Rochester Rhinos

American soccer’s greatest modern underdog story: Rochester Raging Rhinos win 1999 US Open Cup

September 14, 2020 by Josh Hakala

The Rochester Raging Rhinos celebrate their 1999 US Open Cup championship after defeating the Colorado Rapids 2-0 at Columbus Crew Stadium in Columbus, OH. Photo: Rochester Rhinos

A version of this story by Josh Hakala originally appeared on FourFourTwo.com

Every sport has its go-to underdog story. Hockey has the “Miracle on Ice”, college basketball has N.C. State in 1983, baseball has the “Miracle Mets” in 1969, and boxing has Buster Douglas knocking out Mike Tyson. World soccer has plenty to choose from with Leicester City (2015/16 Premier League champions) being the most recent example.

For American soccer, it’s the 1999 Rochester Raging Rhinos, who became the first and, to date, the only lower division club to win the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup since Major League Soccer launched in 1996. Fans of domestic cup competitions like the FA Cup (England) know that anything can happen, and in 1999, the Rhinos of the A-League (Div. 2) upset four MLS teams en route to lifting the trophy.

The last team to come close to repeating their accomplishment was the 2008 Charleston Battery who reached the Final in 2008, but lost to D.C. United. More recently, FC Cincinnati, then of the USL, let a 2-0 lead on their home field slip away in the 2017 Semifinals, falling to the New York Red Bulls. If they would have held on for the win, they would have had a chance to join the Rhinos in the American soccer history books.

However, looking back at the 1999 Rochester Raging Rhinos (they dropped the “Raging” part of their name prior to the 2008 season), their magical Open Cup run almost didn’t happen. Multiple times.

Round 2: Rochester Raging Rhinos 2, New York Freedoms 1 (OT)

The Rhinos began the tournament in Round 2 and their opening game was against the New York Freedoms, an amateur team from the Premier Development League (PDL, now known as USL League Two). To put the mismatch in perspective, the US Soccer Federation assigned seedings to the teams for the 1999 US Open Cup and the Rhinos were the No. 9 seed and the Freedoms were 28th out of the 32-team field.

Mauro Biello of the Rochester Raging Rhinos battles for the ball against the New York Freedoms in the Second Round of the 1999 US Open Cup. Photo: Democrat & Chronicle

The New York Pancyprian Freedoms were three-time US Open Cup champions (1980, 1982, 1983) and long-time members of the New York’s famed Cosmopolitan League. They launched a PDL team in 1999 under the name “New York Freedoms” and qualified for the Open Cup in their debut season.

More than 7,000 fans showed up at the Rhinos’ Frontier Field to cheer on the defending A-League (Div. 2 pro) champions. In the first half, it looked like it was going to be a one-sided affair when New York’s Ronan Wiseman, who was on loan from the Long Island Rough Riders, received a straight red card for a hard tackle in the 35th minute.

“I’m very disappointed,” Freedoms manager Tony Noto told the Democrat and Chronicle after the game. “The referee made a difference. He changed the destiny of the Freedoms. You don’t (throw) players out on the first foul.”

Despite being down a man, the Freedoms walked into the locker room at halftime scoreless against the Rhinos.

According to Rhinos head coach Pat Ercoli, his team’s smaller field dimensions at Frontier Field may have helped the visiting team stay in the game as they bunkered down once they were down a man.

In the 57th minute, New York’s Rodney Rambo stunned the announced crowd of 7,131 by giving the 10-man Freedoms the lead. The former University of Portland star stole the ball from Rhinos midfielder Kirk Dietrich near the Rochester penalty area, dribbled in and put the ball past goalkeeper Bill Andracki, who was filling in for injured starter Pat Onstad.

“ was certainly a wake-up call,” said Rhinos head coach Pat Ercoli. “When you’re playing the amateur teams, sometimes you take them for granted, just like the MLS teams have done in certain cases with lower division teams. The lower division teams tend to up their game and the higher division teams tend to play down to .”

That lead would be short-lived as Mauro Biello, the team’s top scorer, received a pass just outside the box from Doug Miller, the A-League’s 1997 MVP. Biello launched a shot from a little more than 20 yards out to tie the game in the 62nd minute.

The match would head into golden goal extra time where Biello played provider, delivering a corner kick to the head of Darren Tilley who nodded home the game-winner in the 110th minute. The Freedoms gave the Rhinos a scare despite Rochester outshooting New York 22-7 and earning 19 corners to the Freedoms’ four. New York’s goalkeeper Roberto Sir kept his team in the game, making seven saves over 110 minutes of action.

After the game, Tilley told Jeff DiVeronica of the Democrat and Chronicle that the team was just happy to advance.

“We didn’t play to our best, as I think everyone would acknowledge, but it’s all about winning in Cup competitions.”

The headline in the July 15, 1999 edition of the Democrat and Chronicle (Rochester, NY) after the Rochester Raging Rhinos upset the defending MLS Cup and US Open Cup champion Chicago Fire.

ROUND 3: Rochester Raging Rhinos 1, Chicago Fire 0

In the next round, the Rhinos found themselves in a battle worthy of a Final. Rochester, the defending A-League champions welcomed the defending MLS Cup and US Open Cup champions in the Chicago Fire. With two major trophies already added to Chicago’s trophy case after its inaugural season, the Rhinos were not intimidated.

After Yari Allnutt headed home a Michael Kirmse corner kick to put the Rhinos ahead in the 51st minute, the more than 10,000 fans in attendance at Rochester’s Frontier Field saw the game’s physical play cranked up to another level.

“We had a mentality that we don’t care where you play, we’re going to come and take it to you and compete on any given day and make sure we’re going to be successful,” said Rhinos forward Doug Miller. “Other teams, they had given more respect and time for these guys to play … we were very hard-nosed and very chippy.”

That hard-nosed approach produced a tournament-high 45 fouls between the two teams, but the cards didn’t start coming out until about 20 minutes into the second half.

With roughly 15 minutes left in the game, Chicago’s Lubos Kubik got into a confrontation with multiple Rhinos players which led to him putting Rochester’s Scott Schweitzer in a headlock. Kubik and Schweitzer, who were the previous year’s Defender of the Year in their respective leagues, were both sent off.

Despite missing their top defender, goalkeeper Pat Onstad and the Rhinos were able to keep the Fire’s high-powered offense off the scoresheet. Rochester’s defense held Chicago to just eight shots with Onstad, a Canadian international, only needing to make three saves to earn the clean sheet. With the win, the Rhinos were moving on to the Quarterfinals, 1-0.

“We had that swagger where we knew we could win. They came in with their best team and we came in with our best team and it was a fight,” said Ercoli.

“Some of those things we did in that game, you wouldn’t get away with today. You would have seen four or five red cards ,” Ercoli added with a chuckle.

QUARTERFINALS: Rochester Raging Rhinos 2, Dallas Burn 1 (OT)

The sports page in the Democrat & Chronicle (Rochester, NY) on Aug 12, 1999 as the Rochester Raging Rhinos defeated the Dallas Burn in the Quarterfinals of the 1999 US Open Cup.

In the Quarterfinals, the Rhinos hosted the 1997 US Open Cup champion Dallas Burn in front of another crowd of more than 10,000 fans. This was nothing new for the Rhinos faithful who’s attendance figures had made Rochester a strong candidate to join Major League Soccer. The match against Dallas drew an announced crowd of 10,730, which was the seventh time that a US Open Cup match cracked the 10,000 mark in the Modern Era. Of those seven games, four of them were hosted by the Rhinos at Frontier Field, one of them was the 1998 Final, and the record of 20,376 was a Colorado Rapids game at Mile High Stadium against the Seattle Sounders (A-League) that was given a significant boost as being the opening match of a doubleheader with the US Men’s National Team playing against Derby County of the English Premier League.

After a scoreless first half, Mauro Biello opened the scoring by redirecting a Tim Hardy shot past Dallas’ All-Star goalkeeper Matt Jordan in the 71st minute. Jason Kreis, who would finish tied as MLS’ leading goalscorer that year and win the MLS MVP award, rescued the Burn with an 85th minute equalizer on a cross from Paul Broome.

Just like the match against the Freedoms in Round 2, it came down to extra time and another golden goal from the Rhinos. Michael Kirmse was at the right place at the right time. In the 110th minute, Biello sent in a free kick that Tilley headed off the crossbar. The rebound fell right to Kirmse who put it into the back of the net to send Rochester back to the Semifinals for the second time in four years.

The game was satisfying for the Rhinos because of the criticism directed at them by members of the Dallas Burn before the game. Chief among them was outspoken Dallas head coach Dave Dir saying that Rochester played like “11 Dennis Rodmans”, referring to the physical style of play of the NBA star. While Dir attacked the players’ style of play, Kreis mocked the size of the Rhinos’ Frontier Field, saying “when they play on a real field, they’re going to get their butts beat.”

“That was definitely fodder for the locker room,” said Ercoli. “Scott Schweitzer was one of the guys on our team that made sure everyone knew about it.”

SEMIFINALS: Rochester Raging Rhinos 3, Columbus Crew 2

The Rhinos played away from home for the first time as both Semifinals were scheduled at a neutral venue at the Virginia Beach Sportsplex (Va.) on Sept. 1. Both games featured an A-League vs. MLS match-up, however, the event was overshadowed, quite literally, by the weather as Hurricane Dennis was bearing down on the region. The game was able to move forward because Dennis was downgraded to a tropical storm, but it still brought high winds and heavy rain to the doubleheader.

Rochester Raging Rhinos head coach Pat Ercoli celebrates his club’s 1999 US Open Cup title. Photo courtesy of Pat Ercoli

Earlier in the evening, the Colorado Rapids (MLS), the team the Rhinos beat in the 1996 Semifinals, punched their ticket to the Final with a 3-0 win over the A-League’s Charleston Battery. All the scoring came in the second half with Jorge Dely Valdes accounting for two of them and Paul Bravo adding another. Wolde Harris assisted on two of the three goals, while Ian Feuer made four saves to earn the clean sheet. After the match, Rapids head coach Glenn Myernick had the quote of the night: “It was a great night, if you’re a duck.”

It was already announced that the tournament’s championship game two weeks later would be held at the Crew’s new soccer-specific stadium in Columbus. So when the Rhinos kicked off against a star-studded Crew team in the pouring rain, they would play spoiler in the most dramatic way possible.

With wind gusts up to 60 miles per hour, it was not a fun night for anyone but especially the goalkeepers.

“I’ve never played in wind like that before in my life,” said Rhinos goalkeeper Pat Onstad, who was the A-League Goalkeeper of the Year in his debut season the year before. “I would try to hit a goal kick as hard as I possibly could and it would get about 30 yards out and it would be coming back at our center backs and they would be heading it out. It was crazy.”

After a scoreless first half, the game opened up with the Rhinos answering everything the Crew fired at them. Despite facing 8 Rochester players in the wall, Columbus’ Robert Warzycha connected on a stunning free kick in the 56th minute to give the Crew, one of the top teams in MLS, a 1-0 lead. The Rhinos nearly equalized in the next few minutes as Darren Tilley had a goal disallowed for offside and Bill Sedgewick launched a shot from distance that hit the post.

Rochester would finally level the match in the 68th minute when Tilley headed home a Tommy Tanner cross. Just under ten minutes later, the Crew’s speedy winger Brian West put his team back in front, only to see Schweitzer take a rare free kick from 25 yards away that took a deflection off of Tanner and ended up in the back of the net.

It looked like Rochester was headed to its third extra time match in four matches, but three minutes into stoppage time, another Rhinos defender came to the rescue. Tim Hardy, cut inside his defender on the wing, took a shot that caught a gust of wind that carried into the corner of the goal, out of the reach of MLS goalkeeper wins leader Mark Dougherty.

It remains one of the most exciting finishes of the US Open Cup’s Modern Era (1995-present).

Mali Walton of the Rochester Raging Rhinos celebrates after winning the 1999 US Open Cup with a 2-0 win over the Colorado Rapids.

“At that point, we knew we were destined to win this thing,” said Ercoli.

FINAL: Rochester Raging Rhinos 2, Colorado Rapids 0

The hopes of a sold-out Crew Stadium for the Final were dashed as soon as the Rhinos eliminated Columbus in that rainy Semifinal in Virginia Beach. The vast majority of the announced crowd of 4,555 were cheering for the Rhinos against the Rapids, with many of those fans making the roughly 400-mile trip from Rochester on a Tuesday night. Those unable to make the trip were able to watch the game live on ESPN2, giving fans around the country a taste of the drama that the US Open Cup is capable of.

After three upsets of MLS teams, Rhinos beat writer Jeff Di Veronica wrote in his recap of the Columbus Crew game that “it might be time to stop calling Rochester’s wins over MLS teams upsets.”

After a scoreless first half, the Rhinos were struggling to create chances and needed to add some speed to the attack, so Coach Ercoli brought on a not-so-secret weapon in the 62nd minute. The club’s all-time leading scorer Doug Miller, who was frustrated because he had been the odd man out of the starting lineup in recent weeks, gave the Rhinos the spark they needed.

Rochester Raging Rhinos: 1999 US Open Cup champions

Three minutes after entering the game, Miller received the ball on the left wing, beat Rapids defender Peter Vermes and fired a shot through the legs of Colorado goalkeeper Ian Feuer to give the Rhinos the lead. Pat Onstad made some big saves down the stretch and Yari Allnutt put the game away with a goal in the 90th minute to kick off a long night of celebrations for the Rhinos and their traveling fans.

Miller used that moment to spark the rest of his season as he played a big role in the team’s playoff run as he scored six goals in the team’s seven playoff games as Rochester reached the A-League championship game before losing 2-1 to the Minnesota Thunder.

For Miller, looking back on his career, the US Open Cup title is something he will never forget.

“I’ve got four championships, two indoor, two outdoor, and I’ve got an amateur championship, but that ranks right up there at the top for many reasons,” said Miller. “To win the US Open Cup and to beat all those MLS teams in the fashion that we did was special.”

FULL MATCH REPLAY

“WHEN MLS DIDN’T WIN THE US OPEN CUP”

SOCCER SAM RECAP: 1999 US OPEN CUP FINAL

LOCAL NEWS HIGHLIGHTS

2017 US Open Cup Round 4: New England Revolution capitalize on 10-man Rochester Rhinos in 3-0 win

June 16, 2017 by Brian O'Connell

The New England Revolution defeated the Rochester Rhinos 3-0 in the Fourth Round of the 2017 US Open Cup. Photo: Keith Nordstrom | New England Revolution

A reserve-laden New England Revolution team beat an undermanned Rochester Rhinos (USL) 3-0 in Wednesday’s US Open Cup fourth round in front of 1,633 fans at Chapey Field in Providence, Rhode Island.

The locals struck right before the break after Teal Bunbury sent it through from the spot in the 44th minute moments after reserve midfielder Zachary Herivaux was brought down inside the box by Rochester defender Wal Fall. New England’s backup defender Donnie Smith headed through a Daigo Kobayashi corner kick in the 50th minute. Herivaux added another for the Revs in the 51st minute after goalkeeper Tomas Gomez failed to corral a Femi Hollinger-Janzen shot.

Hear from the #NERevs following their first match of the #USOC2017. pic.twitter.com/ZXkjCe55Dv

— NewEnglandRevolution (@NERevolution) June 15, 2017

The Revolution wasted little time putting the second-division Rhinos under pressure, but Rochester withstood it for much of the first frame thanks to some timely tackles. But the guests’ efforts took a significant hit when Farrell, who was already on a caution, was booked a second time in the 40th minute for a foul on Bunbury.

Not long after, the Revolution took advantage as Herivaux darted into the box before he was cut down by Fall to earn the penalty try, which Bunbury sank right before the half to notch his first goal of the year.

The Revolution picked up right where they left off at the start of the second half. Five minutes into the half, Kobayashi sent a corner kick near the top of the box where Smith met hit with his forehead to send it through to collect his first professional goal.

Barely a minute after Smith’s score, the Rhinos were under siege again as Hollinger-Janzen made his way into the area and fired low shot that was initially saved by Gomez. But Herivaux followed up on the rebound and shoved it into the back of the net, marking the second straight year in which the Revolution’s Homegrown Player scored in the fourth round.

Holding a commanding lead against a 10-man Rochester squad, New England spent the final half hour menacing the Rhinos in search of a fourth goal. Regulars Kelyn Rowe and Diego Fagundez, who notched his club-record 13th all-time appearance in Open Cup play, both came off the bench after the hour mark to test Gomez and his defenders.

The Revolution, however, would have to be content to settle for the three-goal margin as referee Henrik Karlsson blew his whistle before a fourth strike.

For the second straight year, a trip to the round of 16 awaits the Revolution, who will face D.C. United at Harvard University’s Jordan Field on June 28.

2017 US Open Cup Round 3: Last-second dagger for Rochester Rhinos kills GPS Omens’ Open Cup run

June 1, 2017 by Brendan Doherty

GPS Omens came into Wednesday night’s Third Round US Open Cup match in Rochester as the clear underdogs but proved over the course of 120 minutes that they deserve respect on merit, despite losing 2-1 to the Rochester Rhinos.

Rhinos started the match lively, with a lot of pressure early but the hosts failed to capitalize. Unfortunately for Rochester, that pattern would characterize much of the game. The home side had more of the ball, executed deliberate build-up play, and got far more shots off than their amateur opponents, but could only manage a deflected goal through the first 119 minutes of the match.

In the first half, Rochester held an impressive 77 percent of possession but could not manage a single shot on goal. Neither goalkeeper made a save through the first 45 minutes but the second half sparked the contest into life.

Rochester’s Jalen Brown saw a heavy shot from the edge of the penalty area flash across the goalmouth in the 51st minute but showed he brought his shooting boots out at halftime. Just a minute later Brown picked up an innocuous partially cleared ball in midfield, cut inside on his favored right foot, and shot from 19 yards. The shot took a deflection off a GPS Omens defender before finding the back of the net but gave Rochester the lead in the 52nd minute.

Before the match could settle into a rhythm again, GPS earned a free kick for a foul off the ball as Rochester cleared its lines. Keith Caldwell, older brother of New England Revolution midfielder Scott, lined up the free kick in the 55th minute and fired past Dan Lynd to equalize the game.

GPS Omens went to the bench first, in the 60th and 65th minutes, before Rochester also made two like-for-like changes in the 73rd minute. Omens used their last substitution in the 80th minute and prepared to hold out for a 1-1 draw.

The Rhinos pushed every field player into GPS Omens’ half of the field during extra time, looking to break the deadlock before the 120 minutes wound up. Rochester had mustered 10 total shots through 90 minutes but had 11 shots in extra time alone. Brown and substitutes forward Samuel Edoung-Biyo peppered the GPS Omens’ net in both periods of extra time before the inevitable game-winner.

As fans in Capelli Sport Stadium began to resign themselves to a penalty shootout, Brown and Edoung-Biyo combined for the last-minute go-ahead goal. Brown controlled a long ball over the top from his defense before drilling service into the area. Edoung-Biyo battled to beat the GPS Omens center back to the ball and redirected the cross into the net from six yards out.

In heart-breaking fashion, GPS Omens conceded in stoppage time of the second half of extra time, perhaps seconds away from a shootout.

Elated to have grabbed his first goal for the team, Samuel Edoung-Biyo spoke after the game about his work crashing the net on angled service from wide positions.

“Throughout the game, they kept putting good crosses in and I kept going behind the man. Coach just kept telling me eventually to slash in front of the defender so you can get in front of the ball, because they kept intercepting,” the first-year Rhinos forward said.

“And that one, I just kind of changed my run from the back post to the first post and got to the ball before he did.” Edoung-Biyo, who joined the squad from an open tryout, also talked about the mixture of frustration and relief the team felt and how he dealt with the setbacks late on.

“As a striker, you want to finish the opportunities you get. And I guess, it kind of just speaks to resilience. I had three good opportunities that I should have finished. I just kept working and kept looking for it and eventually I got it in the back of the net.”

Meanwhile, Rochester’s rookie winger Jalen Brown was electric for the home side. Brown made a similarly good impression in Rochester’s second-round match and assisted the team’s second goal against FC Motown. Speaking to media after the game, the former Xavier product laid out his team’s plan late on.

“The gameplan was just to put balls in dangerous areas,” Brown said. “We were trying to go for the game. We didn’t want to go to PKs. The best thing to do is to get the ball in the box, and that’s what we did.”

“I think we took the game and put it in our own hands,” Brown said.

Aside from the daunting challenge of defeating the Rhinos at Capelli Sport Stadium, something that no team has accomplished since the Richmond Kickers beat Rochester on August 3, 2016, GPS Omens faced added fitness concerns and travel issues.

GPS Omens midfielder Gregory Zuboff contrasted his team with other amateur sides who use the cup as a showcase to earn professional contracts but assured his teammates’ dedication.

“Relative to that, we approach the game in a little bit more of a laid back fashion but we’re still very committed. We love our training sessions during the week and guys are excited to show up on Saturday mornings to play in our league matches.”

“Certainly, our guys that were out here are trying to make a living for ourselves and this is something that we do more for passion. But we love the game and games like this are the most fun.”

“We knew they were going to be quite talented,” Zuboff said about the Rhinos. “They’ve done well in the cup in the past. They had a good run last year and had a strong defeat over a fellow Boston team, Southie. We knew we were going to have to play strong defense, to try and hold them to one or no goals and try to slot one in, early, ideally.”

“We found ourselves in a tight spot, getting down 1-0. But we had a great response from Keith . He had a brilliant finish,” Zuboff smiled.

The player noted the rugged conditions for the visiting side.

“We took a seven-hour bus ride up here today,” the midfielder said. “We got in at 4:30, dropped our things off, turned around and came here to the field. We were just trying to get our legs under us.” Zuboff described how the travel and novelty of the experience may have affected fitness levels as time wore on.

“We were definitely feeling it, trying to manage those subs, especially when we saw overtime coming. There were some strategic substitutions that we had to pull.”

“Right now it feels like a defeat but looking back it’s been an exciting run for us. We’ve gotten some fun attention out of it. But most importantly the boys have been excited, we’ve been doing some extra training sessions, trying to stay fit, keep getting touches on the ball.”

“Looking back, it’s something we’ll talk about for a while but next year we’ll be looking to do the same thing and take it to the next round.”

While GPS Omens returns to Bay State Soccer League play where they are undefeated reigning champions and contemplate a potential 2018 cup run, the Rochester Rhinos move on to the fourth round of the Open Cup.

The Rhinos will travel to Providence, Rhode Island, to face the New England Revolution on June 14 at 7 p.m. EST. It will be the seventh all-time meeting between the two clubs in the tournament.

Who is the US Open Cup equivalent to Lincoln City FC and their magical FA Cup run?

May 26, 2017 by Josh Hakala

If you’re a soccer fan and love cup competitions, then you were likely enthralled with one of the great underdog stories in England’s FA Cup history: Lincoln City FC.

Apologies to Chelsea FC and Arsenal, this year’s FA Cup finalists, but Lincoln City was the story of this year’s tournament.

The semi-pro team that competes in England’s fifth tier, stunned the Premier League’s Burnley FC, 1-0 to become the first non-league team to reach the Quarterfinals since 1914. That year, World War I was under way, baseball icon Joe DiMaggio was born, and the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup (then known as the National Challenge Cup) had just crowned its first champion.

Following Lincoln City’s upset, American soccer fans on social media asked what is the US Open Cup equivalent to English minnow’s magical run?

For starters, there’s a lot of difficulty with properly comparing the two tournaments. First of all, American soccer has never had five tiers of professional soccer. Since Major League Soccer (MLS) joined the Open Cup in 1996, American soccer has had three tiers of professional soccer, followed by a fourth tier which includes all amateur clubs.

However, there have been plenty of incredible runs by underdog teams in the Modern Era of the US Open Cup (1995-present).

The 1999 Rochester Raging Rhinos (A-League, second tier) are the premier example as they are the only lower division team to win the tournament since 1996. The Rhinos upset four MLS teams, including the Colorado Rapids in the Final to lift the trophy at Columbus Crew Stadium. The Rhinos also reached the Final and lost in 1996, and the Charleston Battery (USL First Division, second tier) also fell short in the championship game in 2008. The Carolina RailHawks (now North Carolina FC), nearly added their name to that list of great lower division cup runs in 2007 when they advanced to the Semifinals as an expansion team, falling in extra time to the New England Revolution (MLS).

But let’s take a look at third tier professional teams (a level that does not exist this year since the United Soccer Leagues was awarded provisional Division 2 status). In the Modern Era there have been three teams from Division 3 or below who have made it to the Semifinals or beyond.

1995 Richmond Kickers
USISL Premier League, 4th tier amateur

1995 US Open Cup champions: Richmond Kickers — After playing the El Paso Patriots to a 1-1 draw, the Richmond Kickers captured the 1995 US Open Cup title by defeating the Patriots on penalty kicks 4-2. Photo: Richmond Kickers

Just because this cup run took place the year before Major League Soccer launched doesn’t make the Richmond Kickers’ 1995 US Open Cup championship any less impressive. Professional soccer had started to take shape in the form that we know it today (thus, the reason we include it in the “Modern Era”). There was not a league that qualified for Division 1 status, but there was the A-League in Division 2 and the United Systems of Independent Soccer Leagues Professional League (USISL) which was Division 3.

The Kickers were a part of the USISL Premier League, an amateur league which later evolved into the Premier Development League (PDL). As an amateur team, they were loaded with future professionals including U.S. international Richie Williams, and future MLS players Rob Ukrop, Brian Kamler, Jeff Causey, Todd Yeagley and Mike Clark. The team also featured the University of Richmond’s all-time leading scorer Leigh Cowlishaw who would play nearly 150 matches for the club before becoming the head coach, a position he still holds today.

They began their cup run with a 6-1 win over a shorthanded D.C.-area amateur side Spartans SC. Six different players scored for Richmond that day at Striker Park in Glen Allen, Va. (Rob Ukrop, Richie Williams, Leigh Cowlishaw, Brian Kamler, Jon Hall, Corey Turnage)

(Editor’s note: TheCup.us is trying to confirm who scored that goal for Spartans SC, contact us if you know someone associated with that team)

In the Quarterfinals, the Kickers hosted the Atlanta Ruckus of the A-League and came away with a 2-1 win at the University of Richmond Stadium. Ben Crawley assisted on both goals for the Kickers, a 13th minute tally by Ukrop and the game-winner in the 62nd minute by Scott Snyder. (U.S. international and the A-League’s Defender of the Year John Doyle scored for Atlanta). The Ruckus would lose in the A-League championship game that year to the Seattle Sounders, so this was no weak professional team.

The game of the tournament, and quite possibly of the Modern Era, was the Kickers’ dramatic Semifinal win over the USISL Pro’s (Div. 3) Chicago Stingers. Playing their second straight game at the University of Richmond, Kamler opened up the scoring for the Kickers 34 seconds into the match (one of the fastest goals of the Modern Era). Chicago answered with an equalizer 10 minutes later, but the game changed when future MLS player Matt Knowles threw a punch at Crawley and was ejected. Despite being a man down, the Stingers managed to take the lead on a 34th minute penalty kick by Steve Morris. Midway through the second half, Crawley and Snyder gave Richmond the lead back only to see Chicago tie it up with Don D’Ambra scoring his second goal of the game in the 88th minute. The late equalizer didn’t phase the home team as Crawley scored the game-winner from the penalty spot less than a minute later.

In the championship game, the Kickers hit the road for the first time, heading to El Paso, Texas to take on the Patriots of the USISL Pro League (Division 3). Ukrop scored for Richmond just after halftime only to have El Paso equalize in the final 10 minutes. After extra time, the match went to penalty kicks, marking just the second time in tournament history that the title would be decided from the spot. Causey made a pair of saves and the Kickers converted four of their five attempts to become the first Virginia club to win the US Open Cup title.

1997 San Francisco Bay Seals
D-3 Pro League, 3rd tier professional

Shane Watkins of the San Francisco Bay Seals eludes San Jose Clash defender John Doyle during the Seals' 2-1 Quarterfinal upset at Spartan Stadium on August 20, 1997. Photo: San Francisco Bay Seals — Shane Watkins of the San Francisco Bay Seals eludes San Jose Clash defender John Doyle during the Seals’ 2-1 Quarterfinal upset at Spartan Stadium on August 20, 1997. Photo: San Francisco Bay Seals

The San Francisco Bay Seals only qualified for the US Open Cup one time, but they made the most of it. The D-3 Pro League (3rd tier) team barely qualified, needing a tiebreaker just to get in. Once they got in, they cruised to a 4-0 win over the San Jose-based amateur club Inter SC. Marquis White and Mike Black had two goals each to lead the way.

(Editor’s note: TheCup.us is trying to confirm the scoring summary for that Inter SC game on June 20, 1997, contact us if you can help)

In Round 2, the Seals hosted the defending A-League champion Seattle Sounders at the University of San Francisco. The Seals defense, led by future MLS star CJ Brown, held the Sounders to just seven shots and White scored the lone goal to lead the home team to the upset.

White continued to shine when the Seals returned to the same stadium, but this time they had tougher opposition. The Kansas City Wizards of MLS came to town and took an early punch with White scoring in the first minute of the match. Frank Klopas tied it up before halftime, but White’s fifth goal in three matches would prove to be the game-winner in the 59th minute.

The Seals would claim a second straight MLS upset with another 2-1 win, this time on the road against the San Jose Clash (now the Earthquakes). Ronald Cerritos gave the home team an early lead, but San Francisco wouldn’t level the match until the 77th minute when Shani Simpson scored. Nearly 10 minutes later, they had their winner, courtesy of Shane Watkins.

San Francisco’s biggest challenge came in the Semifinals when defending MLS and Open Cup champion D.C. United came calling to the Stagg Memorial Stadium at the University of the Pacific. United fielded a mostly first-choice team and it paid off as Jaime Moreno scored an early PK and Raul Diaz Arce scored in the second half to give the champions a 2-0 lead. White cut the lead in half in the 84th minute but the Seals couldn’t find the equalizer and their one and, to date, only cup run would end.

2011 Richmond Kickers
USL Pro, 3rd tier professional

The Richmond Kickers and Columbus Crew met in the 2011 US Open Cup with the Kickers upsetting the Crew 2-1 at Crew Stadium. Photo: Columbus Crew

The Kickers had an easier path to start out their 2011 US Open Cup run. Thanks to a friendly draw, the Kickers ended up with fellow USL Pro side Dayton Dutch Lions in Round 1. Dayton would end up finishing the season with the worst record in the league at 2-16-6 and the difference in quality was clear in Richmond’s 4-1 home win. David Bulow scored a hat trick to help him climb up the Modern Era’s goalscoring chart. But he wasn’t done.

In Round 2, the Kickers drew another USL Pro team, the Pittsburgh Riverhounds. While the Hounds would end up making the playoffs, they finished with a losing record (7-11-6). Richmond handled them easily in front of their home fans, winning 4-1. Matthew Delicate and Bulow each scored a pair of goals in the victory.

After cruising through the first two rounds, the tournament got much more difficult after that starting with a Round 3 date on the road against the Columbus Crew (MLS). After trading first half goals, it was an 85th minute goal by Delicate that proved to be the game-winner, handing the Crew their first-ever loss to a third-tier team. The win also clinched the $10,000 prize for the Kickers as the third division club to advance the farthest in the tournament.

While the Crew would end up being a MLS playoff team, the Kickers’ next opponent would be a step up. The newly renamed Sporting Kansas City would eventually finish with the best record in the Eastern Conference, but it wasn’t too much for the Kickers who overcame a lightning delay to win 2-0. After the lightning delay ended, Shaka Bangura scored 30 seconds later and David Bulow scored the game-clinched penalty kick in the 83rd minute. Ronnie Pascale earned the clean sheet for the Kickers, along with TheCup.us Player of the Round as Richmond became the first lower division club to eliminate back-to-back MLS teams on the road. Bulow made history with his 13th career US Open Cup goal, which tied him for the Modern Era lead.

The Kickers would have to play a third consecutive MLS team on the road, as they traveled to Bridgeview to face the Chicago Fire. The run would come to an end by the score of 2-1. A first half PK by Sebastian Grazzini and a 61st minute goal by former Richmond Kickers Future (PDL) player Dominic Oduro gave the Fire a 2-0 lead. The Kickers would pull one back but the Fire were the better team and they held on for the win.

2017 US Open Cup Round 2: Graf’s goal, assist gives Rochester Rhinos a record 16th straight opening win

May 20, 2017 by Brendan Doherty

The Rochester Rhinos came out to a barn-storming start, but have slippery hands and jittery nerves to thank for their early goals in a 3-0 US Open Cup victory over FC Motown.

In just the 2nd minute, attacking midfielder Sofiane Tergou picked up the ball in midfield and ran at Motown’s defense before dishing a pass into the channel for Rayane Boukemia and following the play into the box.

Jochen Graf controlled the cross from wide and flicked the ball into space for Tergou, who fired a tight angle shot at FC Motown goalkeeper Andrew Tartara. The ball appeared to skirt through Tartara’s hands and between his legs at the near post for the game’s first goal.

Rochester doubled its advantage minutes later in similar fashion.

Left back Ray Lee launched a long ball forward that Graf was able to knock into the right channel for rookie winger Jalen Brown. Without pressure from FC Motown, Brown was able to calmly curl an early cross towards the near post behind the backline.

Graf won the footrace and tapped the ball between Tartara’s legs for Rochester’s second goal in the 7th minute.

Rochester failed to produce much in front of goal to close the first half or to start the second.

The visitors from New Jersey often showed individual skill and impressive passing sequences, but could not capitalize on that positive play in the final third.

Near the hour mark, FC Motown began challenging Rochester’s defense in a meaningful way, driven by substitute Andres Berriel.

Berriel found himself in a pocket of space behind fullback Ray Lee in the 56th minute, but his first touch let him down and the chance never materialized.

With attacking substitutions of its own, Rochester began to press hard for another goal in the final ten minutes.

Rayane Boukemia scored the Rhinos’ final goal, tapping home a rebound in the 85th minute.
Rochester is now 16-0-0 all-time against amateur sides in the US Open Cup. The win also extends the Rhinos’ Modern Era record for consecutive opening round wins. Rochester has won 15 consecutive tournament openers, with the only time they’ve ever lost coming back in 2001 to the A-League’s Hershey Wildcats.

The Rhinos will host GPS Omens, a Massachusetts-based amateur team from the Bay State Soccer League, in the Third Round on May 31.

2016 US Open Cup Round 4: Sacha Kljestan PK holds up as New York Red Bulls edge Rhinos in Rochester

June 18, 2016 by Brendan Doherty

On Wednesday night, 3,561 people witnessed a hard-fought match between two hungry teams with very different track records in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. The New York Red Bulls, who are seeking their first US Open Cup title, fielded a very strong lineup while the Rochester Rhinos, the 1999 champions, looked to maintain a 25-game unbeaten streak at home in all competitions. Despite the best efforts from Rhinos’ players, New York defeated its hosts 1-0 thanks to a 20th minute penalty kick from Sacha Kljestan in front of a large contingent of traveling support.

In the days leading up to the game, Red Bulls head coach Jesse Marsch told the media he was planning to send out a talented squad but his selection still turned a few heads. Kljestan, Bradley Wright-Phillips, and Gonzalo Veron led New York’s attack while Dax McCarty, Sal Zizzo, Aurelien Collin, and Luis Robles also started.

Playing a new 5-2-3 formation, Rochester seemed to surprise the visitors in the opening minutes. Steevan dos Santos, Michel Guilavogui, and Christian Volesky took the game to New York but failed to put any substantive on Robles.

Veron, who has struggled for fitness since a dominating preseason, was the clear danger man for New York. His teammates looked to feed him the ball and the Argentine caused trouble whenever he cut in from the left wing. This play led to the game’s only goal.

Veron received a pass from midfield and attempted to make a diagonal run into the Rochester penalty area. Sean Totsch, playing in the center of the defense, tried to shield Veron off the ball. The forward cast the second-year Rhino aside and carried on. Vasilis Apostolopoulos then stepped in front of Veron and fouled him in the box for a penalty.

Rochester players, and fans, were not arguing whether Apostolopoulos fouled Veron, but rather that the attacker has fouled Totsch earlier in the play. Regardless, Kljestan stepped up and coolly dispatched his penalty in the 20th minute to give the Red Bulls the first half lead. It was his second career US Open Cup goal, after picking up his first in last year’s tournament.

After the goal, Rochester appeared disheartened and receded in the game. New York put together sustained periods of pressure and earned half a dozen corner kicks before halftime. The Rhinos attack had created openings but failed to convert them into real chances on goal.

Youngster Alex Muyl, who scored one of his team’s seven goals in the team’s blowout win in league play against New York City FC, replaced Shaun Wright-Phillips in the 23rd minute after the veteran winger picked up a knock. In the second half, electric dribbler Mike Grella entered the game for Bradley Wright-Phillips in the 67th minute but certainly didn’t have the impact his recent performances may have suggested. Red Bulls’ final change brought central defender Ronald Zubar on for forward Veron with ten minutes left to shore up the defense and protect the team’s narrow narrow lead.

As Rochester pushed players forward, including rookie center back Joe Farrell, who scored a scorcher on the road in Toronto in USL on the weekend, they were exposed in the back. Grella broke through clean on goal but goalkeeper Tomas Gomez, who made six saves on the night, didn’t back down. With Grella bearing down on goal, Gomez came off his line and didn’t make it easy for Grella. The former San Jose reserve goalkeeper stayed on his feet and did well to block Grella’s breakaway shot.

The home team’s best chance to equalize the game started with a Kenardo Forbes free kick. Forbes floated service into the mixer from the right channel. Robles came off his line to punch but couldn’t wade through the mass of bodies to make clean contact. The ball fell to Totsch, who hit a neat instep volley on frame. While the ball may have been destined for the top corner at the near post, choosing accuracy over power allowed New York’s Zubar to head the ball clear off the line while Robles was still out of position in the 84th minute.

The visiting Red Bulls held on for the 1-0 victory over Rochester and will advance in the Open Cup. The win was the Red Bulls’ first over the Rhinos after losing their only other meeting back in 2005 in Rochester, 3-1. To give fans how long its been since their last meeting, Sergio Galvan Rey scored for New York that day

After the game New York head coach Jesse Marsch told media about the motivation to perform well in this competition.

“From the inside the players really want to take this tournament seriously and go after it and win a trophy. And certainly as an organization, we do,” said Marsch who won four US Open Cup titles as a player. We’re an organization that still doesn’t have enough trophies in the trophy case, so we look at every tournament as a real chance to put one in there. We wanted to put a good team on the field.”

“I’ll give credit to Rochester because they made us earn it,” said Marsch, who was on the DC United team that beat the Rhinos in the Final in 1996. “They didn’t give much away. We didn’t have too many chances. They competed hard. They battled. And we’re lucky to get out of here with the win.

“These games are never easy. Obviously if we can score a second goal, then we make our lives a bit easier, he added. “This game means a lot to them as well as it means a lot to us. Certainly, every inch that we gained we had to fight for. I give them credit but in the end, it was good for us to get the lead early on because it meant that the game settled in a little bit more. We didn’t have to be panicky or desperate. Overall it was a pretty professional performance from a lot of our guys.”

Rochester head coach Bob Lilley also talked about the strength of New York’s lineup after the game.

“I thought we’d get some regular starters, but I didn’t necessarily think we’d get as many as we did. But I told our guys to be ready. In the locker room, I said, ‘Hey, they’re paying you respect now but now you need to show them you can play. Go out ready to compete.’ I think our guys did. I loved the way we started the game. I just don’t think we took enough advantage of those early stages to really get after them. And once they kind of settled into the game, they dictated the pace of play. It was hard to get enough of the ball to really put them under pressure.”

In the end, Lilley was proud of his team’s performance and he feels they can carry the experience into league play.

“We limited their chances more than most MLS sides and certainly we pushed them a little bit more than they’ve been pushed recently,” Lilley said. “We certainly got benefits out of it and I think the guys need to see how they measure up and where they maybe fell short a little bit. But I think they’ll learn from this game. And I also think they’ll take positives for sure, because I think the guys recognize they didn’t mess around with their lineup, they put out a very strong lineup. I think that says something.”

“I’m pretty happy overall with how they performed on the night,” Lilley concluded with a smile.

The loss for the Rhinos ends a six-game Open Cup winning streak at home and a 25-game undefeated run in all competitions in Rochester dating back to August 2014. By winning and moving on in the tournament, the Red Bulls earned a trip to play rivals Philadelphia Union in the Fifth Round on June 29.

FULL MATCH REPLAY

Scoring Summary:

NY – Sacha Kljestan (PK) 20’
Discipline Summary:

ROC – Vasilios Apostolopoulos (caution, foul) 19’
NY – Gideon Baah (caution, foul) 82’
NY – Sean Davis (caution, foul) 90+1’
Lineups:

New York: Luis Robles; Justin Bilyeu, Gideon Baah, Aurelien Collin, Sal Zizzo, Dax McCarty ©, Sean Davis, Gonzalo Veron (Ronald Zubar, 80’), Sacha Kljestan, Shaun Wright-Phillips (Alex Muyl, 23’), Bradley Wright-Phillips (Mike Grella 67’)

Rochester: Tomas Gomez; Sean Totsch, Joseph Farrell, Vasilios Apostolopoulos, Marcos Ugarte, Brandon Beresford, Michel Guilavogui (Sofian Tergou 66’), Mike Garzi, Kenardo Forbes, Christian Volesky (Asani Samuels 66’), Steevan dos Santos

2016 US Open Cup Round 3: Rochester Rhinos play role of giant with 2-0 win over Lansdowne Bhoys

June 3, 2016 by Brendan Doherty

The Bhoys from New York City represented themselves well in a 2-0 loss to the Rochester Rhinos on Wednesday night.

Lansdowne Bhoys FC, one of six remaining teams from below the professional leagues, traveled to Rochester to face a team that, while best known as an occasional giant-killer, and the 1999 US Open Cup champion, is also a perennial minnow-crusher. The Rhinos entered Wednesday night’s game with a 15-0-0 all-time record against amateur sides in the Open Cup but the Bhoys proved they were no pushovers by defeating USL team Pittsburgh Riverhounds in the Second Round.

The visitors flew up to Western New York on Tuesday night and had an extended training session on the turf at Rhinos Stadium on Wednesday morning. This rather professional preparation showed its value as Lansdowne players were competitive in every challenge from the first whistle.

Strong defenses from both teams limiting close-range chances in the first half but while Rochester attempted to make the pass in the final third, Lansdowne decided to shoot from distance. Attacking midfielder Daryl Kavanagh cut inside from the left channel to fire a right-footed shot wide of the far post from 18 yards out in the 16th minute.

In the 28th minute, Ciaran McGuigan rifled a heavy free kick just outside the post that appeared to have Rochester goalkeeper Tomas Gomez beat.

The Rhinos on the other hand tried to play short passes inside the area or low cross across the face of goal. Rochester forward Asani Samuels, who scored a hat-trick in the Second Round, dribbled towards goal along the end-line in the 12th minute but his patience allowed Lansdowne defenders to recover. Right winger Michel Guilavogui got around the corner in the 18th minute but there were no advanced teammates to meet his centering pass.

After the halftime break, the game continued in much the same way. In the 47th minute, Christian Volesky headed a cross from Bradley Kamdem tamely at Lansdowne goalkeeper Danso Abdoukarim. On the other end of the field, Ovan Oakley capitalized on a mistake by Rochester’s defense to create a breakaway but his attempted chip bounced harmlessly wide of the post in the 54th minute.

Rookie midfielder Andre Fortune II broke the deadlock on the hour mark. Rochester’s right back Dom Samuel had done well to cut inside and draw a foul from Lansdowne midfielder Craig Purcell. Several Rhinos stood around the ball but Fortune ultimately stepped up to take the free kick from 22 yards out. The Trinidad and Tobago youth international expertly curled the ball around the defensive wall and inside the post leaving Abdoukarim rooted to the spot.

The Bhoys responded well to conceding the game’s first goal, fashioning multiple chances in the next ten minutes. Purcell and Kavanagh in particular were active, forcing Gomez to make saves. The task facing the amateurs from Yonkers got considerably more difficult when Volesky doubled Rochester’s lead.

Marcos Ugarte picked up the ball after a half-clearance from Lansdowne’s defense. The second-year Rochester winger saw Volesky in a meter of space and found his teammate with a crisp, low pass. Volesky took a touch to settle the ball before burying a right-footed shot from 18 yards in the 71st minute.

Despite the two-goal deficit, Lansdowne Bhoys FC continued to battle for loose balls and challenge the Rochester goal until the final whistle.

“They were a tough team, they were physical. They came to play for sure. They beat Pittsburgh a couple weeks back,” Andre Fortune II said after the game. “We knew that after this game, whoever came out of it was playing Red Bulls and that meant a lot to both of us. They came out fighting and they were ready to play.”

Christian Volesky described his goal to media after the game. “Marcos and I have a really good chemistry,” he said. “He picked me out and I knew I was going to get the ball. I took a touch away from the pressure and just hit it and found the back of the net fortunately for me.”
The forward added, “The goalkeeper was good but I was able to beat him on this shot.”

“Obviously they’re a physical team,” Rochester head coach Bob Lilley said about Lansdowne Bhoys FC. “Their long-range shooting was impressive, they stung a lot of balls from distance … for sure, they were dangerous.

“Overall it was a good win. We knew it was going to be a tough game,” the veteran coach continued. “We took the game seriously and we told the guys that it may take a while to crack them. It was always going to be a tricky game and I think we handled it pretty well.”

After the game Lansdowne head coach Austin Friel was disappointed but proud of his team’s achievements and humble in defeat. Friel said his players knew the mental fortitude that was necessary to play against the defending USL champions.

“I knew they were very good at keeping the ball. I knew they were very dangerous on set pieces. And I knew they can hurt you if you make any mistakes. So we were coming up here basically to keep a good shape, keep a good formation, and to try and frustrate the Rochester Rhinos and to try to take our chances whenever we got them.”

We did well for nearly 60 minutes. We gave away a free kick on the edge of the box and fair play to the midfielder, he put it away well. So coming up here, we were expecting a tough game and we got one. The best team won I thought.”

The coach reflected on the context of this year’s cup run within the club’s history. “Obviously it has to be up there with the very best achievements because it’s not every day that an amateur team beats a professional team, or even beats a PDL team. But as I said, it’s the start of where the club wants to go.”

“Whenever you get a taste of what you can achieve, what the players have achieved, you want more. Definitely we’ll be back in it next year and try and have a journey again. I think it’s been like a 9 or 10 month journey already that we’ve had. It’s been a great experience. The players have really adapted themselves well and deserve all the credit they get.”

While Lansdowne Bhoys FC saw their first ever entrance to the US Open Cup end in the Third Round, the Rhinos are looking forward to a Fourth Round match against the New York Red Bulls. Rochester will host the MLS side on June 15 from Rhinos Stadium at 7 p.m.

2016 US Open Cup Round 2: Rochester Rhinos stampede Southie FC in record blowout

May 20, 2016 by Brendan Doherty

The Rochester Rhinos are well-known in American soccer as a defensive powerhouse but the reigning USL champions have notably struggled to dispatch lower division sides in the US Open Cup. Southie FC is a Boston-based team that participates in the Massachusetts State Soccer League and the Bay State Soccer League. Rochester’s head coach Bob Lilley rolled the dice with heavy squad rotation against the lively side from Massachusetts.

That heavily-rotated lineup was more than enough as the Rhinos dominated Southie FC, 7-0 to improve the club’s all-time record against amateur opponents to 15-0. The Rhinos also extend their Modern Era record of consecutive opening round victories to 15 games.

Southie FC started the match purposefully, moving the ball around the field with crisp short passes, but the Rhinos quickly made the breakthrough. In the sixth minute second-year forward Christian Volesky dispatched a penalty past Southie goalkeeper Colin O’Donnell. Left-winger Marcos Ugarte, who grew up near south Boston, went down in the box after contact from behind while running onto a pass from Sofiane Tergou.

Rochester midfielder Andre Fortune II, in his first start for the team, doubled the hosts’ advantage in the ninth minute with a wonderful solo effort. Fortune picked up the ball in the right channel and cut inside near the top of the 18-yard box with one thing on his mind. The first-year Rhino angled for an open shooting lane before curling a shot to the far post out of the reach of the Southie goalkeeper.

Despite going down two goals in the opening ten minutes, Southie FC players were resilient. The visitors did not resort to direct “route one” play and instead continued to play their deliberative passing style.

Just before the half-hour mark, Ugarte played an impressive one-two with Tergou in the attacking third. Tergou’s return pass split the Southie defenders and Ugarte was able to latch onto the ball in the air. With the goalkeeper rushing off his line, Ugarte chipped his shot to the far post for the team’s third goal in the 27th minute.

Asani Samuels, who scored twice in the 2015 USL Championship, grabbed two quick goals before halftime on Wednesday. Southie FC had tried to hold a high line ten yards from half, but Samuels broke through on a pass from Ugarte and rounded the goalkeeper before tapping home in the 42nd minute. Just two minutes later, Volesky cut back onto his right foot and curled a cross into the area from the left channel. The cross found the feet of Samuels, who made no mistake from six yards out.

Rochester went into the halftime break leading 5-0. While Southie FC scored an own goal early in the second half, a lot of the play after the break favored the visitors. Bob Lilley credited the Southie players for working hard and putting the home side under pressure.

Southie, who brought only two substitutes with them, showed tremendous fitness to harass and harry the Rhinos until the final whistle. Even though the scoreline seemed insurmountable, the amateur team from Boston continued to play positive soccer and attack their hosts.

In the 77th minute, Samuels completed his hat-trick after great work from Tergou and Ugarte in the build-up. Holding onto the ball inside the Southie penalty area, Tergou played a disguised pass to Ugarte towards the endline. The winger cut a low ball back to Samuels and the forward finished emphatically from close range for his fifth goal in two U.S. Open Cup appearances for the Rhinos.

Marcos Ugarte drew a penalty, scored a goal, and added two assists on the night against Southie FC. He talked to media after the game about the team’s preparation for the cup match.

“Coach said that this was going to be a good game,” said Ugarte. “I’m from the Boston-Providence area so I know a lot of these guys, I played with a lot of them at Providence College for two years. I knew what they were capable of and I know it was going to be a good game. We came out strong and we put them away early.”

Rhinos head coach Bob Lilley spoke to media after the game about his team’s resolve in the face of the unpredictable nature of the Open Cup.

“You never know with these games. It was good to get the early first few goals. I thought the guys were pretty focused on doing a job,” Lilley said. “We had a job to do, it not always easy, and I think the guys handled it well.”

Asani Samuels, who scored the first hat trick in Rhinos Open Cup history, credited the big win to the fact that the Rhinos did not approach the game against Southie FC any different than a league match.

“We treat every game as the same. We went through the same match preparation, we did everything the same,” Samuels said. “We just went out there to play our game.”

Sofiane Tergou, making his full debut with Rochester, agreed with those sentiments.

“We took this game very seriously, even if it was against an amateur team. When you’re in the cup you never know what can happen.”

“They were missing a couple of guys. Today could have been close,” Lilley said referring to Rochester’s recent record of tight games in the early cup rounds. “They had some pieces that were more than capable of hurting us today but once you put a team in the hole, it’s hard for them. They’re not training as regularly, the energy it takes to pull those goals back is pretty difficult.”

Lilley had praise for the fighting spirit of his team’s amateur opponent.

“I thought they deserved credit. In the second half – the game was 5-0 – but they played more in our half. They wanted to score. They were pretty committed to scoring.”

The 7-0 victory over Southie FC shatters Rochester’s club record for most goals in a US Open Cup match, and the largest margin of victory. The previous record was set in 2006 when the Rhinos defeated USL Second Division side New Hampshire Phantoms 5-1. In the Rhinos’ previous 56 Open Cup games, the game against the Phantoms was the only game that they won by more than three goals.

Rochester advances to the Third Round of the U.S. Open Cup where they will host another amateur side, New York City’s Landsdowne Bhoys on Wednesday June 1 at 7 p.m.

2015 US Open Cup Round 4: John McCarthy helps Philadelphia Union survive PK shootout with Rochester Rhinos (video)

June 16, 2015 by Michael Berton

John McCarthy of the Philadelphia Union celebrates a penalty kick save against the Rochester Rhinos. Photo: Greg Carroccio | Philadelphia Union

UPDATE: The Round of 16 draw was conducted by the US Soccer Federation and it was determined that the Philadelphia Union will host DC United in the next round.

It took 120 minutes before the Philadelphia Union and Rochester Rhinos could score some goals. The teams needed a penalty kick shootout to decide things after a scoreless draw in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup Fourth Round.

In the end, Union goalkeeper John McCarthy, a former Rochester Rhinos player, was the hero, saving three penalty kicks to win his team the tiebreaker. Philadelphia scored three penalties to take the shootout 3-1.

“ made some big saves for us in the PKs,” Union coach Jim Curtin said. “The second of three saves was special. He stepped up and bailed us out.”

It did not always look like McCarthy was going to be the hero, however. Several times in the second half and in extra time, he came way out of his penalty box to try to stop plays. Twice he made errors; on the first Raymon Gaddis saved the ball of the line, and on the second, a Rochester goal was disallowed due to a foul.

“I yelled at him for coming out for a couple balls he shouldn’t have,” said Curtin.

Other than a dominating opening 20 minutes for the MLS side, the match was pretty even. Rochester, which won the Open Cup in 1999, put more shots on goal than the Union (5-4), and frustrated the Union defensively. The USL outfit came into the match at 8-0-4 in league play, giving up just four goals.

The Rhinos’ best chance came in the 83rd minute. After a corner taken by Jonny Mendoza, the ball found its way to Julian Ringhof. The defender chested the ball and volleyed it, only to produce a spectacular double save by McCarthy.

“I thought they outplayed us in the second half. Credit to Rochester. That’s a tough team to break down,” Curtin said.

With neither team able to capitalize on chances in extra time, the match came down to penalty kicks. It was McCarthy making three saves—two to his right and the final to his left—to give the Union the victory.

With the win, the Philadelphia Union, last year’s runner-up, advance to the Fifth Round, winning their opening game for the fourth year in a row. The draw for the Fifth Round will occur on Thursday at 10 a.m.

FULL MATCH REPLAY: ROCHESTER AT PHILADELPHIA

2015 US Open Cup Round 3: Asani Samuels sparks OT stampede as Rochester Rhinos beat Harrisburg City Islanders 3-1 (video)

May 28, 2015 by Michael Berton

Asani Samuels only played 32 minutes in the Rochester Rhinos’ US Open Cup Third Round win over the Harrisburg City Islanders, but that was plenty of time to turn in a man-of-the-match performance.

Samuels assisted on one goal and scored two others in the Rhinos 3-1 extra-time victory. With the win, Rochester moves on to play the MLS’ Philadelphia Union in the Fourth Round.

The game struggled to get going, with both teams content to play defensive soccer. The game was unexpectedly turned on its head, however, when Rochester’s Steevan dos Santos picked up his second yellow card in the 38th minute, meaning the Rhinos would have to play a man down the rest of the game.

Harrisburg, which was trying to advance to the Fourth Round for the second year in a row, pressed forward in the second half, but chances were few and far between. The 1999 Open Cup champs, Rochester was able to keep the City Islanders off the scoreboard and even had a few chance of its own.

Samuels entered the game in the 88th minute and instantly produced problems for Harrisburg defenders. It was the home side with the best chance at the end of the game, however, when Jose Barril’s free kick from 25 yards out was saved by Rochester keeper Brandon Miller.

After a scoreless first half of extra time, the second half produced more action than the rest of the match combined. In the 106th minute, Harrisburg’s Eric Bird (on loan from Philadelphia) hit a laser of a shot that was initially saved by Miller. The rebound fell to Brett Jankouskas who easily scored from the left side of the box.

At this point Samuels began to put in a man-of-the-match performance.

Two minutes later, Samuels headed the ball in the Harrisburg box to Kenardo Forbes, who slotted it home to tie the game.

In the 115th minute, after a scrum in the City Islanders penalty area, the ball bounced to Samuels, who put it home for a 2-1 lead.

Harrisburg threw everything forward, giving Samuels another chance to show off his goal-scoring prowess. In injury time, Samuels dribbled to about 20 yards out from the Harrisburg goal and got the ball past Harrisburg City keeper Kyle Renfro for the final goal.

It may have taken a while to get to the action in this Third Round matchup, but that just made it all the sweeter for Samuels and the Rochester Rhinos, which will now play the Union on June 16.