USASA

2016 Meet the Underdogs: CD Motagua brings New Orleans flavor back to US Open Cup

May 10, 2016 by Harrison Huntley

Over the last few years, CD Motagua of New Orleans has established themselves as one of the top soccer clubs in the state of Louisiana. Yet, an amateur team from Louisiana has never qualified for Lamar Hunt US Open Cup in the Modern Era (1995-present).

Team representative Jonathan Rednour said that the team has had qualifying for the US Open Cup as their goal for the last few years.

“For the last five years, one of the main goals for our manager, and the boys, is to be more than just a local team. They want to push themselves,” said Rednour.

And push themselves they did. CD Motagua has won the International Soccer League Association of New Orleans (ISLANO) the last three years and the Louisiana Premier League the last two years. Unfortunately for the team, they’ve had a tough time trying to qualify for the Cup.

CD Motagua reached the USASA Region III tournament three times, which was one of the few paths open division teams had to qualify for the Open Cup prior to this year. Motagua fell short of the final twice, and in 2015, when they finally did win the regional tournament, the format had changed and last lost in the USASA national tournament. Finally, when the US Soccer Federation introduced its new open division qualifying tournament this year, they signed up and punched their ticket to the 103-year-old tournament.

“It’s been a journey for us, but one of our main goals is to get our guys out there and play on a national scale and put New Orleans and Louisiana on the map,” said Rednour. “We want to let people know that we got some great players down here.”

The club is the first amateur team from Louisiana to qualify in the Modern Era, but the New Orleans Riverboat Gamblers of the A-League (Division 2) made a brief two-game appearance in 1997. That team was led by a young Trinidad & Tobago striker named Stern John.

For those unfamiliar with New Orleans, the area is home to a large Honduran population. Since its founding in 1984, the squad has featured several Hondurans from the area. The Honduran players continue to fill much of the roster, and with the Honduran influence, CD Motagua has hosted friendlies with several professional teams from the country.

At CD Motagua’s founding, it was owned by a group of brothers: the Serrano brothers, the Martinez brothers and the Diaz brothers. Today, the Martinez brothers mostly run the show, but Dr. John Hamide purchased part of the team in 2010. Since then, Rednour says the team has been able to do much more.

“When Dr. John Hamide came aboard, he was able to help fund the team, and push us to the next level where we could start traveling and be a part of .”

CD Motagua has seen several of its players go on to play for professional and international teams. Anthony Peters is the most recent one, who is now with Tulsa Roughnecks. Carlos Palacios is just one of a handful of the club’s former players that have gone on to play for the Honduran National team.

The club’s current roster is largely composed of former college or former professional players. Rednour said that when the Baton Rouge Capitals folded, many of the players began playing with Motagua. Add in some former players from New Orleans’ NPSL team, the Jesters, and the roster becomes quite competitive.

Speaking of the Baton Rouge Capitals, one of their old counterparts in the PDL will face CD Motagua in their opening match. Mississippi Brilla will be Motagua’s first opponent with the winner advancing to face OKC Energy FC.

2016 Meet the Underdogs: West Chester United finally ready for US Open Cup debut

May 10, 2016 by Michael Berton

West Chester United prepares to face Junior Lone Star in 2016 US Open Cup qualifying.

A berth in the US Open Cup has been a long time coming for West Chester United.

A combination of losses and rule changes kept the amateur side from the Philadelphia area out of the Open Cup for four straight years—but all of that changed in 2016. For the first time in club history, West Chester United will play a Lamar Hunt US Open Cup match when the club takes the field against Fredericksburg FC on Wednesday.

Initially founded in 2008 as an over-30 team, West Chester quickly rose to prominence in the United Soccer League of Pennsylvania–a league that features Open Cup winning teams like United German Hungarians and Ukrainian Nationals, among other storied teams such as Vereinigung Erzgebirge and Phoenix SC. A majors team was soon created, and now West Chester has an expansive youth program and an under-23 side that is aiming to play in the NPSL next season.

West Chester founder Vince D’Ambrosio had big plans for his club. “The idea was always to enter cups and win as many trophies as possible. That give us a lot of soccer to play, and the trophies attract many high-quality players.”

In such a historic and soccer-rich region of the country, a more cautious person may have had lesser expectations. Instead, coach Blaise Santangelo and his team defied caution and began to win trophies, specifically in USASA Open Cup competition.

United won its first Eastern Pennsylvania Open Cup championship in 2011. The club followed this up with another victory in 2012. A historic three-peat was achieved in 2013, and a fourth title was earned in 2014.

West Chester United and Salone FC battle for the ball in 2016 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup qualifying. Photo: Kari Haffelfinger

The organization earned its trophies, but it struggled to take the next step forward–qualifying for the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. To do so, West Chester would have to win its region.

Fresh off its first Eastern PA Open Cup championship, United experienced USASA Region I play for the first time. That experience would prove short-lived, as United fell 3-1 to the Maryland Bays in the first round. In its second attempt a year later, West Chester hosted but lost to New Jersey side Icon FC.

After failing to qualify for the 2012 and 2013 editions of the Open Cup, a rule change for 2014 kept United out of the competition due to USASA changing its qualifying format. Another loss in its next qualifying attempt, again to the Maryland Bays, kept West Chester out of the 2015 tournament.

Things finally changed for West Chester in its next go-around. After winning its fourth-straight Eastern PA title, United got past FC Motown and Newtown Pride to win its first Region I championship. The club even went on to win the USASA National Championship. This time it was US Soccer’s turn to deny West Chester, as another rule change yet again modified the qualifying format.

“We lost four straight years, and then in the fifth year we finally won a regional game. We had our sights set on the Open Cup. We found out we weren’t getting an automatic bid prior to the USASA Open Cup finals. The guys were bummed,” Santangelo said.

The team pressed on, however. Under the new qualifying format, West Chester would have to win three games to get in. After beating two Philadelphia teams, United was prepared to play Southie FC out of Massachusetts. Another update came down from US Soccer, but this time it was to say that United had qualified for the 2016 US Open Cup.

West Chester United's Jason Ayoama celebrates a goal. Photo: Kari Haffelfinger — West Chester United’s Jason Ayoama celebrates a goal. Photo: Kari Haffelfinger

“The guys were really stoked,” said Santangelo. “They were ready to go and confident to play Southie FC. But we were happy to hear the news. Our guys felt vindicated–we felt that we should have been in the tournament anyway.”

West Chester features players that are full-time college coaches. Some run youth programs. Others have jobs in marketing, sales and accounting. Some are even in medical school. Regardless of their situations, every United player is ready for this new opportunity. Whether it means taking off work or missing class, all of United’s players will be on the bus to Virginia on Wednesday.

“It’s a really big honor to be a part of this tournament,” Santangelo said. “All of our players made commitments to step away from their everyday lives.”

The opponent is Fredericksburg FC, a team in the National Premier Soccer League. Unlike West Chester, Fredericksburg’s roster features mostly college players. Santangelo knows that the team they will face will be young and good, but he is hoping that his squad’s experience together will be a factor that leads to victory.

In addition to just wanting to win the game in front of them, a massive opportunity looms if West Chester can advance to the second round. If they win, United will get to host the pro side from the USL, and Open Cup giant killers, Harrisburg City Islanders.

Santangelo said, “That would be the highest honor we could achieve as an amateur club. To host and to have Harrisburg come to our venue would be monumental. It is all very exciting, but we have to take care of business first.”

It may have taken five years and multiple heartbreaks before finally making the US Open Cup, but winning a game and hosting a pro team would more than make up for it.

2016 Meet the Underdogs: North Texas Rayados returns for record fifth straight US Open Cup run

May 5, 2016 by Adam Uthe

North Texas Rayados pose for a picture before a recent exhibition game against the Tulsa Athletics. Photo: NTX Rayados

When you think of some of the more memorable amateur qualifiers from recent US Open Cups, you probably think of teams from California like PSA Elite or Cal FC; the latter did pull off the most memorable run in recent years back in 2012 with an upset of the Portland Timbers. You might also be familiar with Harpo’s FC, the somewhat notorious pub side from Boulder, Colorado. If you’re on the East Coast, maybe you prefer New York Pancyprian Freedoms and their historic title winning sides of the 1980s.

No matter what your level of familiarity with the Open Cup is, you might end up overlooking the youth soccer hotbed of North Texas.

Case in point: North Texas (NTX) Rayados.

NTX Rayados probably aren’t even the most well-known amateur team in their home city of Dallas. Open Cup fans might remember Dallas Roma FC’s then-historic run of three wins back in 2006 when they took down MLS side Chivas USA on penalty kicks and then ultimately lost to LA’s other MLS club, the Galaxy, in the fourth round.

That run in 2006 inspired former Richland College teammates Tito Salas and Raul Herrera to form a new team in the summer of 2011 comprised of friends and other Richland College players in the area who wanted to compete at a high level. Richland College was a National Junior College Athletic Association Division III power back in the mid-2000’s and former players like Salas and Herrera were anxious to continue challenging themselves. They won the North Texas Premier Soccer Association 1A title in their first season and have qualified for the Open Cup every year since, setting a new Modern Era (1995-present) record for consecutive appearances by an open division amateur side.

“We try to stay simple and keep the same base of boys playing to compete,” said Salas, who is the team’s general manager and player/coach. “As we know that we are only getting older, we try to keep the youth involved with us. I think that people around the community see us involved in many different activities as well. A few of us are public school teachers, others are actively coaching within the metroplex, not to mention the NTX Rayados Youth academy one of our players just started.”

Antonio Rodriguez, who is not on the Rayados roster this year, launched the academy with seven teams from as young as four years old up to the Under-16 level.

“The boys are very humble, very simple guys that never give you an impression that we are better than any other amateur team around here,” said Salas. “Several teams around Dallas now claim to be semi-pro, yet never get to compete at the level that we have.”

According to Salas, the team is also proud of the fact that so many of the players on the team have used their soccer talents to earn college degrees. This foundation of their friendships and their love for the game has been what has kept the club going over the years.

While Salas is listed as the team’s general manager and head coach, the team receives a lot of support both on and off the field from assistant coach Humberto Rodriguez. Sales describes Rodriguez as “another hard working, humble man that simply enjoys watching us play. He has been there since day one, and we really appreciate his support. Would not be able to do it without him.” (He’s the white-haired man in the team photo at the top of the page).

The team actually did not participate in the highly-competitive North Texas Premier Soccer Association this past season. Salas says numerous injuries combined with a lack of player availability. They have scheduled a number of exhibition games to stay fresh. They played against teams like Dallas City FC, FC Dallas Academy teams, the NPSL’s Tulsa Athletics, Texas Spurs and will be playing against local rivals Legends FC and Liverpool Warriors before the match on the 11th.

They have also entered multiple tournaments like the Metro PCS Cup. They won the tournament which gave them a cash prize that will help them pay for their US Open Cup run. They will also be taking part in the Copa Alianza, another Dallas-based tournament that they have won three of the last four years.

North Texas Rayados 2016 US Open Cup qualifying — North Texas Rayados prepare for their 2016 US Open Cup qualifying match vs. Austin Real Cuauhtemoc. Photo: NTX Rayados

Much like Dallas Roma FC, NTX Rayados drew the inspiration for their name from a professional club; in this case Mexican giants C.F. Monterrey. The team simply went by “Rayados” in their first season but then quickly decided to add “NTX” in order to broadcast their home base of Dallas. The team does feature a roster loaded with Mexican influence, but several players of English descent have graced their roster over the years. They want to honor their favorite Liga MX side, but they also want the best of the best regardless of heritage.

Key players on this team include goalkeeper Eduardo Cortes and striker Alberto Rodriguez. Both entered the 2016 MLS draft but unfortunately for them, and fortunately for the Rayados, they weren’t selected. Rodriguez scored three goals during the 2014 US Open Cup (tied for third-most in the tournament), including two scores and the game-winning kick in the penalty shootout against the Austin Aztex. Returning players include Jamie Lovegrove and Kevin Ellis and left back Fernando Garza, who also play with the Dallas Sidekicks indoor team.

Even with February’s announcement about MLS-owned USL teams no longer being eligible to compete opening up more amateur side spots, NTX Rayados still had an easier path to the first round than most. They defeated Austin Real Cuauhtemoc 4-2 on Nov. 1, 2015 after the initial match the week before was postponed due to heavy rain and flooding in the Texas capital. Joshean “Yoshi” Gonzalez scored twice to help seal the deal and that was the last time the team had an Open Cup match. Their second round of qualifying saw them advance after International Portland Select (IPS) had to forfeit because they couldn’t make the 2,000 mile trip to Dallas. IPS had reached Round 2 because their opening round opponent, KC Athletics, had to drop out because they couldn’t make the long trip to Oregon. Travel was an issue for a few open division amateur teams that entered the qualifying process this year.

Despite their sustained excellence in qualifying, NTX Rayados haven’t had much success in the tournament itself. They’ve only managed to advance past their first game once since their qualifying streak began back in 2012. In 2014 they took down Austin Aztex (PDL) in a thrilling 4-4 game that ended with Rayados advancing via the penalty shootout. The victory was sweet for the North Texas side given that Austin crushed them 3-0 in the previous year. Rayados went on to put up a spirited fight against the NASL’s San Antonio Scorpions but ended up losing 4-2. This year they find themselves paired with another team from San Antonio: Corinthians FC of San Antonio. The Red and Black Rayados will be hoping this is the year they can finally make a sustained run and announce themselves as a true Open Cup amateur power.

2016 Meet the Underdogs: UPSL champ San Nicolas survive brawl, ready to make US Open Cup debut

May 3, 2016 by Dennis Pope

San Nicolas FC of the United Premier Soccer League (UPSL) is a young club, and it’s already building a strong reputation.

The Pomona (Calif.)-based club has qualified for the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup for the first time this year and has gained standing as a hard-working group with big aspirations. They have been on a roll as of late, winning their final five league matches to finish fourth in the Southeast division standings and qualify for the playoffs. They kept that streak rolling and won the UPSL championship, defeating fellow 2016 Open Cup qualifier LA Wolves FC in the title game.

“We literally had to win every single game to clinch the last spot to get in (to the playoffs),” said San Nicolas general manager Daniel Collazo.

Their difficult road to the championship started with a win over old rival and fell 2016 US Open Cup qualifier La Maquina FC. After San Nicolas rallied from a 2-0 deficit to win their quarterfinal meeting, 3-2, a brawl broke out. According to Collazo, La Maquina’s goalkeeper was sent off but after the match was over, he confronted the San Nicolas player involved with the incident that got him sent off. The situation escalated quickly.

When the dust settled, San Nicolas advanced to the semifinals, later winning the championship game, but the incident was reviewed by the UPSL. After San Nicolas lifted the trophy, the review was completed and the league ruled that San Nicolas would be suspended for the first six games of next season, while La Maquina would be suspended for the entire campaign.

“It was very hard, to receive the six-game suspension,” said Collazo, who has an Open Cup resume that includes being the general manager of PSA Elite.

However, the suspension could be viewed as a blessing in disguise with a busy schedule ahead of them. The UPSL actually did two things: They suspended them six games and because the venue where the brawl took place — a common field for many teams in the division — banned both teams, the league moved San Nicolas to a new division, requiring additional travel. Starting off with six losses, and all the extra travel made it a lost season for the club, so they decided to field a B-team in the league and focus their efforts on the Open Cup, the Silver Mug International Tournament in Las Vegas (of which they have won three times) and friendlies.

The club has played friendlies against United Soccer League clubs LA Galaxy II and OC Blues this year, and recently defeated the UPSL Arizona’s Phoenix Monsoon, 3-0. They have another friendly scheduled with NPSL club Deportivo Coras USA next on Friday, May 6.

The team travels to Arizona to take on the Premier Development League’s (PDL) FC Tucson at Kino North Stadium in a Lamar Hunt US Open Cup first round game on Wednesday, May 11.

“All the players come from different backgrounds and they have a lot of different things to do, but they’ve kept a piece of their mind on this task,” said Collazo.

New head coach Jose Botello, who spent time in the 1990s with the Los Angeles Galaxy and is an accomplished youth coach in Southern California, has a talented roster to work with. The most notable name on the roster is former Cuban international and Major League Soccer veteran Maykel Galindo, but the Lions have a range of talented players.

Amilcar ‘Mike’ Lopez and Eduardo ‘Lito’ Barba were San Nicolas’ top scorers during qualification, and Collazo expects stalwart goalkeeper Cesar Castillo, a former standout at Sacramento State, to be in between the pipes.

“Our priority this season, what we wanted is to bring the reinforcements,” Collazo said. “There’s a lot of leagues in , and the core of the players are constantly playing together.”

The club only had to win one game to qualify for the Open Cup. Their opening match was forfeited when their opponent, Corinthians USA, failed to register enough players. However, the forfeit proved to be costly as the two teams decided to play the game anyway, even though Corinthians had forfeited. Unfortunately, Galindo, San Nicolas’ 34-year-old star veteran, suffered an injury and missed their second round game.

However, they would not need the former Chivas USA forward as they cruised to a 3-0 win over So Cal Premier League side Real Sociedad. With the final round of the qualifying tournament canceled, the win proved to be their ticket to the Open Cup.

For a club making its first appearance in the tournament proper, the opportunity is lost on Collazo.

“Every single player, myself, all the sacrifice for four to five years has been developed into this,” he said.

2015 US Open Cup: Michael Salazar of PSA Elite narrowly voted TheCup.us Lower Division Player of Tournament

October 21, 2015 by Dennis Pope

Michael Salazar of PSA Elite celebrates his goal against the LA Galaxy during the 2015 US Open Cup. Photo: PSA Elite

Michael Salazar practiced little but perfected a lot in earning TheCup.us Lower Division Player of the Tournament honors after helping lead the Irvine (Calif.) amateur club PSA Elite (USASA) to its second consecutive appearance in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup fourth round.

The award is voted on by the staff at TheCup.us and a select of panel of members from the North American Soccer Reporters.

Salazar had three goals in four games, and finished tied for the tournament lead with four assists despite spending little time with the team aside the 90 minutes in between the lines.

“I thought PSA gave me a great opportunity to showcase my talent, and Jon (Spencer), Alex (Lujan) and all the guys that have been a part of it, they believe in me,” said Salazar, who narrowly edged Chula Vista FC’s Alberto Diaz for the award by two first-place votes. Also receiving strong consideration was Leo Fernandes of the New York Cosmos (NASL) and Alex Martinez of the Charlotte Independence (USL).

Salazar, already a full national team player for Belize after appearing in four games at the 2013 Gold Cup, is currently playing his senior season at UC Riverside and intends to enter the Major League Soccer SuperDraft.

“He already had the experience of playing big matches in front of big crowds (but) we’ve been able to see him bloom into a top-level talent,” PSA Elite president Alex Lujan said. “I actually expected him to be our leading scorer but he also led us in assists, so to have a player who is so fast, strong, creative and quick was phenomenal to have.”

Michael Salazar of PSA Elite celebrates one of the team's seven goals in a 7-1 win over the Golden State Misioneros in the First Round of the 2015 US Open Cup. Photo: PSA Elite — Michael Salazar of PSA Elite celebrates one of the team’s seven goals in a 7-1 win over the Golden State Misioneros in the First Round of the 2015 US Open Cup. Photo: PSA Elite

The 5-foot-11, 165-pound forward/winger had a goal and two assists as PSA Elite defeated Golden State Misioneros (PDL), 7-1, the first round. He then added another goal and an assist in a 2-1 upset win over the USL’s Orange County Blues in Round 2. He assisted on the game-winner in a 2-1 win over Ventura County Fusion (PDL) in the third round, which earned the club a date with defending MLS champion LA Galaxy.

“Mike brings energy to the field. He’s fast, he’s quick, he’s aggressive (and) he has a really good soccer mentality,” said Jon Spencer, PSA Elite’s head coach and technical director. “He simply comes to play his best every game. He’s been very reliable in that regard.”

Salazar saved his best goal for last, scoring the opening goal against the Galaxy but PSA Elite went on to lose that game, 6-1.

Despite the loss, the performance earned him a trial with Galaxy.

“They wanted me to be successful and put me in the best position. I felt like in every game I contributed and I did the best I could,” Salazar said. “(The Galaxy game) was a huge moment for me. Growing up as a kid I always admired the Galaxy and to score against them was a dream for me, and I hope it’s the start of something special.”

Past TheCup.us Lower Division Player of the Tournament winners

2015: Michael Salazar, PSA Elite (USASA)
2014: Scott Goodwin, Carolina RailHawks (NASL)
2013: Ty Shipalane, Carolina RailHawks (NASL)
2012: Danny Barrera, Cal FC (USASA)

2015 US Open Cup Round 4: Robbie Keane’s hat trick helps LA Galaxy end PSA Elite’s Cinderella run, 6-1 (video)

June 17, 2015 by Sean Steffen

Robbie Keane became just the second LA Galaxy player to score a hat trick in the US Open Cup. Photo: LA Galaxy

UPDATE: The Round of 16 draw was conducted by the US Soccer Federation and it was determined that the San Jose Earthquakes will host the Los Angeles Galaxy in the next round.

Everyone enjoys a good Cinderella team, and no doubt part of the charm of the U.S. Open Cup is the alluring nature of the multiple David vs. Goliath matchups it has to offer. PSA Elite is an Orange County-based team who plays in an amateur league that falls under the 5th level of the USA soccer pyramid — the United Premier Soccer League.

The LA Galaxy have won three of the last four MLS Cups and are lead by the reigning league MVP, Robbie Keane, who also happens to have the most international goals of any active soccer players.

David vs. Goliath.

But the thing about David vs. Goliath matchups is, as fun as it is to see the underdogs pull out an unlikely victory, far more often you’ll see the Goliaths live up to their name and crush the Davids. This was the case when Bruce Arena, head coach of the Galaxy, shocked everyone by not only sending out his near A-team, but sending out what is arguably the most attack oriented lineup the Galaxy have fielded all season in a 6-1 Fourth Round victory.

From the very first minute the Galaxy had their foot on the gas pedal and attacked the armature side with near reckless abandon. PSA Elite made them pay early for their zeal by capitalizing on the space behind the Galaxy high line with a deft ball played in behind which PSA forward Michael Salazar put away nicely in the 12th minute, but the Galaxy would level the score just three minutes later off of a set piece. Sebastian Lletget’s shot off the corner hit the underside of the bar and the assistant referee determined the ball crossed the line, although replays have shown this call was somewhat dubious.

The Galaxy took the goal and ran with it and the game was over from that point on. Keane, Ignacio Maganto, Raul Mendiola and Lletget were all extremely active in the Galaxy attack, shifting around and creating chance after chance for one another, and when PSA managed to get the ball, they’d more often than not turned the ball over in their own third.

In the 19th minute Keane drifted to the outside of the box and served up a goal on a platter for Gyasi Zardes. Ten minutes later, Kenney Walker, spurred by a deft proactive run from Ingnacio Maganto, chipped a ball from the midfield into PSA box and in behind their backline. Maganto nodded it down perfectly to Keane who took the shot in stride.

The Galaxy would go on to steamroll the Cinderella squad with Keane scoring a hat trick. With those goals Keane becomes just the second Galaxy player to score a triple, joining Carlos Ruiz from the 2003 season.

Despite the result, it was a great run from PSA which was the last remaining amateur side in the tournament and it matched last year’s feat, reaching the Fourth Round.

FULL MATCH REPLAY: PSA ELITE AT LA GALAXY

2015 US Open Cup Round 3: Preki not happy despite Sacramento Republic’s 7-3 win over Chula Vista FC (video)

May 29, 2015 by Evan Ream

Only in Preki’s world can you score a club-record seven goals in a match and still be upset about the performance of your team.

But that was exactly the scene at Bonney Field as the Sacramento Republic FC coach bashed his team’s effort in a five-minute post game rant despite a 7-3 Third Round US Open Cup win over USASA side Chula Vista FC.

“Some moments it was good, some moments it was not good enough fore me. We scored seven goals, but to give up three goals, that’s incredibly disappointing for me,” he said. “Some of the guys aren’t working hard enough for the team and guess what’s going to happen? They’re not going to be here. I don’t really care who the names are, who they are, they don’t work hard for the team, they aren’t going to be here. Simple as that.

“The game should have been finished in the first half, four, five to zero, four, five to one, or whatever with the penalty. But I said, keep it going, things will open up, and they did. They did,” he added. “Now, this is the second time in Open Cup play this has happened to us. In the , same thing. We took a 4-1 lead and then we almost threw the game away because of silliness, because of us being casual, because now we think we’ve arrived. That’s not the way we want to do things here.”

Playing against the dangerous Chula Vista, who flattened fellow USL side Arizona United SC 3-0 in the Second Round, the Republic could not have gotten off to a better start, scoring via a rocket header from Octavio Guzman in just the 9th minute of the match off of a free kick from Max Alvarez.

Five minutes before halftime, the visitors leveled the score after a controversial foul in the box allowed Francisco Ramirez to coolly slot home a penalty.

Republic striker Adnan Gabeljic, who would end up with a hat trick, took just three minutes to respond, blasting home a 20-yard shot in the 43rd minute.

The crowd of 10,018 must have thought that it would be smooth sailing from there on out when Tommy Stewart scored his competition-leading fourth goal of the tournament seven minutes into the second half, and though Gabeljic and Zev Taublieb quickly tallied two more, the Republic were not out of the woods yet.

Just 35 seconds after taking a 5-1 lead, the Republic gave up a goal when Alberto Diaz found a streaking Joey Estrada, who chipped the ball home.

Diaz set up Mario Rubio’s 81st minute strike to pull within two goals, but the Republic pulled the lead back to four with Rodrigo Lopez’s first goal of the competition was followed by the completion of Gabeljic’s hat trick.

Chula Vista goalkeeper Sebastian Ortiz, who made several spectacular saves in the upset against Arizona, again had a good game, registering eight saves, including a save on a penalty against Lopez in the second half.

The Republic move on to play MLS affiliate San Jose Earthquakes in the Fourth Round at Avaya Stadium.

There are currently zero San Jose players on loan in Sacramento, and there haven’t been any all year.

Sacramento are now 4-0 all time in Open Cup play at home, with 19 goals scored and just six allowed.

Evan Ream covers Sacramento Republic FC for the Davis Enterprise. Reach him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @EvanReam

HIGHLIGHTS: Chula Vista at Sacremento Republic

FULL MATCH REPLAY: Chula Vista at Sacremento Republic

2015 US Open Cup Round 3: PSA Elite’s 2-1 win over Ventura County earn them $15,000, another shot at MLS

May 28, 2015 by Joe Curley

The $15,000 match was decided by dueling substitutes Wednesday night at the Ventura College Sportsplex.

Abdullah Adam scored three minutes into his Ventura County Fusion debut to equalize with 18 minutes to play.

But Justin Dhillon answered with an 80th-minute winner seconds after coming on as a substitute to lift the United States Adult Soccer Association club PSA Elite to a 2-1 win in the Third Round of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup.

The Irvine, Calif.-based club advances to a Fourth Round showcase against Major League Soccer champion Los Angeles Galaxy on June 17 at the Stubhub Center.

It also earned US Soccer’s prize money as the top amateur side in the competition.

“From back to front, they’re a quality team,” Ventura County captain Javan Torre said of PSA Elite. “They have plenty of (youth) national team experience, plenty of ex-professionals. They did well together and they hung onto that win.”

Three of the five amateur clubs left in the tournament entering Wednesday were based in Southern California. After the Jersey Express and Chattanooga FC were eliminated earlier in the day and Chula Vista FC fell behind early, US Soccer’s $15,000 may as well have been pushed into the center circle.

Both clubs were all in.

The field was littered with some of Southern California’s finest NCAA Division I talent. PSA Elite goalkeeper Wade Hamilton and Ventura County midfielder Matt LaGrassa, as well as Dhillon, play for Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, now for former US men’s national team coach Steve Sampson.

The matchup pitted collegiate teammates against each other. Ventura County’s Torre, Abu Danladi and Jordan Vale rode north to the match from UCLA with PSA Elite’s Chase Gasper and Nathan Smith.

“That just goes to show you the higher level it is,” Ventura County midfielder Matt LaGrassa said. “I think both teams did a good job limiting chances. We turn off for one second and they find the game winner on us.”

The Fusion enjoyed most of the possession, but PSA Elite carved out the better chances during a balanced first half. Will Lopez split the Fusion defense, but left his cleaver chip wide of the Fusion goal in the 12th minute. Seven minutes later, Michael Salazar nearly caught Ventura County’s Justin Vom Steeg off his line, but the future UC Santa Barbara goalkeeper made an excellent diving save.

Ventura County’s best save of the first half followed in the 29th minute. Set up by a pretty feed from UC Santa Barbara star Ismalia Jome, striker Javier Castro spun a 18-yard bid just wide.

Jinho Kim, Ventura County’s impressive South Korean import, then pulled a highlight-reel save out of PSA Elite goalkeeper Wade Hamilton from 30 yards.

The breakthrough came in the 39th minute, when PSA Elite midfielder Mats Bjurman converted from the penalty spot after Ventura County defender Michael Mercado handled in the penalty area.

Chasing the game at the break, the Fusion turned to Danladi, whose second half stoppage time goal had upset LA Galaxy II in the second round.

The 2014 Gatorade National Player of the Year nearly equalized inside four minutes, but his rebound chance from yet another Hamilton save came from too tight an angle and it fluttered agonizingly wide.

The Fusion finally drew level three minutes after Adam was introduced as a substitute in the 69th minute.

Kim’s free kick found the head of defender Sola Abolaji. After Hamilton dove to swat Abolaji’s header away from the goal line, Adam raced forward to slam the rebound into the net.

PSA Elite responded eight minutes later, off a seemingly harmless free kick on its own side of the field.

Dhillon came on the field and immediately converted the winner after Salazar took down a long ball forward that eluded the sleepy Fusion defense.

“I think we were trying to push for a win ourselves,” Torre said. “We left ourselves a little exposed.”

The Fusion had one real chance for another equalizer, but LaGrassa’s header crashed against the crossbar after Kim sliced open the PSA Elite defense with a through ball to Julian Zamora.

“Just one of those days,” LaGrassa said. “I hit the crossbar. We miss an open net. We had a penalty appeal (turned down) in the second half.

It’s frustrating, but they’re a good side.

“Credit to (PSA Elite). I think they’ll do well in the next round.”

2015 US Open Cup Round 2: Alberto Diaz of Chula Vista FC sparks big upset, earns TheCup.us Player of the Round

May 26, 2015 by Josh Hakala

Alberto Diaz scored two goals and assisted on another in Chula Vista FC's 3-0 upset win over Arizona United. Photo: Jose M. Romero — Alberto Diaz scored two goals and assisted on another in Chula Vista FC’s 3-0 upset win over Arizona United. Photo: Jose M. Romero

There were two players who scored hat tricks in the Second Round of the 2015 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup, but the majority of voters were more impressed by a youngster carrying his team to the biggest upset of the round. Alberto Diaz of Chula Vista FC of the United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA) scored a pair of goals and set up a third as the amateur club from Southern California traveled to Scottsdale, Ariz. and stunned the USL’s Arizona United, 3-0. For his efforts, Diaz has been voted as TheCup.us Player of the Round.

The award is voted on by TheCup.us staff and a select panel from the North American Soccer Reporters.

Diaz beat out Tommy Stewart of Sacramento Republic and Tomasz Zahorski of the Charlotte Independence, who both registered hat tricks in their respective games for the award. Michael Salazar, who was the key player in PSA Elite’s upset of the Orange County Blues (USL) also received strong consideration and finished tied for third with Zahorski in the final voting. This is only the eighth time that a player from a USASA team has won since the award began in 2006.

Entering the 102nd edition of the tournament, the USASA had only eliminated 12 professional teams in 81 games since 1996. This year, we had two in the same round as PSA Elite knocked off the the Orange County Blues (USL) and Chula Vista shut out Arizona United.

MORE: Meet the Underdogs: First-timers Chula Vista FC enter US Open Cup to build ‘a club for life’

What’s even more rare is a USASA team earning a clean sheet, and even more rare than that is a road shutout, something that has only happened one other time (Cal FC defeated Wilmington Hammerheads 4-0 in 2012). Diaz, the younger brother of Chula Vista head coach Hector Diaz, was the catalyst for the victory.

Chula Vista FC celebrates in the locker room after their 3-0 upset of Arizona United in the Second Round of the US Open Cup. Photo: Chula Vista FC

“It was awesome,” reflected Diaz. “Every single player on our team had a great game. We started a bit shaky for about the first 30 minutes, but we shook off the rust and got going.”

The San Diego-born midfielder who has played for the US Under-15 national team, opened the scoring in the 37th minute when he dribbled past Arizona defender Daniel Antunez and into the clear, remaining onside as he got the ball around goalkeeper Carl Woszcynski and found the open net.

In the 48th minute, Diaz took a free kick that found the head of Angel Pinal to make it a 2-0 game. He put the game away in the 72nd minute by taking a a couple touches before unleashing a shot that beat Wosczynski with ease. The Arizona goalkeeper appeared to not see the shot, as he didn’t move.

“Of course we thought we could win, but we were a bit nervous going into this game because we had a pretty bad first game and our physical condition wasn’t the best,” said Diaz. “But we had another week of training and preparation leading up to Arizona United so we were optimistic. The 3-0 (scoreline) did surprise me because we struggled mightily the week before and it was hotter in Phoenix.”

With the win, Chula Vista earns another challenging road game against a professional team, the Sacramento Republic.

“I know we have enough talent to knock off another pro team,” said Diaz. “We are focused on Sacramento Republic and I’m sure they will be more than ready, especially with the amazing crowds they pull.”

It’s more than a 500-mile trip from Chula Vista to the state’s capital city and the team launched a GoFundMe campaign to help cover the cost of the trip. Much to Alberto’s surprise, there has been a strong response so far with more than $2,000 raised as of Tuesday. May 26.

“(The campaign) only adds fuel to our fire,” said Diaz. “Knowing all these people are rooting for us. We are more than grateful for all the support that has been shown our way and we will repay those by playing our heart out this Wednesday.”

2015 US Open Cup Round 2: PSA Elite upset USL side for 2nd straight year, beating Orange County Blues

May 23, 2015 by Dennis Pope

Michael Salazar scored and had an assist, and Orange County-based amateur club PSA Elite of USASA withstood a late barrage to hang on for a 2-1 victory over the USL’s Orange County Blues FC at University High School.

It’s the second consecutive multi-point performance for Salazar, who had one goal and two assists in PSA Elite’s 7-1 First Round victory.

“We got the goals like we should have,” PSA Elite coach John Spencer said. “Two goals in the Open Cup when you’re playing a pro team isn’t easy.”

PSA Elite secured its second consecutive trip the US Open Cup Third Round with the victory.
“I don’t think we’re going to be a secret to anybody now,” Spencer said.

O.C. Blues had the best early chances but could not find a finishing touch. Amani Walker twice had shot attempts in the first five minutes, and Christofer Ramirez sent a 25-yard free kick just over the bar seven minutes later.

PSA Elite went on the counterattack in the 19th minute. Michael Sperber collected the ball near midfield and sprayed it to Will Lopez making a right-sided run. Lopez crossed the ball back across the face of the goal to Salazar, whose header hit the inside of the near post on its way in.

PSA Elite went into halftime with a 1-0 lead, and after again absorbing pressure early in the second half, went up 2-0 on Mats Bjurman’s second goal of the tournament.

“ slipped it past the defender and I was clear through,” said Bjurman, who plays collegiate soccer at UC Irvine. “This is the level we know we can play at.”

PSA Elite made some changes to its defense before the game, with Jamal Wallace and Mitchell Bell starting at right and left back, respectively, in place of injured wings Robert Amick and Chance Gasper. Wallace forced the team to play down a man after he was sent off in the 82nd minute for a poorly-timed tackle.

“The red card is unfortunately but if you had told us we’d be up 2-0 I think anybody in the world would tell us we’re in great position,” Spencer said.

O.C. Blues forward Tyler Feeley was brought on late in the game and produced a 90th-minute goal off a long throw from Jimmy Turner to make it 2-1, but PSA Elite goalkeeper Wade Hamilton kept his team out of any other danger.

“That was a of a throw,” Hamilton said. “He threw it from the far side all the way to the other side of the . We weren’t expecting that.”

Four minutes of additional time expired without another shot on goal.

O.C. Blues head coach Oliver Wyss declined to comment after the game.

“They’re pros they should beat us every week,” Spencer said. “For tonight, we’re the best team in Irvine. That’s good. We can be proud of that.”