PDL

Which PDL teams will qualify for 2019 US Open Cup?

July 13, 2018 by Josh Hakala

Fans are awaiting the results of the 2018 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup Quarterfinals, but it’s not too early to start looking ahead to the 2019 US Open Cup qualifying.

The format for the 106th edition of the tournament has yet to be released, but the expectation is that there won’t be drastic changes. The Premier Development League (PDL) has held a fairly consistent qualifying process since 2012 where the league determines its entries based on the previous year’s results. The only changes have been the number of teams that the US Soccer Federation has awarded the PDL.

This weekend is the final weekend of the PDL, so teams and fans will not only be scoreboard watching for playoff positioning, but also to try to move up in the overall league standings to improve their chances of qualifying for next year’s US Open Cup.

In 2012 and 2013, the top 16 US-based PDL teams qualified for the tournament, while that number increased to 19 from 2014-16. In 2017, the top 21 teams got it, and in 2018, that number dipped to 20.

The 11 division winners will get an automatic berth into the tournament and the remaining teams are ranked by points (all teams play a 14-game schedule). However, the PDL confirmed to TheCup.us that in the case where a Canadian team leads the division, the second place team would not receive an automatic berth. So the Seattle Sounders Under-23s, currently second place team in the Northwest Division, are ranked among the rest of the teams.

The teams that qualify will join other Open Division teams, such as the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) and local amateur qualifiers in the opening round of next year’s competition.

Below is the overall PDL standings (excluding Canadian clubs) updated after the games of Friday, July 13 and each team’s remaining games.

Friday games:
St. Louis Lions 1:3 Des Moines Menace
Texas United 1:4 Brazos Valley Cavalry FC
Dayton Dutch Lions 4:0 Cincinnati Dutch Lions
New York Red Bulls 3:1 Long Island Rough Riders
Peachtree City MOBA 0:6 Mississippi Brilla
Lansing United 6:1 Derby City Rovers
FC Tucson 2:1 Colorado Pride Switchbacks U-23s

UPDATE (July 13, 2018 – 8:58 p.m. ET) – Dayton Dutch Lions clinch division, spot in 2019 US Open Cup

The Dayton Dutch Lions celebrate the 2018 Great Lakes Division championship after defeating the Cincinnati Dutch Lions 4-0 on July 13, 2018. Photo: Dayton Dutch Lions

The Dayton Dutch Lions cruised to a 4-0 road win over the Cincinnati Dutch Lions in the Dutch Lions Derby. With the win, Dayton clinched the Great Lakes Division and a spot in the 2019 US Open Cup. This will be the first time that Dayton will qualify for the US Open Cup since they joined the PDL (from the USL) in 2015. Their shining moment in the tournament was an incredible run to the Quarterfinals in 2012 which was highlighted by their trip down to Columbus where they upset the Columbus Crew 2-1. The upset was even more impressive considering at the time of the upset, Dayton was winless in league play.

UPDATE (July 13, 2018 – 9:10 p.m. ET) – Lansing United wins big to keep 2019 US Open Cup hopes alive
Lansing United dominated Derby City 6-1 to jump from 26th into 18th place in the overall standings. With 23 points and a lot of teams in contention, they will probably need at least another point (maybe all three) to have a shot at returning to the US Open Cup for the first time since 2015 when they qualified as a member of the NPSL. Obviously with other games still to be played tonight, they may not hold at No. 18, but to be in the Top 20 is a solid spot to be in. The win also puts them into second place in the Great Lakes Division behind Dayton who clinched the division title just minutes before.

UPDATE (July 13, 2018 – 9:33 p.m. ET) – New York Red Bulls clinch PDL playoff spot, in great shape for #USOC2019 with 3-1 win over Long Island Rough Riders
The New York Red Bulls Under-23s will be entering their 8th season in 2019, and with Friday’s 3-1 win over the Long Island Rough Riders they locked up two things: A PDL playoff spot as the top second place team in the Eastern Conference, and most likely a spot in the 2019 US Open Cup as the best record among the non-division winners. Out of those eight seasons (four of them in the NPSL, the last four in the PDL), they will likely participate in the US Open Cup for the fifth time (and the second year in a row).

Despite this being the final game of the season for Long Island, the Rough Riders are still in prime position to qualify for the 2019 US Open Cup. They are just three points behind the Red Bulls and 28 points should be enough to get them into the tournament for the second year in a row and the fourth time in the last five years.

UPDATE (July 13, 2018 – 10:03 p.m. ET) – Mississippi Brilla look primed to return to the US Open Cup for second year in a row
Mississippi Brilla entered the weekend likely needing a pair of wins to put themselves in position to qualify for the US Open Cup for the fifth time in team history. Luckily for them, both games this weekend are against Peachtree City MOBA and both of them are at home. Friday’s win could be a sign of things to come with a 6-0 win over City. If they can replicate that performance, they will surely find themselves in the tournament for the second year in a row. The win, at the time this was written, jumped them from 22nd to 15th and a win against Peachtree on Sunday could see them reach as high as 12th, which would most likely be more than enough to qualify. The 2017 tournament was a historic one for Brilla as they became the first Mississippi-based club in the history of the tournament to reach the Third Round as they upset the USL’s Indy Eleven in Round 2.

The Des Moines Menace celebrate a goal against the St. Louis Lions in the PDL regular season finale on July 13, 2018. The 3-1 win clinched the PDL regular season title for the Menace. Photo: Des Moines Menace

UPDATE (July 13, 2018 – 10:42 p.m. ET) – Undefeated Menace clinch PDL regular season title; Brazos Valley Cavalry clinch division, first US Open Cup berth
The Des Moines Menace clinched a rare undefeated season in the PDL with a 3-1 win over the St. Louis Lions. The Menace clinch the PDL regular season title with the win. Des Moines is one of the best amateur teams of the Modern Era (1995-present) when it comes to the US Open Cup, which is why many were surprised when they did not qualify for the 2018 US Open Cup. Only the Michigan Bucks have more pro team upsets than the Menace (7) and if you include the Menace’s “reserve” team that qualified through the USASA in 2011 and 2014, the Menace were represented in the tournament for eight years in a row before missing out in 2018.

Elsewhere, Brazos Valley Cavalry FC will make their US Open Cup debut in 2019 as they clinched the Mid-South Division with a 4-1 win over Texas United. The club based in Bryan, Texas (near College Station) jumps up to 5th on the overall qualifying table.

UPDATE (July 13, 2018 – 11:06 p.m. ET) – FC Tucson stays alive with narrow 2-1 win in final Friday game
FC Tucson kept their PDL playoff and 2019 US Open Cup hopes alive with a 2-1 win over Colorado Pride Switchbacks Under-23s. Considering the teams around them in the standings, FC Tucson likely has to beat the Switchbacks against on Saturday night to have a chance of qualifying for the US Open Cup for the fifth year in a row and the sixth time over the last seven years.

That concludes the Friday games. It will be a busy day of games on Saturday as the 2019 US Open Cup qualifying tables starts to take shape. Check back here and on Twitter @USOpenCup for updates.

Saturday games (All Times Eastern):
Houston FC 2:3 OKC Energy U-23s
FC Tucson 3:1 Colorado Pride Switchbacks U-23s
Sounders FC U-23s 0:2 Calgary Foothills FC
IMG Academy Bradenton 0:5 The Villages SC
North Carolina FC U-23s 2:2 Charlotte Eagles
Lehigh Valley United 2:3 Reading United AC
South Georgia Tormenta FC 2:1 Tri-Cities Otters
Weston FC 0:5 Lakeland Tropics
West Virginia Chaos 1:5 Michigan Bucks
Carolina Dynamo 1:1 SC United Bantams
FC Golden State Force 1:0 Ventura County Fusion

UPDATE (July 15, 2018 – 12:15 a.m. ET) – The Villages leapfrogs SIMA Aguilas as division comes down to final day; Michigan Bucks, FC Tucson stay alive with wins
The Villages SC are attempting to qualify for the US Open Cup for the seventh year in a row and after a 5-0 win over IMG Academy Bradenton, they have put themselves atop the Southeast Division. For the moment. SIMA Aguilas will play their final game on Sunday so they have a chance to win the division and clinch a spot in the 2019 US Open Cup. However, even if SIMA Aguilas defeats FC Miami City on Sunday, The Villages finish the season with 30 points which should be enough to get them in as an at-large bid.

FC Tucson defeated the Colorado Pride Switchbacks U-23s for the second night in a row and moved up into the Top 20 as they wrap up their regular season schedule. They are aiming for their fifth straight US Open Cup berth but they will have to do some scoreboard watching on Sunday and hope that teams like GPS Portland Phoenix, the Ocean City Nor’easters and Lansing United don’t leapfrog them.

Barring a massive expansion of PDL entries for the 2019 US Open Cup, Sounders FC U-23s will likely miss out on the tournament for the second year in a row after losing their final game to the Calgary Foothills FC. Their best chance is that if the PDL rules that the Sounders get an automatic berth as the top US-based team in the Northwest Division. However, with a 6-5-3 record, that might be a tough sell.

North Carolina FC U-23s had a chance to move up and challenge for a spot in the tournament for the first time since 2010 but a 2-2 draw against the defending PDL champion Charlotte Eagles hurt that effort as they finish the regular season with 23 points and will scoreboard watch on Sunday sitting at No. 22.

Reading United AC and South Georgia Tormenta both won their Saturday games to join the Des Moines Menace in a trio of teams that are undefeated. Tormenta, who still have one more game left on Sunday to finish the season undefeated, will participate in their second straight US Open Cup while Reading United will take part in their 11th consecutive US Open Cup next year. United adds to their Modern Era record as the only amateur team in the Modern Era to have 11 consecutive trips to the tournament.

The Lakeland Tropics may have done enough to punch their ticket with a convincing 5-0 win over Weston FC. The Tropics finish the season with 30 points and will most likely get in as an at-large bid and get them back in the tournament for the second year in a row and the second time in team history.

SC United Bantams had a chance to put themselves into a safe part of the qualifying table, but they were only able to earn a draw in their season finale against the Carolina Dynamo. Now the Bantams are squarely on the bubble and will be scoreboard watching on Sunday hoping that they don’t get passed by too many teams.

And finally, one of the biggest surprises of the 2018 PDL season has been the struggles and inconsistency of the Michigan Bucks. The undisputed best amateur team of the Modern Era suffered a 1-0 home loss to the Cincinnati Dutch Lions back on July 7, and the Bucks hit the panic button and they have responded with dominant results. They destroyed the Derby City Rovers 14-1 (yes, 14-1) on the road and followed that up with a 5-1 home win over the West Virginia Chaos on Saturday night. The only hope the Bucks have of qualifying is if they win their season finale on the road against the Cincinnati Dutch Lions on Monday, the final game on the PDL schedule. The Bucks have been piling on the offense in the last few games because they know that qualifying could come down to goal difference. If they win their season finale and teams like GPS Portland Phoenix, the Ocean City Nor’easters and Lansing United end up tied with them at 24 points, they would win the tiebreaker going away and could finish as high as No. 18. But there is still a lot of soccer to be played on Sunday.

In the final game of the night, FC Golden State Force edged the Ventura County Fusion 1-0 to add to their impressive 2018 resume. They finish with a 12-1-1 record, while the Fusion’s hopes of returning to the tournament took a hit. Ventura County finishes the night sitting at No. 24 as they were hoping to get back to the tournament after missing out in 2018. Prior to that, the Fusion had qualified for eight consecutive tournaments from 2010-17.

Stay tuned for updates on Sunday as the qualifying picture should be squared away ahead of Monday’s finale with the Michigan Bucks and the Cincinnati Dutch Lions.

Sunday games (All Times Eastern):
Lansing United 3:0 Dayton Dutch Lions
Corpus Christi FC 1:2 OKC Energy U-23s
Western Mass Pioneers 3:2 GPS Portland Phoenix
South Georgia Tormenta FC 1:1 Myrtle Beach Mutiny
New York Red Bulls U-23s 1:2 Ocean City Nor’easters
FC Miami City 0:5 SIMA Aguilas
Peachtree City MOBA 1:2 Mississippi Brilla FC
San Francisco City FC 2:0 Santa Cruz Breakers FC

UPDATE (July 15, 2018 – 5:55 p.m. ET) – Lansing United most likely have qualified with a win over Dayton Dutch Lions
Lansing United ended their inaugural regular season in the PDL (after moving from the NPSL) with a 3-0 win over the Dayton Dutch Lions. United may have benefited from a Dutch Lions team that has already clinched the Great Lakes Division title (and a spot in the 2019 US Open Cup) and are looking ahead to the PDL playoffs. At the time of the final whistle, United makes the jump from 21st to 15th on the qualifying table. Lansing is most likely safe within the top 20 (the top 20 teams qualified last year) because only four teams can leapfrog them in the standings, so at worst they will finish at No. 19. United made their US Open Cup debut in 2015 as a member of the NPSL, but have not qualified since.

UPDATE (July 15, 2018 – 7:24 p.m. ET) – OKC Energy U-23s likely back in the tournament with win
OKC Energy U-23s appear to be headed back to the US Open Cup for the third year in a row with a 2-1 win over Corpus Christi FC. As of the final whistle, they are ranked No. 14 and can only be topped by one team, so a Top 15 finish should be safe.

UPDATE (July 15, 2018 – 8:14 p.m. ET) – GPS Portland Phoenix stunned by Western Mass Pioneers in final minutes, now squarely on the bubble for 2019 USOC
With three minutes left, the GPS Portland Phoenix were in control with a 2-1 lead over the Western Mass Pioneers. A win would put them in prime position to qualify for the 2019 US Open Cup. GPS, a team that has qualified for the tournament in five of the last seven years, saw that lead slip away. The Pioneers equalized off a corner kick and then won the game on a set piece goal in the final minutes. After the final whistle, the Phoenix are sitting in 20th place in the qualifying table and two teams (Ocean City Nor’easters, Michigan Bucks) could pass them by in the standings. So the Phoenix are clearly on the bubble and will need those two teams to lose their final game to have a chance at staying in the Top 20.

UPDATE (July 15, 2018 – 9:25 p.m. ET) – SIMA overtakes The Villages for division title on final day; Ocean City safe inside Top 20 with win over Red Bulls,
SIMA blanked FC Miami City 5-0 on Sunday night to leapfrog The Villages SC to win the Southeast Division title and book a spot in the 2019 US Open Cup. Despite missing out on the division title, The Villages still finish the season in 12th place in the qualifying table with 30 points, which should assure them a spot in the 106th edition of the tournament. SIMA will take part in the tournament for the second time in club history and the second year in a row.

Elsewhere, a few hundred yards from the Atlantic Ocean, the Ocean City Nor’easters pulled off a 2-1 win over the New York Red Bulls Under-23s to also put themselves firmly in the Top 20. Alex Rose and Deri Corfe scored for the Nor’easters. Corfe currently leads the 2018 US Open Cup in assists with four. The Nor’easters will take part in the tournament for the third year in a row and the 10th time in club history. Only two amateur teams in the Modern Era (Michigan Bucks, Des Moines Menace) have more Open Cup wins (11) and pro team upsets (6)

UPDATE (July 15, 2018 – 9:27 p.m. ET) – Two division champs cancel each other out
There was nothing to play for when South Georgia Tormenta and the Myrtle Beach Mutiny squared off in their respective regular season finale. Each team had won their division and were looking ahead to next week’s PDL Conference tournaments. The teams finished with a 1-1 draw. South Georgia finishes 4th in the qualifying table, while the Mutiny inch ahead of the Colorado Rapids Under-23s to finish in 8th place. The only meaningful game of the night is the Mississippi Brilla taking on Peachtree City. Brilla are likely safe at No. 17, but a win would all but assure their safety.

UPDATE (July 15, 2018 – 10:40 p.m. ET) – Mississippi Brilla should return to US Open Cup with season finale win; Final PDL game on Monday is a big one
Mississippi Brilla picked up a 2-1 win over Peachtree City to put themselves in prime position to qualify for the second year in a row and the third time in four years. They jumped to 15th in the table with the win.

The final game of the 2018 PDL regular season will take place on Monday at 7 p.m. when the Cincinnati Dutch Lions will host the Michigan Bucks. The winner of the game will move themselves into the Top 21 (Bucks would be 19th, Dutch Lions would be 21st). A draw would leave both teams in trouble with the Bucks finishing 24th and the Dutch Lions in 25th.

Monday game

Michigan Bucks 3:3 Cincinnati Dutch Lions

UPDATE (July 16, 2018 – 9:15 p.m. ET) – Michigan Bucks stage big comeback but draw vs. Cincinnati Dutch Lions likely hurts both teams.
The Michigan Bucks, the most successful amateur team of the US Open Cup’s Modern Era (1995-present), will likely miss out on the 2019 US Open Cup after a 3-3 draw with the Cincinnati Dutch Lions. The Bucks fell behind 3-0 but rallied to score three unanswered goals to earn a 3-3 draw. With the draw, both teams are well outside the Top 20 with the Bucks finishing 24th and the Dutch Lions right behind them in 25th. So unless the PDL is awarded some additional spots (the most the league has ever received was 21 in 2017), then both teams appear to be on the outside looking in.

		W	L	D	PTS	GD	*x-Division leader \| y-Clinched division*
1	y-Des Moines Menace	13	0	1	40	+31	NO GAMES REMAINING
2	y-Reading United AC	12	0	2	38	+25	NO GAMES REMAINING
3	y-FC Golden State Force	12	1	1	37	+28	NO GAMES REMAINING
4	y-South Georgia Tormenta FC	11	0	3	36	+20	NO GAMES REMAINING
5	y-SIMA Aguilas	10	2	2	32	+17	NO GAMES REMAINING
6	y-Brazos Valley Cavalry FC	9	2	3	30	+23	NO GAMES REMAINING
7	y-Black Rock FC	9	2	3	30	+14	NO GAMES REMAINING
9	y-Myrtle Beach Mutiny	8	2	4	28	+21	NO GAMES REMAINING
8	y-Colorado Rapids U-23s	8	2	4	28	+19	NO GAMES REMAINING
10	y-Dayton Dutch Lions	8	3	3	27	+14	NO GAMES REMAINING

11	New York Red Bulls U-23s	10	3	1	31	+28	NO GAMES REMAINING
12	The Villages SC	9	2	3	30	+23	NO GAMES REMAINING
13	Lakeland Tropics	9	2	3	30	+16	NO GAMES REMAINING
14	OKC Energy U-23s	9	4	1	28	+15	NO GAMES REMAINING
15	Mississippi Brilla FC	8	2	4	28	+13	NO GAMES REMAINING
16	Long Island Rough Riders	9	4	1	28	+10	NO GAMES REMAINING
17	Ocean City Nor’easters	9	5	0	27	+7	NO GAMES REMAINING
18	Lansing United	7	2	5	26	+15	NO GAMES REMAINING
19	FC Tucson	7	3	4	25	+10	NO GAMES REMAINING
20	SC United Bantams	7	4	3	24	+13	NO GAMES REMAINING
21	GPS Portland Phoenix	7	4	3	24	+7	NO GAMES REMAINING
22	North Carolina FC U-23s	6	3	5	23	+6	NO GAMES REMAINING
23	Chicago FC United	7	5	2	23	+3	NO GAMES REMAINING
24	Michigan Bucks	6	4	4	22	+24	NO GAMES REMAINING
25	Cincinnati Dutch Lions	6	4	4	22	+7	NO GAMES REMAINING
26	Ventura County Fusion	7	6	1	22	+2	NO GAMES REMAINING
27	Sounders FC U-23s	6	5	3	21	+5	NO GAMES REMAINING
28	AHFC Royals	7	7	0	21	0	NO GAMES REMAINING
30	St. Louis Lions	6	6	2	20	+2	NO GAMES REMAINING
29	Santa Cruz Breakers FC	6	6	2	20	+0	NO GAMES REMAINING
31	Corpus Christi FC	6	6	2	20	+0	NO GAMES REMAINING
32	Fresno FC U-23s	6	6	2	20	-1	NO GAMES REMAINING
33	IMG Academy Bradenton	6	6	2	20	-6	NO GAMES REMAINING

2018 US Open Cup Round 1: Timbers U-23s shut out Kitsap with a little help from the Pumas

May 9, 2018 by Jeremiah Braeback

The Portland Timbers Under-23s of the Premier Development League (PDL) punched their ticket to the Second Round of the 2018 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup, defeating the visiting Kitsap Pumas (National Premier Soccer League) 5-0 in front of 470 fans at McCulloch Stadium in Salem, Oregon.

The 5-0 victory was the largest margin of defeat between PDL and NPSL sides in US Open Cup history, and the first meeting between the former PDL Northwest Division rivals, who met for the first time since Kitsap made the move to the NPSL following the 2016 season.

The Timbers U-23s quickly found themselves up a goal in the 12th minute, after Kitsap defender Kevin Francis was shown a straight red card by referee Ekaterina Koroleva, following a hard tackle just outside the box. With the Pumas scrambling to find their footing following the sending off, U-23s midfielder Rey Ortiz-Flores curled the ball into the back of the net, beating goalkeeper Cody Lang off the free kick to give the Timbers a 1-0 lead.

The match opened up following the goal, with both sides trading chances over the next 20 minutes, but the Timbers would once again find the back of the net, as Benji Michel’s shot off a cross from Ortiz-Flores was deflected into the back of his own net by Pumas defender Aria Shahmirzadi, giving the U-23s a 2-0 lead.

Portland would continue to press Kitsap through the remainder of the first half, with several chances to add to their lead as the first half ended. At the break, the Timbers U-23s outshot the Pumas 5-0, and had a 4-2 lead in corner kicks.

Rey Ortiz-Francis of Portland Timbers U-23s scores the opening goal off a free kick against the Kitsap Pumas in the 2018 US Open Cup. Photo: Allison Andrews | SoccerCityUSA.com

Coming out of the break, the Timbers U-23s continued to put on the pressure, and it quickly paid off. Kitsap’s halftime substitute Jack Sluys slid to clear a cross, only to see the ball go in to the back of his net in the 50th minute, giving the Timbers a three-goal lead. The goal was an unfortunate piece of history as the goal marked the first time in the Modern Era (1995-present) that a team has scored two own goals in the same match.

Following the goal, Kitsap had their best opportunity of the night, as U-23s goalkeeper Mario Sequeira made a leaping save to stop a Juan Carrillo shot heading into the upper 90 in the 52nd minute.

The Timbers continued to press Kitsap back in their own half, and they quickly found the back of the net again, as Alex Segovia sent in a pinpoint cross to Don Tchilao, who easily headed it home for the fourth goal of the match.

Facing a seemingly insurmountable deficit, Kitsap conceded possession for the remainder of the match, as the U-23s continued to find space and scoring opportunities, with Joel Walker capping off the scoring in the 84th minute to give his side a 5-0 victory, while Sequeira earned his first shutout of the young season.

With the victory, the Timbers U-23s will face off against Reno 1868 FC of the United Soccer League on May 16 at Greater Nevada Field in Reno, Nevada, in the Second Round.

Which PDL teams will play in the 2018 US Open Cup?

August 4, 2017 by Josh Hakala

UPDATED AFTER JULY 16 GAMES

It’s never too early to start looking ahead to the 2018 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup.

The Premier Development League (PDL), the amateur league which has been participating in the US Open Cup (under various names) since the Modern Era began in 1995, is heading down the home stretch of the 2017 season.

The team allocations for the 2018 US Open Cup have not been released yet, but assuming there isn’t a major format change, we can make predictions about what teams may qualify for the 105th edition of the tournament.

As far as predicting the number of teams, you can never know for sure. However, it’s worth considering that the number of PDL teams in the tournament has only increased since the league first entered a single team in 1995. Last year, the league was awarded an all-time high 21 entries.

The PDL has made it very simple in determining their entries in recent years. The league’s entries are based on the previous year’s regular season results. So the top 21 overall teams get in.

We would do the same analysis for their rival, the National Premier Soccer League, but that league bases their entries on a combination of playoff results and regular season results. In addition, they use a somewhat complicated formula where teams from certain divisions are included based on the number of teams they are allowed to submit. So we’ll just wait until their allocation formulas are released.

With the assumption that the number of teams at least remains the same, we have ranked the top teams in the PDL below.

UPDATE (7/16/17)

There wasn’t much drama in terms of the Top 21 standings. The Southern California Surf, who were position to leap frog a number of teams with a game against Orange County SC early on Sunday afternoon, had their game postponed. However, in an evening game, the Portland Timbers U-23s made that game irrelevant to the standings when they had no trouble with Lane United, beating them 3-0. The win claimed the Northwest Division title and the No. 18 spot in the overall (U.S. team) standings (SEE BELOW). This means that the Surf, and San Francisco City FC were both eliminated from contention.

Now, we have 21 teams set, although keep in mind that teams could leave for other leagues, fold or, in a very rare case (it has happened before), decline to participate. Once again, the format for the 2018 US Open Cup has not been released, so it is possible that more than 21 teams could be entered, or fewer than 21 teams could be included. If the United Premier Soccer League (UPSL) could receive “national” league status, they could steal some spots from the PDL or the NPSL, but that has yet to be determined by the US Soccer Federation.

UPDATE (7/15/17)

The final day of the PDL season is on Sunday, July 16 and the top 20 is set, leaving three teams fighting for the final spot. Once again, just to reiterate, this is purely based on the 2017 qualifying format where the PDL received 21 entries. This could change for 2018.

Heading into the final day, we have ranked all of the teams based on the tiebreakers (1. Head to head 2. Wins 3. Goal difference), which, if the season ended after Saturday’s games, San Francisco City would get the 21st spot due to having seven wins to Portland Timbers U-23s’ six wins. However, the City’s regular season is over and the Timbers have one last game on Sunday against Lane United FC (3-5-5). A win or a draw by the Timbers will clinch the 21st spot.

However, there is one more team could spoil the party for both San Francisco City and the Portland Timbers. The Southern California Surf will take on Orange County SC (1-11-1) and if they win, they will be tied with City and the Timbers and South Georgia Tormenta FC (who have been eliminated already due to the wins tiebreaker). If those teams all finish tied, the Surf will earn the 21st spot because they will have nine wins.

Other notable teams that were eliminated include the Des Moines Menace who have been represented in the tournament every year since 2010 (NOTE: On two occasions, when their PDL team did not qualify, they entered a separate team into USASA qualifying and earned a spot in the US Open Cup).

Here are the qualifying scenarios for the three remaining teams:

San Francisco City FC … will qualify with a Portland Timbers U-23s loss and draw (Sunday) or a loss by the Southern California Surf.

Portland Timbers U-23s … will qualify with a win or draw vs. Lane United FC (Sunday).

Southern California Surf … will qualify with a win on Sunday vs. Orange County SC U-23s (Sunday).

x – clinched a spot in the Top 21
Through the games of July 16, 2017 | Check out the 2017 PDL schedule here

	Team	Points	Games left
1.	x-NY Red Bulls U-23s	37	0
2.	x-OKC Energy U-23s	37	0
3.	x-Reading United AC	36	0
4.	x-Seacoast United Phantoms	35	0
5.	x-SIMA Aguilas	34	0
6.	x-FC Miami City	33	0
7.	x-Michigan Bucks	33	0
8.	x-FC Golden State Force	33	0
9.	x-Myrtle Beach Mutiny	33	0
10.	x-Fresno Fuego	32	0
11.	x-FC Tucson	30	0
12.	x-Mississippi Brilla FC	30	0
13.	x-Charlotte Eagles	29	0
14.	x-Lakeland Tropics	29	0
15.	x-Ocean City Nor’easters	28	0
16.	x-Nashville SC U-23s	28	0
17.	x-Long Island Rough Riders	28	0
18.	Portland Timbers U-23s	28	0
19.	Western Mass Pioneers	27	0
20.	The Villages SC	26	0
21.	FC Boulder U-23s	26	0
~~22.~~	~~San Francisco City FC~~	25	0
~~23.~~	~~South Georgia Tormenta FC~~	25	0
~~24.~~	~~Des Moines Menace~~	23	0
~~25.~~	~~Southern California Surf~~	22	1
	~~Saint Louis FC U-23s~~	22	0
	~~SC United Bantams~~	22	0
	~~Brazos Valley Calvary FC~~	22	0
	~~FC Boston~~	21	0
	~~Tobacco Road FC~~	21	0
	~~Colorado Rapids U-23s~~	20	0
	~~St. Louis Lions~~	19	0
	~~Sounders FC U-23s~~	19	0
	~~West Virginia Chaos~~	19	1

Which PDL teams will qualify for the 2017 US Open Cup?

July 18, 2016 by Ian Foster

UPDATE (2/7/2017): The Midland/Odessa Sockers have moved to NPSL, making it unlikely that they would occupy one of PDL’s Open Cup slots. They would vacate the 15th position to the team below them (FC Golden State Force) and everyone below them would move up one slot.

With the Premier Development League (PDL) playoffs kicking off today, let’s take a look at the probable and possible qualifiers to next year’s Lamar Hunt US Open Cup.

According to the 2017 US Open Cup Handbook, the qualifying process for the PDL, which are based on the previous season’s results, will be very similar to last year’s.

The number of PDL teams that will be invited to the tournament is still up in the air, but a good estimate would put the number in the same neighborhood as 2016. For the last three tournaments, US Soccer has invited 19 PDL teams.

Estimates aside, the 10 PDL division winners are guaranteed a spot if they want it (Note: Some teams have declined invitations in the past).

Here is a quick rundown, first of the PDL’s Division Winners who will in all likelihood automatically qualify:

PDL

Michigan Bucks, Great Lakes Division winner

The US-based competition was not stiff for this perennial US Open Cup entrant. They scored 45 goals and only allowed 7 in league play on their way to winning the Great Lakes Division by 2 points over K-W United. Their closest American rival were the Derby City Rovers, who finished 13 points out of first.

The Bucks are the most successful amateur teams in the Modern Era of the tournament, having upset more professional teams, by far, than any other teams at their level. Among the nine pro teams that they have eliminated, two of them were Major League Soccer teams: the New England Revolution in Foxborough in 2000 and the Chicago Fire at home in 2012. No amateur team has upset more than one MLS team.

FC Tucson, Southwest Division winner

In the end, it was a comfortable six-point Southwest Division win for FC Tucson, who’s slated to make their third consecutive US Open Cup appearance. Their best showing was in 2013, when they advanced past the NASL’s San Antonio Scorpions in penalties before falling to the Houston Dynamo (MLS). Before too long, they could end up making the Open Cup more consistently if the USL rumors are true.

Charlotte Eagles, South Atlantic Division winner

It will be the Eagles’ second consecutive Open Cup appearance as a PDL team, as they edged out Greensboro’s Carolina Dynamo by three points for the division win. They will hope to follow up on their first-round win this year over the Myrtle Beach Mutiny, which brought them to a date with intra-city USL rival Charlotte Independence.

The Eagles are one of the oldest continuously operating soccer teams in the Southeast, having been around 1991. They have been a professional team through the 2014 season, and did not have a strong Open Cup resume until 2012 when they made a run to the Quarterfinals after beating FC Dallas (MLS) and the San Antonio Scorpions (NASL) on the road.

Des Moines Menace, Heartland Division winner

Des Moines will make their fifth consecutive US Open Cup appearance (7th straight if you include the club’s USASA team that qualified in 2011 and 2014) after their third consecutive Heartland Division title. The well-supported Iowan team has won a game in each of their last four Open Cup appearances, notably beating USL’s Tulsa Roughnecks this year and Minnesota United (NASL) in 2013.

Their best Open Cup run came in 2005, as they reached the fourth round after beating the Pittsburgh Riverhounds (USL-2), Charleston Battery (USL-1), and Atlanta Silverbacks (USL-1) in that order before succumbing to the then-named Kansas City Wizards (MLS).

Reading United AC, Mid Atlantic Division winner

Though Reading, the PDL affiliate of the Philadelphia Union (MLS), will be participating in their ninth consecutive Open Cup, which is a Modern Era record for amateur teams. They will punch their ticket on the strength of their first division championship in six years. They lost to the NPSL’s Chattanooga FC in the second round this year, but have cleared their first Open Cup game every year since 2012, with their biggest victory coming in 2013 against USL’s Harrisburg City Islanders. If Reading wins their tournament opener in 2017, they will break the Modern Era record for consecutive opening round wins by an amateur team.

Oklahoma City Energy U-23, Mid South Division winner

Oklahoma City Energy’s (USL) youth team will qualify for the Open Cup in their first-ever season after beating out teams like the Mississippi Brilla and the Albuquerque Sol to claim this year’s Mid South championship.

Fresno Fuego, Central Pacific Division winner

After a two-year absence, the most-supported team in the PDL will return to the Open Cup after dominating the Central Pacific Division by seven points. Their Open Cup highlights include a Second Round victory over the USL’s Orange County Blues and a run to the Fourth Round in their inaugural season in 2003.

The Villages SC, Southeast Division winner

The club formerly known as the Ocala Stampede is expected to make its third straight appearance in 2017. They edged out the Southeast Division by a single point over the South Florida Surf. It rounds out an eventful rebranding season for The Villages, who beat the Charleston Battery (USL) in the Second Round this year, only for the result to be overturned due to the use of an ineligible player.

GPS Portland Phoenix, Northeast Division Winner

The Maine-based club will enter their second Open Cup in a row (5 of last 6 years) looking for their second-ever win in the competition. The first victory came against Mass Premier Soccer (USASA) in the opening round of the 2013 Open Cup. It was another dramatic finish to win the division. Last year, they beat out the Seacoast United Phantoms on the strength of head-to-head results, but this year, they defeated the Western Mass Pioneers on the final day of the season to clinch the Northeast Division title.

The tenth PDL division, the Northwest Division, was actually won by a Canadian team, Calgary Foothills FC. While the US Open Cup handbook states that the Division Winners are ranked 1-10, it is unclear if the Seattle Sounders Under-23 side, who finished in second with 24 points, would claim that division title role. If they do, they make the Open Cup safely. If not, they have to sweat it out with the rest of the 24-point teams. For the purposes of this article, the Sounders U-23 team will assume that tenth division winner slot.

Per the handbook, each team that does not win its division is ranked by points, wins, goal differential, and goals scored in that order. Since the USSF has invited 19 PDL teams in the past, it is likely the following teams, which are ranked by USSF’s guidelines, will also be invited:

Carolina Dynamo (31 points)

Founded: 1993

Open Cup appearances: 11

Last Open Cup appearance: 2014

Best Finish: Quarterfinals (1996 as A-League team)

Notable wins (pro team 1995-2003):
1996 Round 2: 1-0 vs New York Centaurs (A-League)
1999 Round 2: 2-0 at Orange County Zodiac (A-League)
2006 Round 2: 1-0 vs Richmond Kickers (USL-2)
2006 Round 3: 3-2 (AET) vs Seattle Sounders (USL-1)

San Diego Zest FC (29 points)

Founded: 2016

Open Cup Appearances: 0

South Florida Surf (28 points)

Founded: 2016

Open Cup Appearances: 0

Ocean City Nor’Easters (27 points, 9 wins)

Founded: 1996

Open Cup Appearances: 7

Last Open Cup Appearance: 2014

Best Finish: Third Round (2005, 2009, 2013)

Notable wins:
2005 Round 2: 4-0 vs Long Island Rough Riders (USL-2)
2007 Round 1: 1-0 at Crystal Palace Baltimore (USL-2)
2009 Round 1: 3-0 vs Crystal Palace Baltimore (USL-2)
2009 Round 2: 1-0 (AET) vs Real Maryland Monarchs (USL-2)
2013 Round 2: 1-0 vs Pittsburgh Riverhounds (USL-Pro)

FC Golden State Force (26 points, 8 wins, +15 GD)

Founded: 2016

Open Cup Appearances: 0

Chicago Fire U-23s (26 points, 8 wins, +10 GD)

Founded: 2001

Open Cup Appearances: 4

Last Appearance: 2011

Best Finish: Third Round (2004)

Notable win:
2004 Round 2: 5-1 at New Hampshire Phantoms (PDL, now Seacoast United Phantoms)

Western Mass Pioneers (25 points)

Founded: 1998

Open Cup Appearances: 9

Last Appearance: 2015

Best Finish: Third Round (2005)

Notable wins:
2005 Round 2: 5-0 vs Reggae Boyz (USASA)

Ventura County Fusion (24 points, 7 wins, +6 GD)

Open Cup Appearances: 7 (Would be 8th consecutive)

Last Appearance: 2016

Best Finish: Third Round (2012, 2015)

Notable wins:
2012 Round 2: 3-1 (AET) at LA Blues (USL-Pro)
2015 Round 2: 2-1 at LA Galaxy II (USL)

If, for whatever reason, USSF takes fewer than 18 teams, the Fusion may be out of luck. However it’s more likely that USSF will either add PDL teams or some will drop out of the competition, opening the door for more entrants. Instability is not high at the top of the PDL, though, as only two teams that would have qualified (DC United U-23 and Ocala Stampede) dropped out, opening the door for last year’s Sounders and Timbers U-23 teams.

If any of that does happen, though, these PDL teams are next in line to qualify:

19. SC United Bantams (24 points, 7 wins, +2 GD)

20. Burlingame Dragons FC (23 points, +9 GD)

21. Derby City Rovers (23 points, 7 wins, +6 GD)

22. Baltimore Bohemians (23 points, 7 wins, +5 GD)

23. King’s Warriors (23 points, 7 wins, +2 GD)

24. FC Miami City Champions (22 points, 6 wins, +9 GD)

25. New York Red Bulls U-23 (22 points, 6 wins, +3 GD)

26. South Georgia Tormenta FC (21 points, 6 wins, +4 GD, 22 goals scored)

27. Floridians FC (21 points, 6 wins, +4 GD, 20 goals scored)

28. Long Island Rough Riders (21 points, 6 wins, +2 GD)

29. San Francisco City FC (20 points, 6 wins, +3 GD)

30. FC Boston (20 points, 6 wins, -2 GD)

31. Washington Crossfire (20 points, 5 wins, +2 GD)

Hopefully, that goes some way towards clearing a pretty muddy Open Cup qualifying process.

2016 US Open Cup Round 4: After 70 minute scare, Seattle Sounders pull away from PDL’s Kitsap Pumas, 2-0

June 17, 2016 by Nick Schiffler

The Seattle Sounders celebrate a goal against the Kitsap Pumas in the 2016 US Open Cup. Photo: Seattle Sounders FC

The last amateur team left in the 2016 US Open Cup made the Seattle Sounders sweat for 70 minutes, but its efforts weren’t quite enough to cause what would have been a monumental upset.

Cristian Roldan and Joevin Jones scored second-half goals to send the Sounders past the Kitsap Pumas, 2-0, in a Fourth-Round matchup at Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila, Wash.

The Sounders created more chances all night than their in-state opposition, and always looked more likely to score. Kitsap, a member of the fourth-division PDL, defended stoutly for the entire match and were able to fashion a few scoring chances of their own.

“ did a good job of being very organized,” said Sounders assistant coach Brian Schmetzer, filling in as head coach for the suspended Sigi Schmid. “They brought numbers back. It’s hard to play against teams sometimes when they pack it in. After the first goal they had to open up, and that made it easier to get some chances, get some counters.”

The Pumas opted to field a nearly first-choice lineup, while the Sounders, anticipating a cross-country road trip to take on the New York Red Bulls on Sunday, mixed in a large number of reserves. Regulars Roldan, Herculez Gomez and Zach Scott all started on the field for Seattle, but backup goalie Tyler Miller got the call in net, and midfielder Zach Mathers received a start in his first official match as a Sounder.

For the most part, Seattle was held in check in the first half, aside from Scott skimming the crossbar with a contested header. Late in the half Nathan Sturgis was forced off with an injury after colliding with Kitsap keeper Matt Grosey in the air. Erik Friberg replaced Sturgis to start the second half, and he immediately made an impact in midfield.

The game opened up in the second half. Kitsap’s Hamza Haddadi forced Miller into a rare save with a decent shot in the 56th minute. For the most part, Kitsap tried to create chances for a shock goal with their big defenders, sending them forward on set-piece opportunities whenever they could.

“That was a big team,” Schmetzer said. “We were a little concerned about that. We didn’t want to give away any unnecessary corner kicks and set pieces. I thought Tyler did a fantastic job commanding his six-yard box, I had no doubt in my mind that he was in control back there.”

Despite Kitsap’s best efforts Seattle began dominating possession, creating a string of crosses and set-piece opportunities that were repeatedly turned away. Finally Roldan was able to break the deadlock.

Roldan, already playing one of his best games for Seattle, got the Sounders on the board in the 71st minute with his first official goal for the team. Aaron Kovar’s cross into the box was deflected by a Kitsap defender and fell to Roldan in the box, who poked the ball up and over Grosey to loop into the back of the net.

“You know what you get out of every single time,” Schmetzer said. “He covers a lot of ground, he wins tackles, and he’s deceptively good in the air.”

Roldan was also influential in the second goal for the Sounders in the 90th minute. With Kitsap pressing forward in search of an equalizer, Roldan bodied a Pumas defender off the ball cleanly to win possession and tap a pass to Friberg. The Swede split the entire Kitsap defense with his pass to a sprinting Joevin Jones, who easily slotted his shot past Grosey to put the game away.

The two teams had faced off in the Cup once before on the very same field in the 2011 edition of the tournament. The Sounders won a close 2-1 contest thanks to a pair of Mike Fucito goals. They won the tournament that year for their third-straight championship.

A silver lining for the Pumas is that they win the tiebreaker with La Maquina for the $15,000 Division 4 (amateur) prize money for the team that advanced the furthest in the tournament. This is despite the fact that Kitsap is the only pro team in the PDL, a fully amateur league. (Kitsap’s professional status was grandfathered in when the league made the change to become all-amateur) They accomplish this because they don’t have any active NCAA players on their roster.

HIGHLIGHTS

FULL MATCH REPLAY

2016 US Open Cup Round 3: New York Cosmos begin Cup run with second straight shutout of Jersey Express

June 7, 2016 by Michael Anderer

Prior to the start of the 2016 MLS season, Jason Davis from Soccer Morning asked a variety of soccer reporters for their preseason predictions. One of the questions was, “Who’s going to win the Lamar Hunt Open Cup?” Brian Dunseth picked the NASL’s New York Cosmos. There are some members of the media who think that the Cosmos have bolstered their roster enough to make a run at the US Open Cup.

The Cosmos began their quest for the cup with a 2-0 Third Round win against Jersey Express on Wednesday at St. John’s University’s Belson Stadium in Queens, N.Y.

Despite being the favorite, the Cosmos did not take anything for granted playing a strong lineup including regular season starters like Carlos Mendes, David Ochieng, Ayoze, Danny Szetela, Ruben Bover and Sebastian Guenzatti. By all accounts, the decision to go with a balance of starters and reserve players proved pivotal. Jersey came out with a well organized defense that allowed the Cosmos to control the tempo and possession, but most of the chances from the home side were on crosses that were blocked or long range shots parried away by keeper David Greczek.

Jersey’s backline was anchored by solid play of both Chris Krez and Jonathon Onyeaka. An early yellow card to midfielder Pinto Goulart added extra stress for the visitors, but solid attacking play by Angser Otto would force the Cosmos to recognize how well these teams matched up to each other.

In the 35th minute, the Cosmos broke through on a fantastic free kick from Ayoze after Bover had been taken down just outside the eighteen-yard box. With a four-man wall in front of him, Greczek was completely screened. Ayoze’s placement and pace were perfect and the ball sailed into the upper corner to give the Cosmos a 1-0 lead.

That’s how teams would enter halftime after exchanging low percentage shots as both defenses set the tone for the match. The Cosmos thought they had another goal as Lucky Mkosana put a cross into the goal in the 54th, but the goal was offside. Feeling the pressure, Jersey made its first change bringing in Rajrir Khalon for Jack Ponce, but it would be Jersey’s second substitution that cost them. After a strong 66 minutes but still trailing by a goal, Jersey swapped Tyler Morris for Jonathon Onyeaka. Six minutes later, the long-awaited assurance goal for the Cosmos came as substitute Yohandry Orozco was left wide open on the back post for a simple tap-in header. With the second goal, Jersey was forced to press more and the tired legs could not keep the pace up. The Ayoze goal would stand as the game winner.

The Cosmos now set their sites on finishing up the Spring NASL in first place and then look ahead at a rematch of last year’s Open Cup derby with NYCFC.

“Our goal is to win every game, whether it be in the regular season, or in this competition, so obviously we are happy with the result and we can focus on the next opponent,” Mkosana said.

Cosmos Captain Carlos Mendes said that while it’s great to win the Open Cup game, the focus has to remain on the spring season, but he is excited to play against NYCFC later in the month.

Cosmos coach Gio Savarese was very pleased with the performance. He noted earlier in the week that the match was of the most difficult in the Open Cup format.

“It’s hard because some players and sometimes whole teams, overlook this round of the competition,” he said. “The players get soft mentally and think that they are better, and that’s dangerous. Jersey had a lot of good chances, more than we wanted them to have.”

Savarse calls the derby against NYCFC, the type of game that is really good at growing the sport with a lot of passion and drama.

The Cosmos will visit NYCFC on June 15 at 7:30 p.m. at Coffey Stadium at Fordham University.

2016 US Open Cup Round 3: San Antonio FC rallies to avoid upset, beats Des Moines Menace, 2-1

June 5, 2016 by Brandon Gee

The Des Moines Menace and San Antonio FC battle for the ball in the 2016 US Open Cup. Photo: Antonio Rodriguez

San Antonio FC’s inaugural run in the US Open Cup continues on to the Major League Soccer round after having to travel to face one of the modern tourney’s most prolific amateur sides on their home field.

With seven of their 14 all-time tourney wins over pro clubs, including a 2-0 win over the USL’s Tulsa Roughnecks back on May 18, the Des Moines Menace had reason to come into Wednesday’s Third Round match with San Antonio FC confident for win number eight. Though the Menace would strike first, the offensive effort from San Antonio would finally prove to be too much and the Menace fell 2-1.

San Antonio would dominate possession early as the Menace brought numbers back to withstand the early assault. That traffic in front of the Des Moines net made it difficult for SAFC to get close to the goal. As well, strong defensive play from Des Moines’ Eddie Cass on the right flank deflated a number of SAFC’s chances.

San Antonio would finally get the first major scoring chance as Carlos Alvarez found space just inside the box and sent a ball ringing off the post. The rest of the half saw the sides battle at midfield for loose balls but neither being able to sustain much pressure. They’d go to the half scoreless.

In the second half, Des Moines would come out much more aggressive and organized. SAFC’s Alvarez would end up showing some frustration in the 57th minute after a hard foul on Raul Gonzalez, earning a yellow. Two minutes later, Christian Flath would open scoring for the Menace with a curling free-kick out of reach of the San Antonio keeper and in the right side of the net.

Both teams made subs with around 25 minutes left and play picked up as Des Moines nearly added to their lead in the 69th minute as Eddie Cass knocked a header off the crossbar. Then in the 71st minute, Austin Ledbetter earned a yellow card and free kick for San Antonio. Sam Mcbride would get a head on the kick from Alvarez and evened the match with less than 20 minutes o play.

San Antonio would take the lead in the 81st minute as Shawn Chin dribbled along the end line & fed the ball to the top of the box to Jacques Francois, who knocked it in the goal’s bottom-right corner for what would prove to be the game-winner. Francois was also integral in both of SAFC’s goals in their last tourney game against the Corinthians of the NPSL.

With time running out, Des Moines upped the pressure in search of an equalizer. Des Moines keeper Nico Campbell came forward and assisted play from around the midline. Though the Menace sent some late chances toward the goal they couldn’t get the late goal. The charge would be subdued in the 89th minute, as Elvir Ibesevic, would earn a red in the midst of traffic in front of the San Antonio goal.

Now with wins over Corinthians FC and Des Moines, San Antonio moves on to the Cup’s Fourth Round. They’ll make the three-hour trek up Texas’ I-10 to Houston’s BBVA Compass Stadium to face the MLS Dynamo on June 15.

2016 US Open Cup Round 3: Kitsap Pumas do their homework, stun Sacramento Republic

June 2, 2016 by Evan Ream

Sometimes all it takes for an upset in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup is a bit of homework.

Or for the Premier Development League’s Kitsap Pumas in its 3-1 victory over against the USL’s Sacramento Republic FC, a massive scouting report put together by a former Sports Illustrated writer.

“This genius to my right here put together a fantastic scouting report on ,” said Pumas head coach Cameron MacDonald, pointing to goalkeeper coach and former SI man Liviu Bird. “Our staff are pretty committed. We spend hours and hours studying footage. We had a plan.”

That game plan involved shutting down Sacramento’s bombing fullbacks to deny them of their biggest offensive threats and making the Republic play through the middle where its mainly defensive midfielders failed to create anything of consequence.

“We’ve prepared as well as we thought we possibly could,” MacDonald said. “In my reflection of the game, I don’t think anyone watching it back can be disappointed with the way they played and with the outcome.”

Of course, the ball still had to be dispatched into the back of the net by the young Pumas team, who with the victory earned a fourth round match-up with intrastate side Seattle Sounders FC.

The goals epitomized the players MacDonald lined up on his front line: they came in rapid bursts at great pace towards the goal.

First, Mike Ramos found Javier Castro near the edge of the box in the 60th minute. Castro quickly cut around his man and dispatched the ball into the back of the net for a shock 1-0 lead.

Sacramento scored one minute later when local high school product Cameron Iwasa tapped in a missed clearance.

But just two minutes after that, Ramos would tally the winner, driving home a rebound from a save that Republic goalkeeper Evan Newton couldn’t quite corral.

In the 65th it was over. Castro neatly curled a ball to the far post after a giveaway to complete his brace and give Kitsap one of the biggest upsets of the young tournament.

“If you look at our record in the PDL the last couple of seasons, unbeaten in the regular season last year, one loss the year before,” MacDonald said. “The (players) on the field are on the verge and we’ve seen we can go toe-to-toe with a strong USL lineup … The USL is only a small step away from us. If you do your homework and you have boys that believe in themselves and work together, we’ve seen you can grind out results like this.”

It was a milestone victory for the Pumas who have enjoyed so much success in league play over the years. Now, after four unsuccessful attempts, Kitsap can add “upset a professional team in the US Open Cup” to their club resume.

Republic head coach Paul Buckle didn’t mince his words when speaking to reporters after the match – there would be no excuses from his side.

“You certainly can’t make two mistakes like we did on the back line and expect to advance,” he said. “They’ve punished us and they deserved to go through.”

And as for that June 15 Kitsap date with the Sounders?

“It’s a huge ask for us, but it’s exciting,” MacDonald said. “Some of our guys will go on and play at a good level and maybe have many more nights like that, but other guys knew that they had 90 minutes tonight to earn what might be one shot against an MLS team in their career.

“When that’s the motivation going in it, it’s pretty incredible what can be achieved. We’ll look forward to it. We’ll prepare like we prepared for this and go in with our game plan and see what happens.”

Evan Ream covers Sacramento Republic FC and soccer in Northern California for The Davis Enterprise. Reach him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @EvanReam.

2016 US Open Cup Round 2: Des Moines Menace add to upset resume, 2-0 over Tulsa Roughnecks

May 23, 2016 by Ian Knighton

For the seventh time in the club’s history, the Des Moines Menace of the Premier Development League (PDL) have beaten a pro team to advance to the next round of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. This time, it was a 2-0 result at home against the USL’s Tulsa Roughnecks.

With seven upsets over professional teams — four against Division 2 teams (4-3-0), three against Div. 3 clubs (2-1-1, 1-0 PKs) — they are second only to the Michigan Bucks (9) for most among all amateur clubs in the Modern Era (1995-present).

The early minutes of the match were mostly dominated by the Roughnecks, but neither team would have a real shot on goal until the 14th minute when Des Moines’ Heath Preston fired an attempt just side of the net.

Tulsa continued to control the ball through the first half, which went into the break tied at 0-0.

The second half of the match would bring plenty of action.

In the 48th minute, Tulsa coach David Irving was sent off. The sending off of Irving was the first of many officiating decisions that would not be in the Roughnecks favor. Defender Mason Grimes would receive a yellow in the 56th minute followed by a red card being shown to forward Taylor Morgan just 10 minutes later.

It would quickly get worse for Tulsa as Des Moines’ Sean Hoek opened the scoring just two minutes after his squad went up a man. The Roughnecks managed to hold off an attacking Menace side until the 81st minute when a bullet shot from Elvir Ibisevic would put the match away for the Menace. The remaining nine minutes and stoppage time proved to be not enough for the 10-man Tulsa club to mount a comeback.

The win moves Des Moines on to the next round of the Open Cup where they will host San Antonio FC on June 1. Here, they will hope to add another pro team to their list of upsets and earn a fourth date with a Major League Soccer team in the Fourth Round.

2016 US Open Cup Round 2: Arizona United too much for in-state amateurs from FC Tucson

May 21, 2016 by Ted Prezelski

Long Tan's second goal for Arizona United against FC Tucson in the 2016 US Open Cup. Photo: Sidney Cervantes — Long Tan’s second goal for Arizona United against FC Tucson in the 2016 US Open Cup. Photo: Sidney Cervantes

The history of the US Open Cup is full of scrappy, amateur teams beating experienced, professional sides. We’ve seen it happen more than once this year already.

It did not, however, happen at Kino Stadium on Wednesday night, as FC Tucson fell to their northern neighbors Arizona United SC by a score of 5–0 at Tucson’s Kino Stadium.

It started off well for the hosts, said long time FC Tucson player Dom Papa.

“I thought when we came out we played well,” he said. “For the first twenty or twenty five minutes we controlled the game; we looked good in the midfield. But you know, they are big, they are fast, they play direct. I just think we weren’t ready to handle that kind of play.”

“We gave up one, and the wheels fell apart,” he added.

That “one” came in the 28th minute after a foul just outside the box set up English midfielder Luke Rooney for a free kick. He easily got it past Tucson keeper Borja Angiota.

Long Tan extended the lead for the visitors minutes later, finding the back of the net after slaloming through FC Tucson’s back line. Gibson Bardsley closed out the half with another goal for Arizona moments before the close of the half.

A fourth goal came from United’s Tyler Blackwood just minutes into the second half, but then came a spot of hope for the home team: a red card for Arizona’s Gibson Bardsley for poorly timed tackle on Tucson’s Sean Keith.

It was still hard for FC Tucson to take a shot when they got into the final third, thanks to the work of Arizona center full back Uchenna Uzo.

“There are not many players that are as big as I am on the field, and I think he’s twice my size,” said Tucson’s Papa, who the team has counted on for physical play in past years. “When you have a center back there that can destroy every attack we try to start, well, he’s a different level.”

Whatever spark that gave FC Tucson was extinguished in the 67th minute with Long Tan’s second goal. A flurry of shots from the home team in the closing moments of the match excited the crowd, but still left a zero on the board when the whistle blew.

Interestingly, FC Tucson’s defense only allowed a handful of shots. They went in and that’s what counts says United coach Frank Yallop.

“Our finishing was excellent. We were clinical when we had the chances. That’s the game,” he said after the match. “Long, Tyler Blackwood and Rooney showed their qualities today. I was proud of the whole team but I think they were pretty sharp in front of the goal.”

“We didn’t take the game for granted. We were 4-0 and got a red card and still scored another goal,” he added. “That’s a good sign for our league play.”

Arizona United is scheduled to play Colorado Springs Switchbacks in the next round, which is scheduled for June 1. The winner will play the Colorado Rapids in Round 4.

FC Tucson v Arizona United
Kino North Stadium

Scoring summary
AZU – Luke Rooney (27’)
AZU – Long Tan (33’)
AZU – Gibson Bardsley (45’+)
AZU – Tyler Blackwood (47’)
AZU – Tan (68’)

Misconduct summary
FCT – Dom Papa (27’, caution)
AZU – Gibson Bardsley (41’, caution)
FCT – Sean Keith (43’, caution)
AZU –Bardsley (54’, second caution, ejection)

FC Tucson: Borja Angoitia –Aaron Herrera (Edgar Reyna 77’), Gonnie Ben-Tal, Kyle Adams- Sean Keith, Evan Waldrep, Dom Papa, Musa Morris (Tate Schmitt 45’) – Jon Bakero, Minh Vu, Damian German (Alfonso Pinhiero 45’)

Arizona United SC: Carl Wosczcynski – Daniel Antúnez, Uchenna Uzo, Julian Ringhof, Brandon Poltronieri – Gibson Bardsley (ejected 54’), Miguel Timm (Blair Gavin 37’), Sam Garza – Luke Rooney (Duncan McCormick 58’), Long Tan, Tyler Blackwood (Tony Cascio 77’)