Complete U.S. Open Cup Coverage
Seattle Sounders goalkeeper Chris Eylander was a unanimous selection as the TheCup.us Player of the Round for the Quarterfinals. The award was voted on by the TheCup.us staff and members of the North American Soccer Reporters.
Eylander was challenged for the award by Jamie Moreno of DC United, along with goalkeepers Doug Warren of the New England Revolution and Eric Kronberg of the Kansas City Wizards.
The New England Revolution’s defense of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup was nearly ended in New Britain, Conn. at the hands of a resolute Crystal Palace Baltimore team on Tuesday night. Following 120 minutes of even soccer, the Revs pushed past Palace 5-3 on penalty kicks, with Mauricio Castro slotting home the final shot for New England.
Had the New England Revolution lost to the Richmond Kickers in this Third Round matchup in New Britain, Conn., they may have blamed their poor choice of a stadium, as a nearly two-hour lightning delay pushed the start of the game close to 9:00. Strangely, no rain fell at their other prospective US Open Cup homes: Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, and Lusitano Stadium in Ludlow, Mass., home of the Kickers’ USL-2 rival Western Mass but used often by New England for Open Cup home games. However, the performance of two players making their professional debut helped to kick-start the Revolution’s defense of their 2007 title by defeating Richmond 3-0.
