Strela Negra

2013 US Open Cup qualifying: Mass Premier Soccer’s one-sided win over Stela Negra earns them ticket to Mass. final, sucker punch

November 18, 2012 by Hank Alexandre

Mass. Premier Soccer advanced to the final round of US Open Cup Qualifying with a resounding 8-1 defeat of Stela Negra, in a game that ended in a sucker punch, a subsequent red card, and the referee letting the clock run down while holding the ball for the final 5 minutes of play.

Stela Negra were extremely frustrated by the time the offending player, #14, ran out of the MPS backfield and sucker punched a MPS defender in the face, just as MPS’ Jake Edwards was scoring their 8th goal in the 82nd minute. The player, whose name was not released, was immediately ejected. The officials spent the next several minutes trying to restore a semblance of order, but ended up being forced to let time run out without resuming play.

MPS opened up the scoring early in the 7th minute, when MPS player/manager Nick Christman found teammate Matt Hoff at the top of the box. Stela Negra were quick to counter, finding the back of the net in the 15th minute with a brilliant header, but Stela forward Kanutu was judged to be offside, erasing the equalizer.

MPS then took over the match with back to back goals from Dan MacGregor and Nick Christman in the 17th and 18th minutes, respectively. MacGregor would again find the back of the net in the 38th minute. Stela Negra found their only goal of the match just before the half ended, with Jibita Sombaros scoring off a corner kick which eluded MPS Keeper Jeff Newman.

Stela Negra’s best chance in the second half came in the 64th minute, with a free kick in the MPS half of the field, but the attempt sailed high over the bar. From that point on, it was all MPS for the remainder of the match. Tyler Macnee opened the onslaught in the 69th minute, and was followed up by goals by Kevin Unger, Nick Christman, and Jake Edwards. Then the mayhem kicked into overdrive.

The Stela players lost all composure as they tried to defend the actions of their teammate, who had just been ejected from the game. The officials did well to let time run out, as it was clear that letting play continue would have resulted in further players being hurt or ejected.

“I expected it to be closer”, said Christman after the game. “We’ve played them in previous years and they’ve always played us tough.”

MPS may find a more challenging opponent in Eastern Providence Sports, the winner of the other Semi-Final on Saturday. “We played them last year in the Open Cup, and it was 3-3 after regulation, 4-4 after extra time, and went deep into penalties. They’ve got some good players.”

For East Providence, who compete in Massachusetts despite being based in Rhode Island, it was their first Open Cup qualifying win, and their reward is another chance for revenge on MPS. In 2011, they lost in the opening round game in the USASA Region I tournament (their last representing the state of Rhode Island). Last year, they drew 4-4 with MPS, but lost in penalty kicks in Round 1 of the Massachusetts tournament.

2013 Massachusetts Open Cup tournament schedule

First Round [+] Recap
Battery Park Gunners 2:1 Mass United FC
Boston Olympiakos 0:6 Mass Premier Soccer
Middlesex FC 1:6 East Providence Sports
Strela Negra (BYE)

Semifinals
Battery Park Gunners 3:4 East Providence Sports [+] Recap
Mass Premier Soccer 8:1 Strela Negra

Final (Date/Time TBA)

Mass Premier Soccer vs. East Providence Sports

Recent Massachusetts Open Cup champions
2013: TBD
2012: Battery Park Gunners
2011: Mass Premier Soccer
2010: Emigrantes Das Ilhas
2009: Emigrantes Das Ilhas*
2008: Boston Olympiakos*
2007: Lowell Revolution
2006: Green Briar Rebels
2005: Green Briar Rebels
2004: Boston Olympiakos
2003: Green Briar Rebels
2002: Hellas United

*Qualified for the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup

2013 US Open Cup qualifying: East Providence Sports eliminates Battery Park Gunners to reach Massachusetts final

November 17, 2012 by Brian O'Connell

Story originally published at New England Soccer Today. Follow them on Twitter @NESoccerToday

Armando Gomes and Kyle Teixeira each bagged a brace as East Providence Sports clinched a US Open Cup state final berth following Saturday’s 4-3 win over Battery Park Gunners at Madison Park High School.

Bobby Linaberry put the Gunners in the 5th minute, but Gomes replied with his first goal in the 22nd minute. He added his second in the 35th minute before Ben Shuleva leveled it in the 40th minute for the Gunners. Teixeira tallied in the 70th and 80th minutes, while Matt Shea brought one back for Battery Park in the 90th minute.

East Providence goalkeeper Jimmi Underhill made a pair of important saves late to preserve the result.

Saturday’s semifinal win sends East Providence to the Massachusetts state final match, where they will face the winner of Sunday’s Mass Premier Soccer-Strela Negra semifinal contest on Sunday. The state final is tentatively scheduled for the weekend of Dec. 9.

In the opening moments, it hardly looked like East Providence would pull away with the win. Battery Park, the defending Massachusetts Open Cup champion, pressed the issue and tested Underhill right from the first chirp of the whistle.

Only five minutes passed when the Gunners, the best amateur side in the country by virtue of their 2012 National Amateur Cup championship, fired the first shot. Ryan McDaniel sent it inside the area, where Linaberry launched it into the net.

Shortly thereafter, the match undertook on a physical tone. Players from both clubs employed aggressive tackles and shoves to impose and intimidate.

Nevertheless, East Providence mounted a dangerous counterattack midway through the first half. Eddy Lopes played a ball forward to Gomes at the left post, where he tapped it through.

Gomes scribbled his name on the scoresheet again in the 35th minute when he collected the remnants of a Jimmy Hernandez cross. After a moment of defensive confusion, Gomes coolly converted near the six.

The lead would not last before the break. Five minutes from halftime, the Gunners exploited the disheveled defense, which allowed Shuleva to score.

Despite a four-goal first half, the second half remained scoreless for 25 minutes. That streak ended moments after Teixeira sauntered down the left and looked for a teammate in the area. His cross hit the arm of a Gunners’ defender, and the referee pointed to the spot, where Teixeira buried it to reclaim the lead.

The creative winger moved up to forward, just in time to find his second strike. On another counterattack, Gomes sent it over to Teixeira in front of the area. From there, Teixeira raced through and chipped it over Philip Nelson ten minutes from time.

Battery Park made it interesting in the 90th minute when Myles Gerraty gave it to Shea, who cut the deficit to one.

However, East Providence held on for five minutes of stoppage time to secure their spot in the state final.

For East Providence, a Rhode Island based club who competes in the Massachusetts tournament because their league is based there, it was their first Open Cup qualifying win. In 2011, they lost to Mass Premier Soccer in their opening round game in the USASA Region I tournament after entering as Rhode Island’s only entry. Last year, they drew 4-4 with MPS but lost in penalty kicks in Round 1 of the Mass. tournament. Those two teams could meet for a third year in a row depending on how Sunday’s other semifinal turns out.

On Sunday, Mass Premier Soccer takes on Strela Negra at Citizens Bank Park Field in Lancaster, Mass. MPS, the 2011 state champion, thumped tournament regular Boston Olympiakos 6-0 in Round 1, while Strela Negra receieved a first round bye. Strela Negra finished as the state’s runner-up in 2008, but have been one-and-done in their last two entries (2009, 2012). Kickoff is scheduled for 11 a.m.

Lineups:

Battery Park Gunners: Joe Annese, Joe Germanese, Myles Gerraty, Steve Hepburn, Ernest McAlister, Ryan McDaniel, Philip Nelson, Jason Pan, Ben Shuleva, Joe Vitale, Bobby Linberry. SUBSTITUTES: Josiah Marshall, John Orr, Matt Shea

East Providence Sports: Dave DeMelo, Joaquim Depina, Miguel Fortes, Armando Gomes, Jimmy Hernandez, Tristan Lewis, Eddy Lopes, Andres Perdomo, Anthony Petrarca, Kyle Teixeira, Jimmi Underhill. SUBSTITUTES: Peter Maciel

2013 Massachusetts Open Cup tournament schedule

First Round [+] Recap
Battery Park Gunners 2:1 Mass United FC
Boston Olympiakos 0:6 Mass Premier Soccer
Middlesex FC 1:6 East Providence Sports
Strela Negra (BYE)

Semifinals
Battery Park Gunners 3:4 East Providence Sports

Mass Premier Soccer vs. Strela Negra
Sunday, Nov. 18
Citizens Bank Park Field – Lancaster, MA – 11 a.m.

Final (Sunday, Dec. 9)

*Qualified for the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup

2013 US Open Cup qualifying: Massachusetts final four set after high-scoring weekend

November 5, 2012 by Josh Hakala

There was no shortage of scoring in the opening round of the Massachusetts US Open Cup qualifying tournament as the Commonwealth attempts to send their best to regionals in hopes of the state’s first Open Cup berth since 2009.

East Providence Sports (LUSA) and Mass Premier Soccer (BSSL) combined for a dozen goals in their respective first round matches on Sunday to join Saturday winner Battery Park Gunners and Strela Negra, who received a bye, in the state semifinals.

In the Modern Professional Era (1995-present), only two clubs from the Bay State have qualified for the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup (Emigrantes Das Ilhas in 2009, Boston Olympiakos in 2008)

It was a beautiful New England fall day to watch the beautiful game at Clemente Park in Boston. With the Boston skyline in the background, Boston Olympiakos and Mass Premier Soccer took to the pitch for a 2 p.m. start.

MPS were the aggressors from the first whistle led by their player/coach Dan MacGregor, a tough two-way central midfielder. MPS’s continued pressure paid off in the 24th minute when Tyler MacNee took advantage of the keeper coming 25 yards off his line only to mishandle the ball, allowing MacNee to skillfully tap in the half volley off the turf. Olympiakos settled down after that and were keeping possession but that didn’t last long. Five minutes before the half MacGregor’s hustle paid off finishing off a deflection on a free kick right in front of the net. Nicholas Christman added another a minute later off a long cross as MPS went into the half up 3-0.

At the start of the second half, Olympiakos looked the part of a beaten club. The two Mac’s came out firing, first MacGregor scored in the 48th minute, and soon after MacNee added his second from the left wing as he fired a shot from distance over the outstretched keeper.

MPS were firing on all cylinders the back line of Edwards, Brill, O’Relly were a organized trio who frustrated the lone striker for Boston, Yusuf Wahab, all day. The speedy Wahib already sitting on a yellow lost the plot late in the game as he came crashing into goalkeeper Jeff Newman and was shown his second yellow for dissent. MPS continued the pressure after that. TJ Thompson capped off the scoring finishing off a three-on-one break to finish the scoring at 6-0.

The only thing left to do was to keep the shutout and Newman made sure of that stopping the few shots that made it by the MPS backline. As the sun was setting on the Boston skyline so did Olympiakos’ dreams of advancing next round of the Open Cup.

With the win, Mass Premier, who was the state runner-up last year, moves on to the semifinals where they will face Strela Negra (NELASA), who were given a first-round bye, on Nov. 18.

In Dorchester, East Providence grabbed a 6-1 win over Middlesex FC (BSSL) at Dorchester High School. The LUSA Cup champions earned a 2-1 halftime lead before opening it up with four goals in the second frame. Jimmy Hernandez and Nick Tavares each bagged a brace, while Armando Gomes and Kyle Teixeira each added a goal for the Red and White.

The victory puts East Providence into the semis against the defending Massachusetts Open Cup champion Battery Park Gunners, who defeated Mass United FC, 2-1, the day before with first half goals from Ben Shuleva and Joe Annese.

2013 Massachusetts Open Cup tournament schedule

First Round
Battery Park Gunners 2:1 Mass United FC
Boston Olympiakos 0:6 Mass Premier Soccer
Middlesex FC 1:6 East Providence Sports
Strela Negra (BYE)

Semifinals
Mass Premier Soccer vs. Strela Negra
Sunday, Nov. 18
Citizens Bank Park Field – Lancaster, MA – 11 a.m.

Battery Park Gunners vs. East Providence Sports
Saturday, Nov. 17
Madison Park High School – Roxbury, MA – 12 p.m.

Final (Sunday, Dec. 9)

*Qualified for the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup

2012 US Open Cup qualifying: Mass Premier Soccer thriller highlights opening round of Massachusetts tournament

December 8, 2011 by Josh Hakala

Four teams have advanced to the semifinals of the Massachusetts Open Cup qualifying tournament, with the goal of moving on to regionals.

Boston Olympiakos needed overtime, while Mass Premier Soccer survived an eight-goal thriller that required penalty kicks to punch their ticket to the final four. Meanwhile, Battery Park Gunners had no trouble with Strela Negra, hammering them 7-0, while Mass United FC got a free pass when CF Canon Sportif were unable to field a full squad and forfeited.

Olympiakos faced a stingy defense in Boston Cambridge Somerville Eleven (BCS XI), but they came away with a 1-0 extra time victory. According to the Olympiakos website, they launched 73 shots at the BCS XI goalkeeper with 32 of them on goal, and only one found the back of the net. The breakthrough came in the 8th minute of extra time when Quievon Correia served a cross into the penalty area and found Samuel Appiah for the game-winning goal.

Boston Olympiakos are looking to return to the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup for the first time since 2008. Last year, they won the Massachusetts Open Cup championship, but lost to Danbury United (Connecticut) 2-1 in the opening round of the Region I tournament. The year before, they lost to Emigrantes Das Ilhas in the Massachusetts Open Cup final. In 2008, they qualified for the Open Cup but lost to the Western Pass Pioneers (USL-2 , Third Division professional) 2-0 in the First Round.

Olympiakos will face off with the Battery Park Gunners in the semifinals, a team that cruised through their opening round match with Strela Negra, 7-0. The two will play at Madison Park High School in Roxbury, Mass. at 1:30 p.m. on Dec. 11 with a spot in the state championship game on the line.

The other semifinal will take place at the same field and on the same day at 11:30 a.m. It will feature Mass United FC, the beneficiaries of a first round forfeit by CF Canon Sportif, and Mass Premier Soccer.

Mass Premier Soccer: 2011 Massachusetts Open Cup champions — Mass Premier Soccer won last year's Massachusetts Open Cup championship

Mass Premier Soccer reached the final four in thrilling fashion, defeating East Providence Sports in the eighth round of penalty kicks, 7-6, after finishing extra time tied at 4-4. The contest was a rematch of last year’s Region I opening round contest in which MPS advanced, 4-1, to the semifinals. East Providence advanced to the regionals a year ago as the lone entry from Rhode Island, but were placed into the Massachusetts qualifying tournament this year due to the club’s participation in a league based in the neighboring state.

Most of the action took place in back-and-forth seven-goal second half after the first 45 minutes finished with MPS clinging to a 1-0 lead. Matt Hoff scored the lone first half goal on a bending ball from the left wing.

That lead didn’t last long as East Providence countered a couple of minutes into the second half by sending a ball across the box to the onrushing Anthony Petrarca. The former Cape Cod Crusader (PDL) and Western Mass Pioneers (USL-2) midfielder tracked it down and volleyed it into the back of the net with an acrobatic scissor kick. Shortly after, Hoff gave MPS the lead once again when his low cross was redirected by a defender and ended up beating his goalkeeper for an own goal. About 10 minutes later, East Providence leveled the match when MPS defender Derek Nobrega took down Kyle Teixeira in the penalty area and the spot kick was awarded. Teixeira, another former USL-2 Pioneer, converted the penalty kick to make it 2-2.

For the remaining 30 minutes of the match, East Providence pushed several players into the attack, trying to go for the win, but the MPS defense held strong and the game went into overtime. Key in the effort was goalkeeper Nick Armington, who made a fantastic diving save in the final minutes of regulation.

As if the opening 90 did not have enough drama, the visitors from Rhode Island amped up tension with a strike two minutes into extra time. Teixeira schooled the MPS defenders, popping the ball over the midfield before touching it around the centerback and firing a volley past Armington.

Approximately eight minutes later Nick Christman put the match on level terms again when he drew a penalty created by an excellent individual effort when he snared the ball while speeding by a defender attempting to shield the ball out of play. Christman would have to wait for the celebration as the East Providence goalkeeper made a dramatic save, but followed up the attempt and put in the rebound. Three minutes later, Yoshio Kaneko picked up the ball at the top of the box and sent a floating cross to the back post where Nick Figueredo buried a volley for a 4-3 MPS advantage two minutes before the two clubs switched sides for the final 15.

With both sides exhausted, MPS was looking to keep East Providence from creating more fireworks. But the December evening continued to resemble the Fourth of July. With five minutes remaining, hearts skipped a beat on the MPS bench when a shot rang off Armington’s post. Two minutes later, however, another mistake proved costly as Teixeira got another crack from the spot when Pumelele Magubela took down an East Providence striker dribbling through the box. Teixeira completed his hat-trick by slamming the ball into the roof of the net, sending the contest onto penalties.

Neither goalkeeper had much luck in the early stages of the tiebreaker, though Nobrega’s attempt went in off the underside of the crossbar in the fourth round and Cross’ shot trickled in over the netminder’s hand in the fifth. Still tied, Magubela was first up for MPS in sudden death, but his chance at redemption went horribly wrong when he attempted an unusual stutter-step attempt and missed the goal three yards wide. East Providence, however, failed to take advantage as the next shooter missed high.

With both converting in the seventh round and Bedig tallying for MPS in the eighth, Armington made the final statement of the night with his head, literally, as his save sent the ball ricocheting off his head and away from the goal.