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2014 US Open Cup qualifying: Des Moines Menace clinch USASA berth in snow; Schwaben AC return after 50 years (video)

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Sean Hoek of the Des Moines Menace attemps a shot in the club's USASA Region II semifinal match against RWB Adria. Photo: Art Schramm | Wing Nutt Photography

On a snow-covered field Saturday night, the Des Moines Menace smashed three goals in a span of 15 minutes to ease past RWB Adria in the semifinals of the USASA Region II tournament. With the finalists in the touranment clinching a spot in the 2014 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup, the victory puts the USASA edition of the Menace club back in the tournament for the first time since 2011.

In the other semifinal, Schwaben AC punched their ticket to the tournament for the first time in half a century with a 3-1 win over AAC Eagles in an all-Illinois match-up. The last time Schwaben AC took part in the US Open Cup, it was 1964 and the Beatles had just released their debut album and US National Team manager Jurgen Klinsmann was born.

The format for the 2014 US Open Cup tournament has yet to be released, but the USASA is expected to received two spots from each of their four regions. Region I and III have decided to submit their teams based on last season’s results, while Region II elected to hold a brief tournament before the Dec. 31 qualifying deadline. Region IV has yet to finalize their plans.

Ben Taylor of the Des Moines Menace tries to control the ball in the snow against RWB Adria. Photo: Art Schramm | Wing Nutt Photography

With the PDL version of the Menace club expected to qualify based on their 2013 league results, this will mark the first time in the Modern Professional Era (1995-present) that two entries from the same club will participate in the US Open Cup.

Michael Thaden opened the scoring for the Menace in the 49th minute after putting home a Taylor Ostrander cross from the left flank. Ostrander pushed through the snowy terrain to track down a long ball in a bit of space before finding a streaking Thaden in the center of the field. Thaden collected the ball at the top of the penalty area and ripped off a shot with his second touch.

The shot blew past Igor Dimov for RWB Adria to propel the Menace to a one-goal lead.

Sean Hoek put his name on the scoring summary after he produced a solo effort to put away a low line drive into the net. After collecting a long ball from the defense nearly 30 yards out, Hoek blew past the Adria back line to find space on the right side of the penalty area. Having the angle on Dimov, Hoek produced a line drive, which snuck inside the right post, giving the Menace a 2-0 lead at the 54-minute mark.

“It felt good, especially after the way the game was going,” Hoek said about his goal. “The game was fun, though. I’ve played on a frozen field in a tournament, but never played in snow.”

Darren Marcello of the Des Moines Menace sends a goal kick up the field against RWB Adria. Photo: Art Schramm | Wing Nutt Photography

Mike Noonan would flick home an Espriu cross in the 64th minute to put Des Moines up by three, but Adria began finding a foothold in the snow with just under 25 minutes to play. Adnan Ejupovic and Martin Khoshaba began stringing some offensive threats together for the Chicago side, but just could not hit the frame.

The best chance for RWB Adria came late in the game, when Des Moines goalkeeper Darren Marcello mishandled a cross from the right side. Alex Ricketts put a head on the ball, popping it up but on frame in the dying minutes of the game. The ball would have found the net, but Jack Pearson would ease the ball away, giving away a corner but preserving the clean sheet.

Dimov did make key saves down the stretch, giving Adria a bit of confidence. The biggest call to action was a one-on-one situation with Des Moines’ Tucker Sindlinger near the top of the penalty area. Sindlinger tried to curl in a shot to the right post, but Dimov came up with an acrobatic diving save in the end.

The Menace side, featuring a mix of alumni of the PDL team and current college students, brought more heat in a game that was 12 degrees at kickoff.

“I thought the beginning of the game was more of a feeling out process, especially with the field conditions and a team we had never seen before,” said Menace head coach Mike Jeffries. “I thought the second half, we had little more of a sense on how we wanted to get at them, with more direct play. It was not necessarily long balls, but just getting forward a bit quicker.”

The Menace will be joined in the 2014 US Open Cup, and the USASA Region II championship game by Schwaben AC who neeeded two late goals to defeat fellow Chicago-area club AAC Eagles.

The goals came in the 76th and 78th minutes It took two late goals, in the 76th and 78th-minutes to come up with a winner. Schwaben AC, of Illinois, punched their ticket to the 2014 US Open Cup by virtue of a 3-1 win over the AAC Eagles.

The last time Schwaben competed in the US Open Cup was when they lost in the semifinals of the 1964 tournament. Prior to that, their Open Cup participation dates back to at least 1943. Their best finish came in 1956 when they were runners-up after losing an exciting championship series to the Harmarville Hurricanes (Pittsburgh).

Schwaben and the Eagles possessed two completely different playing styles, with Schwaben electing to play over the top to beat them with speed, while the Eagles were more tactical and connected the passes through the middle of the field. Schwaben won the contest in the second half with goals in the 76th and 78th minutes when tired legs took over in the Eagles backline.

The game-winner came on a failed clearance inside the penalty area with less than 15 minutes remaining. Schwaben tracked down a long ball from the defense in the offensive third and looked to get in a cross from the left flank. An end line cross was sent toward the penalty spot, with the Eagles making first contact on the ball. The attempted clearance was poor, and it would be their downfall. A mad scramble in the penalty area ensued, with Schwaben finally poking in a shot. The ball was lost amongst the amount of bodies, but by the time the Eagles saw it, it was already in the back of the net.

Adding a bit of insurance, Schwaben tucked away a final goal two minutes later on a breakaway created from a long ball from the backline.

Early on, SAC had more of the game, scoring right away. Schwaben controlled more of the possession in the first half and it was rewarded with a 15th minute goal. The ball built up from the back playing through the defenders and using the midfielders to push forward. Schwaben pushed down the right side, breaking past the Eagles defense and taking the ball into the penalty area. Faced with a one-on-one situation, Schwaben got the better of the Eagles goalkeeper this time around, and smashed home a rocket to take the 1-0 lead.

Eagles did bring a bit of momentum into the closing moments of the first half after their goal brought them back on level terms. A dangerous free kick was the ultimate demise of SAC, after the goalkeeper called off his defenders to collect the delivery. The AAC Eagles sprung past their marks and powered home a header from 15 yards out to draw the teams back to an even playing field.

Willy Schaeffer, part of the Schwaben AC squad, offered his thoughts following the game: “Both teams were fluent today. The field conditions were frozen, but overall both teams did well. I was proud of the effort put forth today.”

MATCH: RWB ADRIA V. DES MOINES MENACE
DATE: Saturday, November 23, 2013
COMPETITION: USASA National Cups, Region II Tournament, Semifinals

Scoring Summary
Des Moines: Michael Thaden (Thomas Ostrander) – 49th min.
Des Moines: Sean Hoek – 54th min.
Des Moines: Michael Noonan (Rodrigo Espriu) – 64th min.

Misconduct Summary
RWB Adria: Martin Khoshaba (Yellow Card) – 44th min.
RWB Adria: Igor Dimov (Yellow Card) – 84th min.
RWB Adria: Adnan Ejupovic (Red Card) – 90th+ min.

DES MOINES STARTERS:
GK- Darren Marcello
D- Sergio Leiva
D- Ben Taylor
D- Jack Pearson
D- Chris Scott
M- Bruno Moreas
M- Sean Hoek
M- Michael Thaden
F- Thomas Ostrander
F- Rodrigo Espriu
F- Michael Noonan

RWB ADRIA STARTERS:
GK- Igor Dimov
Taylor Bond
Adnan Ejupovic
Fadi Houma
Martin Khoshaba
William Kletzien
Rohan Mckenzie
Semir Mesanovic
Dorin Opera
Alex Ricketts
Igor Stijepic

2012 US Open Cup qualifying: Croatian Eagles from Milwaukee return to the Open Cup

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Recap courtesy of Wisconsin’s premier soccer news website, WisconsinSoccerCentral.com

Aaron Lauber split his lip open in the first half of Sunday’s match at the USASA Region II Open Cup.

The Croatian Eagles were able to patch up the gash and kept the striker on the pitch at the top of their 4-5-1 formation.

“We wanted to keep him in … because we knew he might get a chance to get his head on something,” Croatians coach Alex Toth said.

The move paid dividends, as Lauber got the slightest of flicks on a free kick by Scott Raymonds to give the Croatians the lead in the 61st minute, and the Milwaukee club went on to a 2-0 victory over Chicago’s AAC Eagles at Redmond Recreational Complex in Bensenville, Ill., to earn a berth in the 99th Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and the USASA regional final.

Ramon “Choko” Alvarado added an insurance goal in the 85th minute for the Croatians, who last qualified for the U.S. Open Cup in 2006. They’ll play another amateur team in one of 16 first-round matches on May 15.

“It was a lot of preparation, a lot of planning, but at the end of the day, it comes down to the players performing,” said Toth, who had the team train and play on FieldTurf as much as possible leading into the weekend to prepare for the tournament at Redmond. “I can pull some strings here and there, but the players have to score, they have to defend, so I give them all the credit.”

Raymonds also set up Alvarado’s goal with a long throw that got through a few AAC Eagles defenders and played a role in three of the team’s four goals on the weekend, having scored the final goal in Saturday’s 2-0 win over Chicago Croatian rival RWB Adria.

Alvarado scored in both matches, with Lauber assisting on his strike Saturday. Veteran goalkeeper Ante Cop posted clean sheets both days, with help from a stout backline anchored by center backs Mike Narciso and Aaron Schroeder.

Toth made just one change in his starting 11 from Saturday, moving Tony Patterson in at right back in place of Cheikh Drame, who was dealing with a shoulder injury. AAC Eagles, a Polish ethnic club which has made four U.S. Open Cup appearances in the past 10 years, won the coin toss and chose to attack with the significant wind at its back.

“So although we had a couple opportunities – we got forward some – the biggest part is you’re just trying to make sure you’re not giving up long-distance shots. Anything was dangerous when they were going with the wind, so we just wanted to get through the first 45 (minutes) 0-0,” said Toth, whose team accomplished just that. “We felt good going into the second half.”

Raymonds stood over a free kick about 45 yards out, and with that brisk breeze behind him, launched the ball into the box. Lauber’s slight touch redirected the ball, sending it in the opposite direction of the AAC Eagles keeper.

The Illinois side tried to push forward for an equalizer, but playing into the wind proved difficult.

“If they tried to go over the top or play through balls or diagonal balls against the wind, it was pretty tough, so that helped us. And anytime Cop got the ball in the goal, he was able to either hit a 60- or 70-yard punt or a 60-yard goal kick and run off Lauber or whoever else was on top,” Toth said. “Once we got that one goal, I don’t want to say you ever feel comfortable, but it’s like, ‘All right, they’re playing against the wind, I think we’re in pretty good shape.’ ”

Toth took Lauber off shortly after his goal – he ended up needing eight stitches in his lip – and moved Alvarado from the left flank up to striker with Ilya Ksenidi taking over on the left side, and also brought on Drame for starting left back Scott Widule. The duo of Ksenidi and Drame were tasked with slowing down AAC Eagles standout David Otachel, who scored five goals in Saturday’s 7-1 rout of Michigan’s Ann Arbor Elite.

The Croatians have more matches scheduled against college teams – they’re playing at the UW-Oshkosh tournament next Saturday along with UW-Green Bay and Concordia and will face Carthage on April 26 – before opening the Wisconsin Adult Soccer Association Major League spring season April 29 on the road against Milwaukee Brewers FC.

“We’re lucky we’re able to get quality players and we’re lucky because we have a great club that has been able to provide for us to play at places when we need to … not everyone has that,” Toth said of the Croatian Eagles, who were formed in 1922.

“I look at it as we’re lucky because in this day and age, everyone wants to play soccer and it has to make money. We’re still one of those clubs that have it from top to bottom, and our Majors (team), they’re there to kind of set the stage for the rest of the club.”

2012 USASA Region II Open Cup qualifying tournament
Redmond Center in Bensenville, Ill. – April 14/15, 2012

First Round – April 14
AAC Eagles (IL) 7:1 Ann Arbor FC Elite (MI)
Croatian Eagles (WI) 2:0 RWB Adria (IL)
The two winners will play on Sunday, April 15 at noon for a berth in the 2012 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup.
KC Athletics (KS) 10:2 Cincy Saints (OH South)
Kansas City qualifies for the 2012 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup

Win & You’re In – April 15
Croatian Eagles (WI) 2:0 AAC Eagles (IL)
Croatian Eagles qualify for the 2012 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup

2012 US Open Cup qualifying: KC Athletics qualify; AAC Eagles, Croatian Eagles play Sunday in a “Win & You’re In” match

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The Kansas City Athletics, playing with only 10 men the entire match, are the first United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA) team to punch their ticket to the 2012 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup after thrashing the Cincy Saints 10-2 at the Region II tournament in Bensenville, Ill. Luckily for the Athletics, the Saints only showed up with eight players, as KC qualifies for their second Open Cup in the last three years. Their journey in the 99th edition of the tournament will begin in the First Round, which is scheduled to begin May 15. The draw will take place at the end of April.

The second Open Cup berth will be decided on Sunday when the other two Saturday winners, AAC Eagles and the Croatian Eagles, will square off at the same venue at 12 p.m. Central Time. The AAC Eagles cruised to a 7-1 win over Michigan’s lone entry, Ann Arbor FC Elite, while the Croatians from Milwaukee edged the Illinois champion RWB Adria, 2-0.

The Athletics representing Kansas, a state that prior to their first entry into the tournament in 2010, had not had a team in the competition in at least 20 years.

Kansas City arrived at the venue on the west side of Chicago with just 10 players, knowing they had a big challenge in store for them against a team they knew very little about. The Cincy Saints, the first Southern Ohio team to enter Open Cup in the Modern Pro Era (1995-present), are a relatively new club (founded in 2009) that competes both indoor (PASL Premier League) and outdoor in the Midwest Soccer League. The nerves of playing with 10 men were calmed when the Athletics realized the Saints had only traveled with eight players for this “Win & You’re In” match. The match was pre-determined to be the one that would determine the first Open Cup berth from Region II due to a blind draw that took place weeks beforehand.

Nestor Hernandez of the AAC Eagles dribbles through the Ann Arbor FC defense in the first game of the 2012 USASA Region II tournament. Photo: AAC Eagles

It didn’t take long for KC to capitalize on their two-man advantage. Chris Markey scored twice, while Peter Kariotis, Jesse Baker, Martin Johnston and Matt Germain added their own all before halftime. The Saints’ Adam
The day started with Ann Arbor FC drawing first blood with a goal by Brian Conway in the 19th minute to take the lead on the hometown team AAC Eagles. Two minutes later, David Otachel scored the first of his five goals on the day on their way to a 7-1 rout of the Michigan representative. Stan Micic and Armando Tello also tallied for the Eagles, who are attempting to qualify for the Open Cup for the sixth time in the Modern Pro Era. The club is led by first-year coach Marek Radziszewski, who was a former goalkeeper for the Eagles in the early 90s Tenhundfeld tried to make a game of it with two goals within the first five minutes of the second half, but less than a minute after he made the score 6-2, player/manager Kyle Perkins scored a seventh for the Athletics. Johnston added his second in the 67th minute, followed by Steven Grow’s first two minutes later, and the 10th and final goal by Johnston in the 74th minute.

The Croatian Eagles put themselves one win away from returning to the Open Cup for the first time since 2006 with a 2-0 win over RWB Adria with a 19th-minute goal by Ramon Alvarado and a tally by Scott Raymonds in the final minute.

Keeper Ante Cop started the sequence that led to the opener, sending a long ball that Croatians striker Aaron Lauber flicked on to Alvarado on the left side. RWB Adria controlled play throughout the second half as they looked for an equalizer, dominating possession and pushing increasing numbers forward, but couldn’t solve Cop and the Croatians’ backline.

Adria hit the post with about 15 minutes remaining and Cop came up with two nice saves, and the Croatians finally converted on a counter attack in the last minute of the 90, as Raymonds latched onto a ball from 40-year-old Jason Willan and finished from 7 yards out to seal the victory. (Full match report at WisconsinSoccerCentral.com)

AAC Eagles (IL) 7:1 Ann Arbor FC Elite (MI)

Scoring Summary
AAFC: Brian Conway (Jacob Puente) – 19th minute
AAC: David Otachel – 21st minute
AAC: Stan Micic – 32nd minute
AAC: David Otachel – 42nd minute
AAC: David Otachel – 61st minute
AAC: David Otachel – 63rd minute
AAC: David Otachel – 76th minute
AAC: Armando Tello – 84th minute

Croatian Eagles (WI) 2:0 RWB Adria (IL)

Scoring Summary
CRO: Ramon Alvarado – 19th minute
CRO: Scott Raymonds – 90th minute

KC Athletics (KS) 10:2 Cincy Saints (OH)

Scoring Summary
KCA: Peter Kariotis – 13th minute
KCA: Chris Markey – 20th minute
KCA: Jesse Baker – 25th minute
KCA: Martin Johnston – 30th minute
KCA: Chris Markey – 36th minute
KCA: Matt Germain – 40th minute
CIN: Adam Tenhundfeld – 46th minute
CIN: Adam Tenhundfeld – 49th minute
KCA: Kyle Perkins – 50th minute
KCA: Martin Johnston – 67th minute
KCA: Steven Grow – 69th minute
KCA: Martin Johnston – 74th minute

USASA Region II US Open Cup “Win & You’re In”
AAC Eagles vs. Croatian Eagles
Sunday, April 15 – 12:00 p.m. CT

2012 US Open Cup qualifying: RWB Adria first to qualify for USASA regionals, defeat AAC Eagles in Illinois final

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RWB Adria - 2011 Illinois Open Cup champions. Photo: Ninos Alexander

Sixteen days after the Seattle Sounders were crowned Lamar Hunt US Open Cup champions for a third consecutive year, qualifying for the 2012 tournament kicked off in earnest with the Illinois State Final. In a meeting of two well-known clubs, RWB Adria became the first team to advance to a USASA regional tournament, posting a 2-0 victory over rival AAC Eagles Thursday in front of a reported crowd of 400-plus.

The Chicago duo of RWB Adria and AAC Eagles have long been powers in the region, representing USASA Region II in the US Open Cup on eight occasions during the modern professional era (1995-present). While the Eagles have been the more successful club in advancing to the US Open Cup by qualifying five times since 1995, RWB was the dominant side of the two in the Illinois championship.

Two years ago, the Eagles snapped a three-year streak of RWB winning the state crown, winning the Illinois Final, 2-0, to reach the regional tournament. AAC then blitzed Minnesota’s Fire SC, 8-3, before being edged out in the ‘Win and You’re In’ semifinal via penalties, 5-3, after a 3-3 road draw against KC Athletics.

After coming so close to reaching the 2010 tournament, the Eagles dominated in the Region II first round last year with a 7-2 win over FC Indiana that was just short of earning the first berth, setting up a Illinois showdown with RWB, who won a 6-4 overtime road thriller against Detroit United. After falling behind on an early seventh minute Boris Smoljan strike, AAC answered back via a surprise player – center back Piotr Kolasinski. He nodded home the equalizer in the 14th with Mark Golik giving the club the lead before the break. Kolasinski would convert from the spot in the 55th to double the advantage and locked up the match on a curling 19 yard free kick in the 75th minute for a hat-trick to give AAC Eagles a 4-1 victory and a spot in the 2011 US Open Cup.

This year though, the Eagles will need a second chance via an invitation to the regional tournament after falling to RWB Thursday. One of the changes that may have turned the table was the move of the standout Kolasinski, who helped lead RWB to the victory this year.

Igor Stijepic was the key figure in giving RWB the advantage in the match, collecting a throw-in on the right wing and driving up the flank before crossing the ball in to Charlie Trout for the finish in the 20th minute.

The contest livened up with a pair of penalty kicks in about a five minute span in the late stages of the match. The AAC netminder and his left back collided with an RWB attacker, sending Adria to the spot. Semir Mesanovic would convert the penalty to give RWB a two-goal command with 20 minutes remaining.

Five minutes later, a handball gave the Eagles a chance to start a rally, but Pawel Otachel’s attempt right at the keeper was stopped by Igor Dimov, smothering AAC’s hopes of a comeback.

RWB Adria pose for a team photo after winning the 2011 Illinois Open Cup championship. Photo: Ninos Alexander

While Illinois is the first to finish its 2012 US Open Cup qualifying, several other states are also under way. In Region I, Eastern Pennsylvania and Eastern New York started their tournaments over the weekend and the semifinal of the Wisconsin state tournament is already complete.

Scoring Summary

RWB: Charlie Trout (Igor Stijepic) 20
RWB: Semir Mesanovic (penalty) 70

Lineups
RWB – Igor Dimov; Robert Younger, Charlie Trout, Joey Carver, Piotr Kolasinski, Admir Ljeljak, Igor Stijepic, Vlad Baciu (Alex Loncar 85), Taylor Bond (Ifeanyi Okorie 45), Semir Mesanovic, Jani Galik (Boris Smoljan 60)
AAC – Not available

2011 US Open Cup Sporting KC bracket preview: Chicago Fire Premier at Madison 56ers

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SECOND ROUND

Chicago Fire Premier at Madison 56ers
Breese Stevens Field – Madison, Wis. – 8 p.m.
Broadcast: None | Preview: Wisconsin State Journal

THIRD ROUND

Chicago Fire Premier / Madison 56ers at Sporting Kansas City
June 28, 8:30 p.m. ET  LIVESTRONG Sporting Park; Kansas City, Kan.

Madison 56ers

The Madison 56ers side that has been a member of the NPSL since 2005 is part of the larger club which was founded in 1956. The club has claimed four USASA Region II titles and the NPSL team has finished first in its division three times (2006, 07, 10) with its best postseason performance resulting in a trip to the final in 2006.

Path to Open Cup: Automatic entrant – was the only club to enter.

First Round: Madison 56ers (NPSL) 4:0 AAC Eagles (USASA)
The 56ers were in First Round stalemate with Chicago’s AAC Eagles before running off four goals in 14 minutes in the second half. Tenzin Rampa opened the scoring in the 67th before Jed Hohlbein scored two back-to-back. Adam Lysak finished it off in the 81st. Recap [+]

League form: Madison traveled in league play Saturday to face Milwaukee Bavarians, falling 2-1 on a late strike after defender Aaron Nichols had equalized. The team is 3-2-2 in the NPSL Midwest Division.

Open Cup History: The club is making its return to the tournament for the first time since debuting in the Open Cup with four straight appearances from 1988-91. The club was knocked out in the Region II semifinals by eventual champion St Louis Busch Seniors. The following year they knocked out by St Louis Michelob in the Regional Round.  The club was again ousted in the regional semifinals, this time by AAC Eagles. They made it past the regional semis in 1991 with a 1-0 win over St Louis Scott Gallagher and narrowly missed the Open Cup semifinals with a 7-6 penalty kick loss to RWB Adria after a 4-4 draw.
PRO ERA RECORD: 1-0-0 overall

Chicago Fire Premier

Founded in 2001, the team was the second PDL club (Boulder Rapids Reserve) directly affiliated with an MLS team. It has been one of the most successful clubs in the league, finishing first in the division seven times and finished below second last year (fourth) for the first time in 10 seasons, missing the playoffs for the first time. The Fire hold the best record in the PDL over their time in the league. The club has reached the league final on two occasions (2003, 2009).

Path to Open Cup: Of the nine PDL entrants, the club was one of two that finished the qualifying campaign with a loss. The team’s 3-0 start clinched the berth as the other clubs in the division knocked one another out. The club opened with a pair of 2-0 victories, winning the opener in Akron on goals from Chris Estridge and Josey Portillo and taking the second at home against Cincinnati with Estridge finding the net again. A 90th minute strike from Estridge in the third match against River City clinched the berth as David Meves posted his third shutout for the 1-0 win. The late winner denied the charging Michigan Bucks a chance to snare the spot, settling with a 2-0 win over the Fire in the finale.

First Round: Chicago Fire Premier (PDL) 1:0 Iowa Menace (USASA)
It looked as though the two PDL rivals, although the Menace qualified through the USASA, were going to see overtime in the First Round Tuesday as they went into the final stages of regulation in a scoreless deadlock until Chris Estridge struck in the 87th for the dramatic road win. Recap [+]

League form: The Fire Premier returned immediately to league action, falling 2-1 Thursday to River City Rovers on the road. Trailing on two first half goals, Hunter Gorskie tallied in the 63rd, but they could not find an equalizer. Chicago rebounded in their second league match Saturday in Cincinnati for a 3-0 victory on goals from Josey Portillo, Paulo Vaz and Harrison Petts. The club is 5-2-1 in the PDL Great Lakes Division.

Open Cup History: Perhaps taking after its four-time champion parent club in MLS, the team has had some success in its three previous appearances. In its 2004 debut, the PDL side opened with a 5-1 win over USASA side SAC Wisla before knocking off third division professional side New Hampshire Phantoms by the same, surprising, 5-1 scoreline. They would be eliminated in the Third Round, 1-0, by the second division Rochester Rhinos. A year later, the club downed city rival AAC Eagles of the USASA 4-1 before falling, 2-1, to the second division Minnesota Thunder. In 2009, they downed Bavarian SC (USASA) 3-1 before being eliminated once again by the Thunder, this time 4-0.
PRO ERA RECORDS: 5-3-0 overall | 4-0-0 vs. Amateur Teams

Sporting Kansas City vs New England Revolution - 2011 MLS qualifying
Sporting Kansas City did a lot of celebrating during their 5-0 win over the New England Revolution. Photo: Taylor Allan | Sporting KC

Sporting KC

How They Qualified: Back-up netminder Eric Kronberg and CJ Sapong were the stars in qualifying for Kansas City, which was seeded third and started in the second round of the eastern bracket in MLS qualifying. Sapong netted an overtime game-winner in the 92nd minute of a 1-0 decision against the Dynamo in Houston April 6 in their opening game. Kronberg earned the first of two shutouts, registering the second in the bracket finale May 25 against the New England Revolution, who brought a squad of nearly all reserves. Chance Myers scored the first two goals in the 5-0 win with Sapong adding two more to secure the berth.

This Month in MLS: In a busy month for the club, Kansas City travels to Philadelphia Wednesday to face the Union in its fifth match of the month June 22 and plays once more at home against the Vancouver Whitecaps June 25 before playing in the Third Round. The opened June with a scoreless draw in Toronto and repeated the result June 9 against the Chicago Fire in the debut of LiveStrong Sporting Park. Eric Kronberg recorded the shutout in the first and relieved starter Jimmy Nielsen in the 67th minute of the second following a red card.
Last Five: W-W-D-D-D | Season Record: 3-6-4 (1-0-1 Home), 9th (last) in Eastern Conference, 18th (last) overall

FIRST ROUND

AAC Eagles (USASA-IL) 0:4 Madison 56ers (NPSL)
Breese Stevens Field – Madison, Wis. – 8 p.m.
Full Recap [+]

Chicago Fire Premier (PDL) 1:0 Iowa Menace (USASA-IA)
Valley Stadium – West Des Moines, Iowa – 8:30 p.m.
Full Recap [+]

ELIMINATED TEAMS

AAC Eagles

Originally known as the PAAC Eagles (Polish American Athletic Club), the Chicago side was founded in 1940. The club currently plays in the Metropolitan Soccer League, where they have won 11 Major Division championships. | Meet the USASA Feature [+]

Path to Open Cup: In a unique six-team format for Region II in which the winner of the opening round by the greatest goal differential earned the first US Open Cup berth, AAC Eagles came up short with its 7-2 victory against FC Indiana as the Iowa Menace were 7-1 winners against a Kansas City Athletics squad that started and played with only 10 men. The Eagles opened with the first five goals, three from Jakub Piotrowski, who would later add a fourth. In the all-Chicago showdown between the other two First Round winners, the Eagles rallied against their city rivals for a 4-1 win against RWB Adria. RWB opened the scoring in the seventh minute with Piotr Kolasinski equalizing seven minutes later. Mark Golik made it 2-1 in the 38th and Kolasinski added two more in the second half to advance to the Open Cup.

June News Updates: Fell 5-0 in league play June 5 to Schwaben, who jumped ahead into second by one point and leaving AAC six points back with three to play.

AAC Eagles celebrate their 1990 US Open Cup championship. Photo: Renee Bechtoldt | AAC Eagles
AAC Eagles celebrate their 1990 US Open Cup championship. Photo: Renee Bechtoldt | AAC Eagles

Open Cup History: The USASA side is among the current clubs that has one of the oldest records in the Open Cup, making its debut in 1948 and reaching the tournament in six decades. The team reached the western quarterfinals in its debut with a trip to the western final the following year, falling 4-3 on aggregate to Morgan SC, who defeated the eastern winner Philadelphia Nationals 4-3 on aggregate in the championship. In 1950, the club was knocked out 5-0 on aggregate by St Louis side Simpkins-Ford in the opening quarterfinal round. The team returned to the tournament in 1989, advancing to the semifinals, and won the Open Cup championship in 1990, downing Brooklyn Italians 2-1. They opened the tournament that year with a 1-0 win over the Madison 56ers in the Region II semifinals. The team fell in the opening rounds of the 1994 and 1995 tournaments before a six-year absence. The team advanced to the tournament in 2002, 2005 and 2008, but failed to advance from the opening round.
PRO ERA RECORDS: 0-4-0 overall | 0-1-0 vs. Amateur Teams (0-0-0 vs. NPSL)

Iowa Menace

A second team of the Des Moines Menace soccer club that plays in the PDL, the side will be made up largely of the PDL team in the Open Cup. The PDL side has long been one of the best in the league on and off the field, leading in attendance and reaching the league semifinals on four occasions with a championship in 2005. Last year was, surprisingly, the third time in four years it failed to make the playoffs.

Path to Open Cup: In a unique six-team format for Region II in which the winner of the opening round by the greatest goal differential earned the first US Open Cup berth, the Menace were fortunate that host Kansas City Athletics only had 10 players for its match. The Menace dominated with a 7-1 victory that gave them the Open Cup berth by one goal as AAC Eagles won their match 7-2. Surprisingly, the hosts got the opening tally in the 31st minute, but it was all Menace after that with Bryan Perez scoring twice as the Menace took a 3-1 lead to the break. John Sosa and Jarrett Hamilton each scored twice in the second half.

June News Updates (PDL): The Menace completed their four-game Canadian trip with a second straight loss to Thunder Bay, falling 3-0 June 11… On the third game of its Canadian trek June 10, the Menace fell 2-0 in Thunder Bay… Nabbed a second win in as many nights June 8 in Winnipeg, downing WSA 4-3 in a back-and-forth match in which four difference players scored… Posted a 2-0 shutout at Winnipeg June 7 on goals from Matt Lagrassa and Bryan Perez as Phil Boerger recorded the clean sheet… Opened the month with a 5-2 win at Kansas City June 1 with Deshorn Brown tallying two goals and assist.

Open Cup History: This is the first time the USASA version of the Des Moines Menace has qualified for the US Open Cup

However, since the club is basically the PDL team, here is their history:

Despite being one of the top clubs in the PDL, the team did not make the first of its five previous appearances until 2002. It marked the run of four trips in five years for the Menace, who returned to the Open Cup last year, falling in the first round, 1-0, to second division AC St Louis. The club’s debut was a symbol of the future as they downed third division New Jersey Stallions 3-1 before falling 3-2 in overtime to the second division Rochester Rhinos in the second round. A surprise exit, 2-1 in overtime, came at the hands of Bavarian SC (USASA) in the opening round of 2003. Two years later, the Menace were back on the upset track, however. They opened with a penalty kick decision over third division Pittsburgh Riverhounds in a 1-1 draw before eliminating a pair of second division clubs. They topped the Charleston Battery, 3-2, in the second round and the Atlanta Silverbacks on the road in a stunning 5-1 scoreline in the Third Round before being knocked out by MLS side Kansas City, 6-1. After eliminating two USASA sides (Croatian Eagles, Dallas Mustang Legends), the team collected another second division upset in 2006, edging the Minnesota Thunder 1-0 before being knocked out again by Kansas City, this time 2-1 in the Third Round.
PRO ERA RECORDS: 6-5-1 (1-0 in PKs) overall | 2-1-0 vs. Amateur Teams (0-0-0 vs. PDL)

2011 US Open Cup First Round: Madison 56ers roll past AAC Eagles 4-0 in Pro Era debut

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The Madison 56ers stormed into the second round of the U.S. Open Cup, scoring four goals in a late 14-minute span in the second half to power past Chicago’s AAC Eagles in a first round match in front of 702 fans Tuesday night at Breese Stevens Field.

Tenzin Rampa (Madison West/UW-Milwaukee) opened the scoring in the 67th minute for the 56ers, Jed Hohlbein (Middleton/UW) found the back of the net twice in four minutes and Marquette’s Adam Lysak (Milton) finished things off as the 56ers won their first Open Cup match since 1991.

Madison (5-1-3 overall) advances to play the Chicago Fire Premier, the Premier Development League team for the Major League Soccer club, in a second round match next Tuesday at Breese Stevens. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. Second round winners will face MLS teams in the third round June 28.

Based on the first round winners and the tournament rule that requires teams from the same club – such as the Fire – to be separated in the bracket, it appears the most likely potential MLS opponents for the winner of the 56ers-Fire Premier match are Sporting Kansas City and Real Salt Lake. The U.S. Soccer Federation is expected to announce the third round prospective matches this week.

The trio of target striker Hohlbein and outside midfielders Lysak and Rampa wore down AAC Eagles backline in the second half Tuesday night, with Rampa finally getting the breakthrough. The Milwaukee Wave player, who had his amateur status reinstated to join the team, zipped a left-footed shot past Eagles goalkeeper Marek Los to help make his return to the 56ers a success.

Player-assistant coach Henry Aiyenero helped create Hohlbein’s first goal, hustling forward from his central midfield position to win the ball back after losing it. He found Hohlbein, who worked his way around three defenders to the left side of the box and slipped a shot past Los to make it 2-0.

Lysak and Hohlbein finished things off in the 76th and 81st minutes with each scoring on a give-and-go sequence involving the other. University of Wisconsin keeper Max Jentsch (Hartland Arrowhead) made two saves for the clean sheet, but was hardly tested by AAC Eagles.

RECAP: Madison.com

Madison 56ers 0 4 —
 4
AAC Eagles 0 0 —
 0

Madison 56ers – Tenzin Rampa (Keenan Newallo) 67
Madison 56ers – Jed Hohlbein (Henry Aiyenero) 72
Madison 56ers – Jed Hohlbein (Adam Lysak) 76
Madison 56ers – Adam Lysak (Jed Hohlbein) 81

MADISON 56ERS: Max Jentsch; Carl Schneider, Colin Mani, Sean Ronnekleiv-Kelly, Aaron Nichols; Henry Aiyenero, Keenan Newallo (David Kommavang 82); Adam Lysak, Andrew Wiedabach (Aymar Sinaise 78), Tenzin Rampa; Jed Hohlbein (Carlos McCrary 84). Substitutes not used: Kyle Dillman (GK), Keith Dangarembwa, Derek Pitts, Sam Krenzien.

AAC EAGLES: Marek Los; Miroslaw Modzelewski, Piotr Kolasinski, Derek Szewczyk, Marcin Simson; Mariusz Napiorkowski, Pawel Otachel (Eric Cervantes 71), Jacek Lechowski (Sebastian Skital 76), Marek Golik (Adrian Skital 65); Matt Kochanowski, Jakub Piotrawski. Substitutes not used: Piotr Sliwa (GK), Marcin Pieniazek, Peter Bielecki, Rafal Zalewski.

Saves: M (Jentsch) 2, AAC (Los) 7. Shots: M 15, AAC 6. Fouls: M 17, AAC 11. Corner kicks: M 5, AAC 3. Offsides: M 5, AAC 1. Discipline: M – Mani (caution-foul, 17), Wiedabach (caution-unsporting conduct, 59); AAC – Lechowski (caution-unsporting conduct, 59). Att.: 702.

Eric Anderson is the senior editor of WisconsinSoccerCentral.com. Follow him on Twitter @WisconsinSoccer.

Meet the USASA: Class of 2011

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Eight teams from the United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA) have qualified for the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup and will attempt to become the 2011 tournament’s Cinderella story.

Will we see another Dallas Roma FC run from 2006? No one knows, but once again, TheCup.us has taken the time to introduce soccer fans to these largely unknown clubs. Click below to read about each club:

NY Pancyprian Freedoms (Region I – East NY)

Phoenix SC (Region I – East PA – Feasterville, PA)

AAC Eagles (Region II – IL – Chicago)

Iowa Menace (Region II – IA – Des Moines)

Regals FC (Region III – TX-South – Houston)

ASC New Stars (Region III – TX-South – Houston)

DV8 Defenders (Region IV – CA-North – Redwood City)

Doxa Italia (Region IV – CA-South – Orange County)

2011 Meet the USASA: 1990 US Open Cup champions, AAC Eagles from Chicago

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Welcome to our continuing series of Meet the USASA features where we annually profile the clubs representing the United States Adult Soccer Association in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. Advancing from the four regional tournaments, these often unknown clubs have great stories to tell and each year, our goal is to allow fans to get to know them as they attempt to become this year’s Cinderella story. Click here for more Meet the USASA stories.

AAC Eagles celebrate their 1990 US Open Cup championship. Photo: Renee Bechtoldt | AAC Eagles
AAC Eagles celebrate their 1990 US Open Cup championship. Photo: Renee Bechtoldt | AAC Eagles

The predominantly Polish side from Chicago has much to say about the US Open Cup.  Contestants AAC Eagles have won the entire tournament in 1990 and had a number of strong showings in years following.

2011 will mark the Eagles’ fifth Modern Era (1995-present) appearance (1995, 2002, 2005, 2008), and they will travel to Madison, Wis. for their First Round match-up with the NPSL’s Madison 56ers on Tuesday at 8 p.m. EST. The winner of that match will play the winner of the Chicago Fire Premier (PDL) and Iowa Menace (USASA ) in Round 2.

The club returned to prominence a year ago when they ended state rival RWB Adria’s three-year reign as Illinois state champions. The Eagles defeated RWB Adria 2-0 in the Illinois state qualifier the previous November before knocking out Minnesota entrant Fire SC in the Region II Quarterfinals, 8-3. The side was then eliminated in the Final Four via penalties 4-2 by KC Athletics after a 3-3 draw. The two matches took place at MLS venues, playing at Toyota Park’s training field and in a doubleheader with the Kansas City Wizards at CommunityAmerica Ballpark.

This year, AAC Eagles were seeded as host of the Illinois Final as defending champion, and defeated Viking AA 2-1 to retain the state crown. They earned a date with FC Indiana in the opening round of the Region II tournament and dispatched them 7-2 thanks to four goals by Jakub Piotrowski. It then came down to a “Win & You’re In” match between the Eagles and RWB Adria (who replaced Viking AA after they withdrew from the tournament), which the Eagles won 4-1 with Piotrowski leading the way with three goals. `

CLUB HISTORY

AAC Eagles were formed in the year 1940 by a number of Polish immigrants. The club underwent a number of rebrandings over the years from then on. Until the 1950s, Eagles were originally known as the Polish American Athletic Club (PAAC Eagles).

The team also played its inaugural season in the National Soccer League of Chicago.

After the 1950s, the team rebranded to the Chicago Eagles. Since then, the club has interchanged between a couple of other names. Having won the cup in 1990, the club had finally settled on the AAC Eagles moniker for years to come.

The Eagles currently play in the Metropolitan Soccer League, where it has won 11 Major Division championships.

HISTORY IN THE CUP

AAC Eagles celebrate their 1990 US Open Cup championship. Photo: Renee Bechtoldt | AAC Eagles
AAC Eagles celebrate their 1990 US Open Cup championship. Photo: Renee Bechtoldt | AAC Eagles

The club has a number of successes worth mentioning. It reached the final in 1945 and 1948 before winning the Open Cup in 1990. The Eagles defeated the Brooklyn Italians, who have also qualified for the 2011 competition, 2-1 in the championship game with goals from Jan Kiaca and Peter Modrzejewski at Kuntz Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind. , six years before MLS would be launched.

As is the case for the current tournament, back in 1990, the Eagles’ famous US Open Cup victory gave them a berth in the CONCACAF Champions Cup (now called the Champions League). The club lost on aggregate 4-1 to Bermudian side PHC Zebras in early stages of the tournament, but had already accomplished the impossible getting there.

The team first entered the Cup in 1948 and won their first-ever tournament match, 6-4, over Hansa SC on Nov. 16, 1947. In the ’48 Cup they reached the Illinois Final, where they lost to Sparta A & BA 3-2 after extra time.

In 1949, they made it all the way to the Western Final (National Semifinals), losing to Pittsburgh’s Morgan Strasser 4-3 on aggregate over two legs. Strasser went on to win the title that year.

Oldest teams to qualify in US Open Cup
Modern Era (1995-present)*
1910 – United German Hungarians (Oakford, PA)
1922 – Croatian Eagles (Milwaukee, WI)
1926 – Phoenix SC (Feasterville, PA)
1927 – SAC Wisla (Chicago, IL)
1929 – Bavarian SC (Milwaukee, WI)
1931 – Vereinigung Erzgebirge (Warminster, PA)
1940 – AAC Eagles (Chicago, IL)
1941 – Greek American Atlas (Queens, NY)
1959 – RWB Adria (Chicago, IL)*Year club was founded, not their first USOC appearance

In 1950 they reached the Western Semifinals where they lost to another eventual champion, St. Louis’ Simpkins Ford 5-0. Along the way they thrashed Hakoah Center 11-0 in the Illinois quarterfinals.

In 1953 a group of players who felt they were not being given a fair shot for playing time left the club and founded the Falcons SC, and that newly-formed club went on to win the Open Cup in their first attempt.

In their four previous Modern Era appearances, the club has failed to win a game in the competition. In fact, in their last three appearances, the Eagles have been eliminated by a team that has also qualified for the 2011 Open Cup. In 2002, they lost 1-0 on a golden goal by the New York Freedoms (now the NY Pancyprian Freedoms), who were a member of the PDL that year. They fell to the Chicago Fire Premier in 2005 by a score of 4-1, and in their last appearance they hosted the Pittsburgh Riverhounds, losing 4-0.

Adding to their list of achievements, AAC Eagles won the USASA Open Cup in 1989 and 2002.

MEET THE PLAYER: PETER BIELECKI

Peter Bielecki is a 6’1” left back playing a pivotal role for the Eagles, especially this season. Bielecki earned his spot through the youth ranks of Eagles as well as playing for Lane Tech High School in his earlier days.

Can you talk about the current atmosphere in the team and how you personally prepare for this tournament?

The AAC Eagles celebrate qualifying for the 2011 US Open Cup at the practice field outside the Chicago Fire’s Toyota Park

PB: Overall, we have strong team chemistry. Everyone backs each other up, where everyone seems to get along in both a professional and casual way. Our outlook is very serious, where everyone believes we can make it very far in the tournament. There is very little room for slacking, because a 27+man roster leaves a lot of room for competition on our team.

What does the US Open Cup mean for yourself and the Eagles?

PB: The US Open Cup is one of the biggest tests for an amateur men’s team. Within our league, we are always looking for a challenge. The US Open Cup offers everyone on our team a chance to give it their all and compete on higher levels. Many of our players are college level quality, but very few have broken into the professional levels, in which this tournament provides many opportunities to seize.

Who are some of the key players on the Eagles roster? Who are the veterans or someone you look up to?

PB: We have a lot of underrated talent. “Kuba” Piotrowski, for example, is an incredible “amateur” talent that has plenty of ability to score goals with speed comparable to many of the fastest strikers. Piotr Kolasinski is a central defender that has an incredible touch and makes plays in all areas of the field. He also has the ability to strike the ball from set pieces, leaving us with a serious weapon, no matter what team we play. Jacek Lechowicz and Sebastian Skital provide our team with years of experience from higher levels, while Miroslaw Modzelewski brings in experience from some of the highest levels of football, playing teams such as Manchester United in his Polish football career .

Can you tell fans a little about yourself and your relationship with the Eagles?

PB: As a youngster, I was constantly looking for chances to break into this “veteran” squad. I am a left back, standing at 6’1″ and 185 lbs, but I am still finding it difficult to capture my spot on this team. We have plenty of players to choose from, which is surprising for the level we play at. We are going to leave higher level teams with quite a challenge during these next few US open Cup games. It will be important for other teams not to underestimate us, because we train with the mindset of a professional squad.

The AAC Eagles are always trying to improve their reputation as an amateur soccer team. The US Open Cup is just another opportunity for us to make a statement and advance as far as possible. No matter what, our team will leave the tournament with no regrets, knowing that we have given our best performance and have showcased the best football that we can provide.

2011 US Open Cup qualifying: AAC Eagles back in Open Cup after Kolasinski hat trick

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Special thanks to David Gubala (@DavidGubala) from Goal.com for live updates and match report.

BRIDGEVIEW, IL – On a cold, rainy, Saturday afternoon, AAC Eagles came away with a satisfying 4-1 victory over RWB Adria at the Toyota Park practice field in Bridgeview, Illinois. The match was the final USASA Region II play-in match for the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup, the region’s second berth. Piotr Kolasinski as the man of the match with a hat-trick on the day.

AAC Eagles now progress to the US Open Cup along with previous Region II qualifier Iowa Menace, who advanced with a 7-1 victory in the First Round. The AAC Eagles came up came up short on the goal differential format utilized to determine a qualifier from three contests, winning 7-2 against FC Indiana while RWB Adria downed Detroit United 6-4 in overtime.

Knowing what was at stake, both teams threw in everything they had from the get-go. Adria broke the deadlock in the early minutes of the game when Boris Smoljan slotted the ball home in the seventh minute off a well-played through ball.

Not much later, the Eagles struck back. Forward Mariusz Napiorkowski crossed a well-driven ball to Kolasinski, who headed past the keeper to level terms in the 14th minute.

The AAC Eagles celebrate at the practice field outside Chicago Fire's Toyota Park

Midway through the first half Mark Golik broke away to see him one-on-one with the keeper. The captain did well for himself and slotted it inside Adria’s far post to take the lead in the 38th minute.

After the break, things started to get a little hectic and controversial. Adria goalkeeper handled the ball with his hands outside the box and was given a straight red. However, after much debate, the referee negated the call, rescinding the red card.

This sparked high emotions off the Eagles’ bench. With a plethora of attacking play, the Eagles would eventually earn a penalty kick. Kolasinski put it away, giving the Polish side a 3-1 lead 10 minutes into the second stanza.

Nearing the end, the Eagles were given a free kick just outside the box and the local hero of the night, Kolasinski, was perfect in the spotlight yet again in the 75th. He managed to curl it past the Adria keeper for a hat-trick, giving his club a resounding 4-1 lead.

“We played good, organized football,” said Eagles manager Mike Bechtold. “We didn’t give up any silly fouls and were able to play according to our plan.”

About the AAC Eagles

A Polish club from the Metropolitan Soccer League, the AAC Eagles returned to prominence a year ago when they ended state rival RWB Adria’s three-year reign as champions. The 1990 US Open Cup champions defeated RWB Adria 2-0 in the Illinois state qualifier the previous November before knocking out Minnesota entrant Fire SC in the Region II Quarterfinals, 8-3. The side was then eliminated in the Final Four via penalties 4-2 by KC Athletics after a 3-3 draw. The two matches took place at MLS venues, playing at Toyota Park’s training field and in a doubleheader with the Kansas City Wizards. This year, AAC Eagles were seeded as host of the Illinois Final as defending champion, and defeated Viking AA 2-1 to retain the state crown.

The Eagles have qualified for the tournament four times (1995, 2002, 2005, 2008) in the Professional Era (1995-present), but have fallen in the opening round all four times. Three of the four games have been against professional opponents.

Scoring Summary:

RBW Adria: Boris Smoljan – 7
AAC Eagles: Piotr Kolasinski – 14
AAC Eagles: Mark Golik – 38
AAC Eagles: Piotr Kolasinski – pen. 55
AAC Eagles: Piotr Kolasinski – 75

USASA Region II qualifying: Iowa Menace first amateur team to qualify for Lamar Hunt US Open Cup

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Special thanks to Michael Kuhn (@DownTheByline) of the blog “Down The Byline,” David Gubala (@DavidGubala) from Goal.com and Max Ciszek from MichiganSoccerNews.com for live updates during these matches and contributing to this article.

At the end of a dramatic day in Region II of USASA, one man may have been the deciding factor in which team became the first amateur club to advance to the 2011 edition of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. It could have been Jakub Piotrowski of the AAC Eagles, but his four-goal effort was not enough to make up for a six-goal victory the Iowa Menace claimed earlier in the day against a Kansas City Athletics side that started and only played with 10 men. With the greatest goal differential of three matches, Iowa Menace move on from Region II of the USASA while AAC Eagles will have to face RWB Adria in a playoff, a match-up of two Chicago clubs, for the second berth from the region.

The fireworks started in Pontiac, Michigan where Detroit United played host to RWB Adria, a late replacement added over the past two weeks, at the Ultimate Soccer Arenas. The visitors jumped into the initial lead after 17 minutes courtesy of Vlad Baciu, but a flurry at the end of the half was an early glimpse of what was to come. Detroit equalized in the 40th minute only to see RWB answer back immediately with a strike one minute later from Elemidin Zukic.

Iowa Menace (vs. KC Athletics) - 2011 Region II quarterfinals
With a 7-1 win over Kansas City (+6 goal difference), the Iowa Menace qualified for the 2011 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. Photo: Sodagraphics.blogspot.com

The second stanza was a tale of two halves in itself.

RWB scored back-to-back goals in the 50th and 53rd minutes to push out to a commanding 4-1 advantage that looked promising for their efforts to secure a quality goal differential in hopes of securing the first berth from Region II. Baciu notched his second of the day, assisted again by Taylor Bond, who added the next strike with help from Nermin Crnkic.

Detroit, however, had other ideas, answering back with goals in the 58th and 68th to cut the lead to one. Tommy Eller then converted a crucial penalty in the 90th minute to send the contest into overtime.

Again, RWB got an early goal five minutes into extra time from Crnkic, assisted by Alex Rickett, to reclaim the advantage. Detroit nearly equalized yet again in the 110th minute only to see the shot ring off the crossbar. As they pushed to keep their chances alive with a draw, Detroit’s hopes were dashed as RWB locked up victory with Zukic finding Alen Ejupovic for a sixth strike in the 119th minute as they held on for a 6-4 decision.

RWB Adria

While Detroit was eating away at RWB Adria’s three-goal advantage, the bad news was being compounded elsewhere as home side KC Athletics only had 10 players for their match versus the Iowa Menace.

Kyle Perkins. the player/manager for the Athletics, explained that there were a number of factors that contributed to the team playing shorthanded. A few of them were out of town, some others were called into work, including a couple who were sent down South to assist with the tornado disaster. Also, after the final roster was submitted, two of the players were signed by pro clubs.

Regardless of the numbers on the field, the Menace did play a strong game at Rockhurst University, controlling the game for the opening 30 minutes. The Menace traveled with 17 players and early on dominated, created good chances, including John Sosa beating the offside trap and chipping the ball just wide of the goal.

The lack of finishing by the Menace came back to bite them in the 31st minute. The Athletics had been working themselves back into the game, having weathered the early attack by the visitors.  Marty Johnston collected the ball on the right side and sent in a cross that was cleared, but not far enough, allowing Johnston another chance. He squared it into the middle where Perkins slid in, knocking the ball into the net to give the Athletics the 1-0 lead.

The Menace almost had the equalizer in the 39th when Sosa was played behind the defense again, but KC goalkeeper Bret Clark got enough on the shot to slow it down so that Josh White could recover it and cleared it from danger.

In the 42nd minute, KC created another good chance through Johnston, but the Menace cleared the ball out for a corner.  The corner came to nothing, but the Menace sprung the counter through Sosa, who played Bryan Perez in behind the KC defense. Perez’s first shot was saved by Clark in goal, but Perez followed and was able to slot home the tying goal in the 43rd minute. The goal started a late flurry for the Menace as KC seemed to tire a bit.

The Iowa club pressed for a second goal and got one just before stoppage time. Perez played a give and go with Sosa and Perez slotted the ball to the far post giving the Menace a lead that they would not surrender.

Things got worse for the Athletics as the Menace continued to push. The visitors earned a corner and with the last touch of the first half, Iowa made it 3-1. Sosa took a corner kick for the Menace and found Brady Blankenship, who had beaten his man and headed the ball easily into the net to give the home team a big halftime lead.

Looking to bolster the advantage in the game and on goal differential for Region II, the visitors brought on at the half Tomas Boltnar, a former two-time Premier Development League MVP and the league’s all-time leading scorer of the Des Moines Menace.

It wouldn’t take long for Boltnar to contribute as the halftime sub set up the Menace’s first goal of the half, playing Sosa through, who chipped Clark from the top of the box to give him a goal to add to his two assists in the first half in the 58th minute. Shortly after Sosa’s goal, the Athletics almost got back into the game as Geoff Miles fired in a free kick from the side of the box that almost caught Menace keeper Matt Wade napping. Wade palmed the ball away keeping it 4-1.

That sign of life by KC was quickly erased as the Menace scored a couple minutes later to make it 5-1. Right back Ben Taylor played a cross into the middle for second half substitute Jarrett Hamilton, who just had to tap the ball home in the 63rd minute. About four minutes later, Hamilton got his second of the game as Perez broke down the right again. Perez’s initial cross was nearly cut out by Ben Hicks for the Athletics, but his clearance deflected off of Hamilton and into the net making it 6-1.

Iowa seemed to take their foot off the gas a little bit, and at times got a little to fancy in trying to find a seventh goal, knowing that goal difference was very important. Perez got in behind the defense twice, but both times was too unselfish as he played the ball back, once missing his man and another time playing the ball to an offside Hamilton.

There was no quit in the Athletics as they cried for a penalty in the 70th minute when Sosa appeared to be sandwiched by two Menace defenders, but the referee waived play on. KC was still trying to make a game of it, and in the 85th they almost got a second.  Josh White, normally a defender, was playing up top trying to give a break to Perkins, who for long periods was totally isolated for KC.  White got played in behind the Menace defense and got around Wade in the Menace goal, but Wade had gone down to push White wide and his shot just missed the near post. In the 89th  minute, the Menace got their seventh and final goal, the one that would ultimately qualify them for the US Open Cup. Substitute Austin Otto played a great cross-field ball into the box for Boltzmann, who settled, took a touch and then played the ball back to Sosa, who fired the ball inside the far post to make it 7-1.

With Iowa setting the bar high with a +6 goal difference, the AAC Eagles knew they had to come out firing against FC Indiana if they wanted to assure themselves a spot in the US Open Cup. In a game played at the north practice field of Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Ill., home of the Chicago Fire, the Eagles did just that, having learned of the outcome of the two earlier games and knowing that they had to win by 7 to qualify for the tournament for the first time since 2008.

The one-sided affair got started with the Eagles scoring about 10 minutes into the match. Jakub “Kuba” Piotrowski received a centering pass from David Otachel and took care of business inside the box to make it 1-0. About 10 minutes later, Marcin Simson got a little help from mother nature as the wind carried his shot from about 25 yards out, helping him beat the keeper on the play. Five minutes later, Matthew Kochanowski made it 3-0 on a centering pass by Jacek Lechowicz that worked it’s way through traffic to the foot of the goalscorer.

Piotrowski would dribble through traffic in the 40th minute to put the winner of the game beyond doubt with a fourth goal, but the players and coaches knew there was more work that needed to be done. Adding two more goals in the second half to tie, or three more to advance, seemed daunting before the halftime break. But just  a couple minutes into the second half, AAC earned a penalty kick. Naturally, they handed the ball to Piotrowski, but his spot kick was saved. However, neither Piotrowski or the Eagles let the failed attempt keep them down. Two minutes later, Piotrowski completed his hat trick on an assist by Michael Kapusta.

With the score  5-0, Indiana would pull one back in the 60th minute, only to have Piotrowski score his fourth just five minutes later. Lechowicz provided his second assist of the day to set up the goal.

Hope was restored in the 82nd minute when Adrian Skital received a pass from Kochanowski to make it a 7-1 game, matching the score of the KC victory from earlier in the day. With still plenty of time left and the victory in hand, the Eagles pushed for the Open Cup berth-clinching goal. It was a frantic finish by the home side as they fielded as many as six forwards in the final 10 minutes of the match desperate to avoid having to play one more game to decide their Open Cup fate.

However, that scenario was dashed about a minute after the seventh goal was scored when Indiana tallied on a counter attack with the Eagles’ numbers out of alignment. With the score at 7-2 the Eagles continued to fight because equaling the +6 goal difference would at least give them a chance, via coin flip, to earn a spot directly into the tournament without another match, but it was not meant to be. Twice the Eagles put the ball into the back of the net in the final few minutes, but both times they were called offside.

The five-goal victory sets up an intriguing game with the Eagles taking on fellow Chicago club RWB Adria in a “Win & You’re In” match.

“Adria is a very good side,” said AAC Eagles team president Stanley Makowka. “Their players have played together for a long time so they have good chemistry. We’ve played them before and we know it won’t be easy but we expect to get the job done.”

Jakub Piotrowski will likely be a focus of the Adria defense, as the Polish forward has now scored 12 goals in his last four Open Cup qualifying matches dating back to last year. He drew high praise from his club’s president.

“He is a game changer,” said Makowka  after the match. “He is very good technically and fully aware of his surroundings on the field. Of course, I don’t want him leaving us, but I think bigger clubs will notice him as we move on further in the tournament.”

RWB Adria (IL) 6:4 (AET) Detroit United (MI)
Ultimate Soccer Arenas (Pontiac, Mich.) – 2 p.m.

Scoring Summary
RWB: Vlad Baciu (Taylor Bond) – 17th minute
DET: Unidentified – 40th minute
RWB: Elemidin Zukic (Unassisted) – 41st minute
RWB: Vlad Baciu (Taylor Bond) – 50th minute
RWB: Taylor Bond (Nermin Crnkic) – 53rd minute
DET: Unidentified – 58th minute
DET: Unidentified – 68th minute
DET: Tommy Eller (PK) – 90th minute
RWB: Nermin Crnkic (Alex Rickett) – 95th minute
RWB: Alen Ejupovic (Elemidin Zukic) – 119th minute

Iowa Menace (IA) 7:1 Kansas City Athletics (KS)
Rockhurst University (Kansas City, Mo.) – 3 p.m.

Scoring Summary
KCA: Kyle Perkins (Marty Johnston) – 31st minute
IAM: Bryan Perez (Unassisted) – 43rd minute
IAM: Bryan Perez (John Sosa) – 45th minute
IAM: Brady Blankenship (John Sosa) – 45th minute+
IAM: John Sosa (Tomas Boltnar) – 53rd minute
IAM: Jarrett Hamilton (Ben Taylor) – 63rd minute
IAM: Jarrett Hamilton (Unassisted) – 67th minute
IAM: John Sosa (Tomas Boltnar) – 89th minute

Lineups:
KC Athletics: Bret Clark, Ben Hicks, Ryan Barber, Josh White, Mike Robards, Marty Johnston, Stephen Homan, Geoff Miles, Kyle Perkins.
Iowa Menace: Matt Wade, Anthony Colaizzi, Thomas Catania, Diego Marroquin, Ben Taylor (Austin Otto 75), Luis Piffer, Chris Van Leur (Tomas Boltnar 45), Brady Blankenship (Graham Nugent 67), Aaron Douthitt (Jarrett Hamilton 53), Bryan Perez, John Sosa.

Booking Summary:
IAM: Anthony Colaizzi – 40th minute
IAM: Diego Marroquin – 57th minute
IAM: John Sosa – 90th minute

Note:  KC started & played with 10 men

FC Indiana (IN) 2:7 AAC Eagles (IL)
Toyota Park Practice Field (Bridgeview, Ill.) – 3 p.m.

Scoring Summary
AAC: Jakub Piotrowski (David Otachel) – 10th minute
AAC: Marcin Simson (Unassisted) – 20th minute
AAC: Matthew Kochanowski (Jacek Lechowicz) – 25th minute
AAC: Jakub Piotrowski (Unassisted) – 40th minute
AAC: Jakub Piotrowski (Michael Kapusta) – 49th minute
IND: Unknown goalscorer – 60th minute
AAC: Jakub Piotrowski (Jacek Lechowicz) – 65th minute
AAC: Adrian Skital (Matthew Kochanowski) – 82nd minute
IND: Unknown goalscorer – 83rd minute

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