pittsburgh: 3, RWB Adria: 6
2013 US Open Cup First Round: Argjent Duka’s hat trick lifts newcomers Icon FC over Brooklyn Italians
US Open Cup first timers Icon FC is kept its dream alive after defeating the Brooklyn Italians 4-1 on the strength of a hat trick by Argjent Duka in Brooklyn on Tuesday.
Icon FC — a USASA member — will head to Virginia to face USL Pro side Richmond Kickers in the second round of the Open Cup.
The first half of the first round game between the two sides was very even.
The NPSL-side Italians’ main tool was speed on the flanks and quick counter attacks. Icon did a good job of passing the ball up the field to reach the opposing box.
Icon was the first to come close to scoring in the eighth minute when Kevin Garcia hit the crossbar as he tried to cross the ball to a teammate.
Just four minutes later Icon went ahead as Jonathan Yazo was able to get pass a couple defenders, allowing him to pass the ball to Duka who beat a defender before putting the ball in the back of the net.
Despite their speed, Brooklyn was having a difficult time getting pass Icon’s defense. Brooklyn’s best chance came in the 33rd minute as Henry Lino’s header off a cross by James Mulligen went wide.
The second half of the game was all Icon FC as it dominated the field.
Duka scored his second of the match when he received a pass from Nelson Becerra in the box and beat Brooklyn goalkeeper Rafael Diaz in the 51st minute with a low shot to the left of the goal.
Icon continued to show their attacking force when Becerra made a long-range effort to chip the ball over Diaz when he saw him off his line, but his effort went wide.
In the 67th minute Icon padded their lead off a corner kick header by Kevin Garcia off the kick by Jonathan Lopuski.
Icon sealed their place in the second round nine minutes later when Duka completed his hat trick with a confusing goal.
After a few passes in the box, Icon took a shot on goal that was cleared by Brooklyn but Duka was there to head the ball into goal.
The Italians added a late goal as Tim Parker headed in a free kick taken by Christian Turizo in the 78th minute.
Brooklyn tried desperately to score in the last four minutes, but Icon had done enough to seal their victory and ruin the Italians attempt at reaching the second round for a second consecutive year.
Shots: Icon FC 19, Brooklyn 7
Saves: Icon FC 1, Brooklyn 5
Corners: Icon FC 6, Brooklyn 3
Fouls: Icon FC 7, Brooklyn 13
Offsides: Icon FC 0, Brooklyn 1
Discipline: Icon FC, Jonathan Yazo; Brooklyn, Nathaniel Bekoe, Yvener Guerrier
2013 US Open Cup First Round: Carolina Dynamo survive back-and-forth thriller, advance in PKs over Chattanoonga FC
The spirit of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup was splendiferous at Macpherson Stadium in Browns Summit, N.C. as the Carolina Dynamo defeated the NPSL’s Chattanooga FC 4-1 in a PK shootout after a 4-4 draw to advance to the second round of the 100th edition of the tournament.
In front of 1,221 partisans, the hometown Dynamo struck first in the 22nd minute when N.C. State rising senior Alex Martinez scored from atop the box as his older brother, Real Salt Lake midfielder and current Carolina Railhawks loanee Enzo Martinez, looked on from the grandstands. However, after halftime Chattanooga FC piled on three consecutive goals, including scores from striker Luke Winter in the 53rd and Thibault Charmey in the 66th. Another netter off a goal line scrum in the 77th minute gave Chattanooga FC a seemingly insurmountable lead late in the match.
That’s when the Hakan Ilhan show began. After Dynamo Brandt Bronico was fouled in the box, Ilhan converted a penalty kick in the 83rd minute. Five minutes later, the UNC-Greensboro grad added another goal in the run of play to tie the match 3-3 and send it to extra time.
In the 115th minute, Chattanooga FC seemingly found victory when midfielder Fynn Glover scored off a Chattanooga corner. However, that man Ilhan struck again three minutes later, this time off a Dynamo corner, to give the 6-1 forward a hat trick and knot the score 4-4.
In the ensuing shootout, after both teams converted their opening attempts, Dynamo goalkeeper Peyton Ford saved two consecutive Chattanooga attempts by Silas Reyneke and Chrispin Ochieng. Meanwhile, the Dynamo netted all four of their PKs for the club’s first US Open Cup victory since 2006, a match that saw three ties and three lead changes prior to shootout finale.
The USL PDL side will now make the 90-minute drive to face the NASL-leading Carolina RailHawks in the second round of the U.S. Open Cup next Tuesday, May 21 at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C. Kickoff will be 7 p.m.