Complete U.S. Open Cup Coverage

US Open Cup

2007 First Round: Sounders, Le Toux overpower USASA’s Banat Arsenal

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Sebastien Le Toux paced the Seattle Sounders to a 4-1 victory over the USASA’s Banat Arsenal. Nathan Knox opened the scoring for Seattle with a goal nine minutes in, after a pass from Leighton O’Brien. Knox looked like he scored in the opening minute, but the goal was disallowed due to a foul on Seattle. Banat came right back and tied the game at one in the 18th minute. Maurice Hughes scored from a cross by Ty Hibbert to give the Phoenix amateurs hope early on.

After the goal, it was all Sounders, as Banat were not allowed a shot the rest of the half. Sebastien Le Toux then struck twice in four minutes. In the 32nd minute, Le Toux took a diagonal pass from Roger Levesque at the right end of the goal arc, and beat Banat goalkeeper Chris Rehfuss for a 2-1 lead. Four minutes later, when Greg Howes sent a short cross to Le Toux from inside the penalty area, who buried it for a 3-1 Sounders lead. Howes himself finished the scoring in the match just before half time, taking a cross from Knox to put the game out of reach.

Seattle move on to face Northwest rivals Portland on June 26 at the Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila, Wash.

Scoring Summary

Seattle:
(SEA) Nathan Knox (Leighton O’Brien) 9’
(BAN) Maurice Hughes (Ty Hibbert) 18’
(SEA) Sebastien Le Toux (Roger Levesque) 32
(SEA) Sebastien Le Toux (Gregory Howes) 36’
(SEA) Gregory Howes (Nathan Knox) 44’

Seattle Sounders: Chris Eylander; Danny Jackson, Jake Besagno, Zach Scott (Santa Maria Rivera 71’); Kevin Sakuda, Leighton O’Brien (Kenji Treschuk 35’), Greg Howes, Roger Levesque (Andre Schmid 56’), Josh Gardner; Sebastien Le Toux (Craig Tomlinson 45’), Nathan Knox.

Banat Arsenal: Chris Rehfuss; Cory Norris (Brad Moore 75’), Frank Clay, Nick Tiggs, Elliot Weber; Ryan Lockhart (Imad Id-Deen 53’), Jaimie Miranda (Alan Watson 45’), Maurice Hughes, David Hopkinson (Brett Parry 45’); Esteban Bayona, Ty Hibbert.

Shots: SEA 21, BAN 6
Saves: SEA 3, BAN 5
Corners: SEA 6, BAN 0
Fouls:  SEA 23, BAN 21
Offsides: SEA 5, BAN 1
Cautions: (BAN) Lockhart 19’, (SEA) Scott 34’, (BAN) Id-Deen 88’

2007 First Round: Vercollone, Battery too much for Central Florida Kraze

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The Charleston Battery, with the aid of two goals from Luke Vercollone, made easy work of the Central Florida Kraze, defeating the PDL side 3-0 at Blackbaud Stadium.

The Battery jumped on the board early, when Stephen Armstrong got a long range shot past Kraze goalkeeper Alessandro Barcherrini in the sixth minute of play. As Barcherrini bent over to pick up the ball, it took a slight deflection, allowing it to slip through his hand and across the goal line.

Charleston continued to put pressure on the Kraze defense, and after several near misses, Vercollone slotted home a Mike Richardson cross in the 12th minute to put Charleston up 2-0. Central Florida would not give up easy, as Keith Savage tested Charleston goalkeeper Keith Wiggans twice, once with a hard shot from thirty yards out, and again by forcing Wiggans to dive to push the ball over the touch line for a corner kick. In the 42nd minute, Vercollone struck again, finding himself unmarked on the left side of the penalty area after receiving a cross from Gordon Chin, which he chested down and slotted into the net. Vercollone nearly completed the hat trick early in the second half, but Barcherrini made a spectacular save to deny him.

The Kraze were reduced to 10 men in the 76th minute, when substitute Daniel Fadida was shown a straight red card for a two-footed foul on Ian Bennett. The Battery then played gracious hosts and put the game on cruise control, even playing out the clock when the Kraze were reduced to nine men in the 89th minute, when a Kraze player was injured after the team used their four substitutes.

Charleston will host the PDL’s El Paso Patriots in the Second Round on June 26.

Scoring
(CHR) Stephen Armstrong 5’
(CHR) Luke Vercollone 12’
(CHR) Luke Vercollone 42’

2007 First Round: City Stars remain unbeaten, hammer Kansas City Brass 4-0

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The Cleveland City Stars continued their dream start to the 2007 season, remaining unbeaten on the year with a 4-0 victory over the PDL’s Kansas City Brass.

Cleveland struck first in the 19th minute off the foot of Ian Leibbrandt, with help from a John DeVae cross. The Stars nearly scored on three occasions following the goal, and finally put one in the back of the net just before halftime. Gerardo Alvarez sent a cross to Adam Moffat, who beat the Brass goalkeeper to give Cleveland a 2-0 lead going into the break.

Kansas City did have their chances, however. Keith Gorczyca had a couple of near misses, and Jordan Raybould forced City ’keeper Caleb Patterson to make a fingertip save in the 58th minute.

Cleveland got their third goal from the penalty spot, when Nigel Codrington’s shot found the hand of a Brass defender. Codrington stepped to the spot himself and scored to make the game 3-0. The Stars completed the scoring nine minutes from full time, as Liebbrant notched his second of the game.

With the win, Cleveland will travel to Richmond on June 26 for the Second Round, in a battle of the only undefeated team in the USL Second Division.

Scoring
(CLE) Ian Leibbrandt (John DeVae) 19’
(CLE) Adam Moffat (Gerardo Alvarez) 34’
(CLE) Nigel Codrington (PK) 63’
(CLE) Ian Leibbrandt (Luke Williams) 81’

Cleveland City Stars: Caleb Patterson, Jack Cummings, Jeremy Tolleson, Ian Leibbrandt, Adam Moffat (Luke Williams), Derek Potteiger, Nigel Codrington (Andrew Peterson), John DeVae (Dana McGregor), Mark Schulte, Anthony Stovall, Gerardo Alvarez (Chris Lemons)

Kansas City Brass: Kyle Schroeder, Calvin Clark, Josh Howard, Josh White, Kevin Shrout, Ali Dorri, Thomas Michael, Keith Gorczyca, Kevin Nekuda, Haggai Leboo, J.D. Warman

2007 First Round: City Islanders shoot down Aegean Hawks in Cup debut

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The Harrisburg City Islanders opened up their first-ever US Open Cup campaign with a convincing 4-0 win over Washington DC-based USASA club Aegean Hawks. After half-hour, play was stopped due to lightning in the area, and a delay of almost 90 minutes followed. When the game was allowed to continue just before 9:30 p.m., both teams played the remaining fifteen minutes and finished the first half scoreless.

Early in the second half, Aegean goalkeeper Anthony Perers stopped a 20-yard drive from Chad Severs, but failed to keep the Adam Clay header out of the net in the 56th minute, giving the hosts a 1-0 lead. The City Islanders tripled their lead by the 69th minute, on goals from Mo Odour and David Schoefield. The Hawks nearly pulled one back in the 82nd minute, when Watson Vaughan-Prather pounded a shot from the top of the penalty area, but was denied by goalkeeper Dave Kern. Harrisburg finished the game with a counter attack goal, scored by Steve Fisher from David Schofield’s centering pass.

With the win, Harrisburg will travel to face the PDL’s Ocean City Barons in the Second Round on June 26.

Scoring
(HCI) Adam Clay (David Schofield) 56’
(HCI) Mo Oduor (Ryan Pierce) 68’
(HCI) David Schofield Chad (Chad Severs) 69’
(HCI) Steve Fisher (David Schofield) 87’

Lineups

Aegean Hawks – Anthony Peters, Eddie Thurston, Ricardo Valverde, Nick McMorris, Trevor Martin, Michael Goldman, Justin Bodiya (Alex Nydal 70), Alan Golden (Robby Wright 69), Watson Vaughan-Prather, Rich Ryan (Andreas Nydal 67), Carlos Garcia (Geoff Thompson 69)

Harrisburg City Islanders – Dave Kern, Ryan Pierce, Dustin Bixler, Tim Velten (Mike Lookingland 67), Anthony Calvano, Chris Morman (Nate Baker 63), Mo Oduor, Adam Clay, David Schofield, Brian Ombiji (Matt Tanzini 60), Chad Severs (Steve Fisher 70)

Shots: AEG 3, HAR 17
Corners: AEG 7, HAR 7
Fouls: AEG 13, HAR 15
Cautions: AEG Bodiya 19’, HAR Morman 28’, HAR Velten 64’, HAR Pierce 67’
Goalkeepers: AEG Anthony Peters L, 0-1-0 (6 saves), HAR Dave Kern W, 1-0-0 (1 save)
Attendance: 874

2007 First Round: Thunder gets past NPSL’s El Paso Indios USA 3-2

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The Minnesota Thunder survived a tough encounter with the NPSL’s El Paso Indios USA,  managing a 3-2 win over the USASA side to advance to the Second Round.

El Paso got on the board almost immediately after the opening whistle, when Marco Vidal was left undefended inside the 18-yard box, and beat Thunder goalkeeper Nic Platter in the 5th minute. Indios kept the pros off the board for most of the first half, until Minnesota scored twice in four minutes. In the 37th minute, Jeremiah Bass scored from a Godfrey Tenoff cross, diving to head the ball past Indios goalkeeper Hernandez. The Thunder struck again in the 40th minute, Tenoff once again with the assist, this time to help Darren Spicer send a low ball past Hernandez.

Minnesota widened it’s lead twenty minutes into the second half. Leo Gibson took Kevin Friedland’s throw-in and chipped it over a surprised Hernandez. Indios would not quit, pulling a goal back in the 77th minute. Urbica Uglijesa chipped a ball towards Joel Rios, but found the feet of Minnesota’s Spicer. Spicer then indirectly hit the ball towards Rios, who beat Platter to move to within one.

The Thunder will host the California Victory in the Second Round on June 26. It will be the second game in three days between the two clubs, the other being a USL-1 contest on June 24.

Scoring Summary:
(EPI) Marco Vidal 5’ (Olivares)
(MIN) Jeremiah Bass 37’ (Godfrey Tenoff)
(MIN) Darren Spicer 40’ (Godfrey Tenoff)
(MIN) Leo Gibson 66’ (Kevin Friedland)
(EPI) Joel Rios 77’ (Uglijesa)

Minnesota Thunder: Platter; Friedland, Tenoff, Greenfield, Taylor; Spicer (Mallace 79), Toure (Farber 86), Bass, Lencho (Alvino 23); Gibson, Paye (Gotsmanov 73)

El Paso Indios USA: Hernandez; Rios, Tena, Olivares, Becerra; Uglijesa, Vidal, Carrazco (Silva 71), Salas (Salas, Sergio 56); Brooks, Leal (Desantiano 62).

Game Statistics:
Minnesota: Shots 15, Fouls 11, Offside 2, Corners 6.
El Paso: Shots 6, Fouls 10, Offside 4, Corners 3.

Goalkeeper Statistics:
Platter (Minnesota): Shots faced 6, Saves 4, Goals allowed 2.
Hernandez (El Paso) Shots faced 15, Saves 12, Goals allowed 3.

Cautions
Minnesota: Bass 43’, Friedland 45’, Spicer 65’
El Paso Indios: Becerra 25’, Juarez 89 ’

Attendance: 1,132

2007 US Open Cup Round 1: Barons defense fuels upset of 10-man Crystal Palace Baltimore

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Carey Stadium, “The Beach House” in Ocean City, NJ. Home of the Ocean City Barons. File Photo: Ocean City Barons

The Ocean City Barons advanced to the Second Round of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup with a 1-0 upset of the USL Second Division’s Crystal Palace Baltimore. Byron Carmichael scored the lone goal just before halftime on an assist by Sean Boyle while Adam Edwards made eight saves for his fifth straight shutout in all competitions.

The Barons will host a Second Round match against the Harrisburg City Islanders from the USL Second Division on June 26 at 7:30 p.m. The winner of that match will play a team from Major League Soccer in Round 3.

Very little separated the two sides in the opening twenty minutes of a match that would get more physical as the night went on. In the 12th minute, Adam Sternberger missed a golden chance on a cross that landed at his feet, but he wasn’t able to get any power behind the shot and it was saved by Palace goalkeeper Brian Rowland.

The match completely changed in the 22nd minute when Harold Urquijo, Baltimore’s Colombian youth international, was shown a straight red card after delivering an elbow to the head of Barons defender Adam Ennis. Down a man, Crystal Palace continued to put pressure on the Barons’ defense, which has only allowed one goal in their first six league matches.

It looked as though Palace were going to get through the first half unscathed until Boyle delivered a pass to Carmichael at the top of the 18-yard box. The veteran striker turned quickly and toe-poked the ball past a diving Rowland to give the Barons a 1-0 lead in the 45th minute.

Crystal Palace continued to press, and rarely looked like a team playing with 10 men. Their best chance came in the 73rd minute when second-half sub Larry Mark streaked down the right wing and found space to cross the ball. The cross found the feet of Sergio Flores at the 6-yard box at the center of the goal, but he mishit the ball and sent it wide.

Another substitute provided a spark for Baltimore as Andrew Herman battled in the penalty area with Ryan Heins, and eventually broke free and raced up the touchline. He made a move back to his left foot to avoid another defender and fired a shot at point blank range, but it found only the side netting.

The physical play in the second half reached a boiling point in stoppage time when Flores attacked Ocean City’s Neil Holloway and was sent off.

Holloway, the team’s general manager who laces up his boots on occasion, played the last 15 minutes and helped preserve the win.

“It was a very professional performance by the Barons tonight,” Holloway said. “The Open Cup is a very special competition for us, and we’re hoping that the magic of the Cup is on our side this year. Now we’re just 90 minutes away from playing an MLS team.”

Seven yellow cards were shown to Ocean City players, compared to a pair of red cards and two yellow cards for the visitors.

2007 US Open Cup Round 1: Victory secured … barely

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PROVO, UT – The California Victory used goals midway through each half by midfielder Raul Palomares and forward Yuri Morales to see the USL First Division squad through to a 2-1 win over the BYU Cougars in a Lamar Hunt US Open Cup First Round affair contested at South Field on the BYU campus in Provo, Utah. BYU midfielder Daniel McKinley gave the PDL squad a glimmer of hope with a long-range header in the 89th minute, but time ran out for the home-standing Cougars – a minor feat considering the six minutes of stoppage time tacked onto the second half of the contest.

In its inaugural campaign, the Victory recorded a win in its first-ever US Open Cup match this evening and progress to a Second Round fixture against a fellow USL-1 cohort, the Minnesota Thunder, to be played in St. Paul, Minn. on June 26. Meanwhile, the Cougars bowed out in their opening contest in the competition for a second straight year.

While California would control the bulk of the opening half, the Victory took some time to settle in, midfielder Ricardo Sanchez’s dipping free kick from 24 yards out in the 9th minute marking the game’s first clear chance. The flood gates would open soon after for the professional side, but BYU ’keeper Brandon Gilliam would be up to the task, stopping another Sanchez effort in the 15 th minute and a Morelas shot from the doorstep four minutes later after the striker entered the six-yard box off a well-worked give-and-go.

California nearly opened their account twice in the 22nd minute, as forward Joshua Hansen and Morelas both had cracks at shots inside Gilliam’s goal box, but the Cougars netminder would knock away both shots at his left post to temporarily keep the Victory off the board. But the onslaught would soon pay off for California, as defender Raul Aguilar was rewarded for his run down the right flank when Morelas redirected his cross from five yards out, beating Gilliam to give the visitors the 1-0 lead.

California seemed to take their foot off the gas after the goal, but BYU did little with the possession that ensued, giving the ball away far too easily – and often with little pressure against them. One of the Cougars’ few chances in the first stanza came in the 35th minute, midfielder Steve Magleby’s defensive work in the final third resulting in a turnover, but midfielder Hugh VanWagenen’s first-time blast from distance sailed well over goal. Morelas would get a pair of chances to double the lead in the half’s waning moments, but his 45th minute effort would bounce squarely off the base of the right post, while his downward header at the left post was covered well by Gilliam in stoppage time.

Morelas would pick up where he left off after the halftime whistle, the Victory striker getting wide open for a free header off a corner kick in the 48 th minute, only to send the chance five feet over the crossbar. Later that minute it was the same on the other end for BYU forward Tyson Miller, his header from off a well-placed cross also missing well high. While he played set-up man for California for most of the evening, Hansen had a chance of his own just before the hour mark after finding himself behind the Cougars backline, but Gilliam darted off his line to cut off the angle and smothered the shot from 16 yards out.

For the rest of the match, substitutes from both sides would factor into the equation, starting with California midfielder Chuck Kim, who started the Victory’s eventual game-winning effort with a 50-yard run into the middle of the field. Kim laid off into the right side of the area for Hansen, who took two touches to draw out Gilliam before slotting across the box to a wide open Morelas, who would finally finish to push the Victory advantage to 2-0.

With California content to kill the game off, BYU seemed to find its legs – and each other – as their passing and possession both improved as the half ticked along. A frantic last quarter-hour to the match started with a sign of things to come for BYU, as substitute midfielder Zack DeFrancis pushed a wide-open header from nine yards right to Victory goalkeeper Eric Reed in the 79 th minute. Seconds later it was forward David Clark sneaking behind the defense to get off a 12-yard blast with Reed off his line, but the chance would soar over the vacated California net. Morelas had yet another chance, this one to ice the game away in the 83rd minute, but his foray into the right side of the area ended with a BYU defender deflecting his near-post effort, sending the ball into the outside netting.

It was the substitutes making more noise in the 89th minute, this time for BYU, as midfielder Steven Fellows had a pair of chances near the right post, but Reed saved the first effort and Fellows sprayed the second shot so wide left of goal that it stayed inbounds. Midfielder Justin Norton – another bench choice for BYU coach Chris Watkins – would gather at the endline and send a cross into the back side of the area, where a waiting McKinley would lunge into a textbook header from 15 yards out, sending it across the box and into the left side-netting to keep the Cougars chances alive at 2-1.

Soon after the goal, a peculiar decision from the referee resulted in six minutes of added time, causing misery for the Victory and even more hope of an equalizer for the Cougars. And California Head Coach Glenn Van Straatum would grind his teeth until the bitter end, as Hansen would again supply passes that nearly found a partner, but his low cross in the 95 th minute would go wanting through the 18-yard box, while his dangerous corner kick a minute later sailed past the left post, marking the last gasp effort for BYU.

Scoring Summary:
CAL – Raul Palomares 1 (Luis Aguilar 1) 23
CAL – Yuri Morales 1 (Joshua Hansen 1) 67
BYU – Daniel McKinley 1 (Justin Norton 1) 89

Discipline Summary:
CAL – Cameron Dunn (caution; Reckless Foul) 70

BYU Cougars Lineup (USL PDL) (4-4-2): GK-Brandon Gilliam; D-Andrew VanWagenen, D-Morgan Gilliam (Daniel McKinley 87), D-Clay Christenson (Zack DeFrancis 69), D-Richie Bindrup; M-Curt Graham, M-Hugh VanWagenen, M-Brock Trejo (Captain), M-Steve Magleby (Steven Fellows 43); F-Tyson Miller (Justin Norton 58), F-David Clark.

California Victory Lineup (USL-1) (3-5-2): GK-Eric Reed; D-Luis Aguilar, D-Christopher Shwarze (Captain), D-Cameron Dunn; M-Ricardo Sanchez, M-Kiel McClung, M-Matthew Fitzgerald (Ricky Herron 84), M-Raul Palomares (Michael Munoz 56), M-Hugo Casillas (Chuck Kim 64); F-Joshua Hansen (Dominik Jakubek 84), F-Yuri Morales.

2007 US Open Cup Round 1: Western Mass Pioneers avoid upset with late goals vs. Danbury United

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In the opening match of the day, the Western Mass Pioneers needed extra time and a pair of penalty kicks to overcome the upset bid of the USASA’s Danbury United.

After playing a scoreless first half, former Pioneer Tony Fernandes was called for a foul on Everson Maciel, who appeared to exaggerate the contact to draw a penalty kick.  Maciel converted the kick to give the USL-2 side a 1-0 lead. Danbury dramatically drew the game level in the 86th minute, when Mauro Costa headed in a free kick from Mauro Santos.

Both teams nearly won the game in added time. Danbury goalkeeper Renildo Oliveira mishandled the ball, and Jeff Deren took a shot on an open net, but a Danbury defender slid in across the goal mouth to clear the ball away. Three minutes into added time, Tony Fernandes was awarded a penalty kick after a foul from Anthony Augustine, but Pioneers’ goalkeeper Kevin Trapp guessed correctly and made the save, sending the game to extra time.

In extra time, Santos quickly gave Danbury their first lead of the match, with a header in the 92nd minute that caught Trapp off his line. Western Mass bounced back when they were awarded another penalty in the 104th minute, when Alex Paulichi was called for a foul on Augustine in the area. Danbury goalkeeper Oliveira nearly saved Deren’s penalty kick, getting a glove on the ball, but was unable to fully stop it.  Easton Wilson scored the eventual game winner off a rebound of a 20-yard shot shot from Maciel, which he slid into an empty net.

Western Mass will travel to face Rochester in the Second Round on June 26.

Scoring
(WMP) Everson Maciel 59’ (PK)
(DAN) Mauro Costa 86’
(DAN) Mauro Santos 92’
(WMP) Jeff Deren 105’ (PK)
(WMP) Easton Wilson 109’

Harrisburg City Islanders selling tickets for “dream” game with David Beckham

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A graphic from the Harrisburg City Islander's David Beckham promotion.
A graphic from the Harrisburg City Islander’s David Beckham promotion.

When it was announced that David Beckham was set to join the Los Angeles Galaxy, it sent shockwaves to all corners of the sporting world. This news gave every Major League Soccer team a new reason to market an already growing league: Beckham is coming. Joe Sierko, the General Manager of the USL Second Division’s Harrisburg City Islanders, wondered how his team could benefit from “Beckhamania.”

The City Islanders, a team entering their fourth year as a USL franchise, decided to sell tickets for a potential US Open Cup match against David Beckham and the Los Angeles Galaxy. The cost of the tickets would $1. The catch? Both clubs still have yet to qualify for the 2007 tournament, and even if they do, the chance of the two clubs squaring off are rather slim.

“As far as we know, this is the first time that a ticket has been sold for an event that is very unlikely to ever occur and certainly hasn’t even been scheduled,” said Sierko.

This begs the question, why would someone buy a ticket to a game that might not happen?

The plan is that if the game does occur, then everyone who bought a ticket will receive one admission to the match which, needless to say, will be the hottest ticket in town. If the game does not end up happening, then 100% of the money earned from the ticket sales will be donated, in the name of David Beckham, to the Harrisburg Parks Partnership which helps the Harrisburg Department of Parks and Recreation in the development and maintenance of parks and city playgrounds throughout the state capital.

“We have sold over 1,000 tickets to date and will continue to sell up to the limit of 5,000 as long as the dream stays alive,” said Sierko.

The dream will end as soon as the Galaxy or the City Islanders are eliminated from the Open Cup. Los Angeles has one more qualifying game to play against the New York Red Bulls. If they win, they are in.

Harrisburg’s first six games of the season double as cup qualifiers. If they are among the Second Division teams to get in, they would need to win two games in the tournament to advance to the Third Round and hope that US Soccer grants their wish to face off with the Galaxy when the draw occurs.

The goal of the fundraiser is not only to raise money, but also to get people excited about the club, the US Open Cup and soccer in general.

“We should do whatever we can to continue to grow the sport and get into the vision of casual fans,” said Sierko. “Hopefully, more people will become aware of the Open Cup because of Beckham because I am confident that once they are aware, they will be intrigued by the concept.”

To find out more information about buying tickets for the “Beckham Match”, visit the Harrisburg City Islanders official website.

2007 Meet the USASA: El Paso Indios USA

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El Paso Indios USA logoThe recent trend of foreign clubs fielding teams in the lower division leagues in the United States is evidenced in this year’s U.S. Open Cup. Of the four clubs in this year’s tournament affiliated with foreign clubs, three are professional (CD Chivas USA, California Victory and Crystal Palace Baltimore). The fourth is El Paso Indios USA, an amateur club from the NPSL, who are affiliated with Indios de Ciudad Juarez of the Mexican Primera División A (second division).

While situated on the other side of El Paso, Indios USA have entered a territory long held by the USL’s Patriots, who have been around since 1989. Indios USA general manager Mitch Doblado sees the Patriots as both competitors and a club Indios USA can co-exist with in El Paso.

“I think having two soccer organizations only increases the awareness of soccer in El Paso, and the United States,” Doblado says. “However, we are both competing for the entertainment dollar, so we are in the same category as the El Paso Diablos (Double-A minor league baseball), and other family entertainment venues.” The team also attracts many fans of the parent club Ciudad Juarez, which is just over the border from El Paso.

While Indios USA’s parent club is in Mexico, they are nonetheless working hard to help the community in El Paso. The team has an agreement with Playground Connection, to help raise money to build a playground for children with disabilities, the first of it’s kind in El Paso.

Not just a nickname

The name Indios is comes from the Tarahumara Indian culture, which the logo symbolizes with a koyera around a soccer ball. The koyera is utilized by men, women and children born with honor in the community. Even the colors of the club’s logo have different meanings. The color red represents action, aggression, passion and danger. White represents purity, unity and wisdom, and black represents elegance and seriousness.

As far as the players who make up Indios roster, the roster is a mix of players from the Indios youth system, as well as local high school soccer programs. Two players have already appeared with the parent club in Juarez, forward Jose De Santiago, and Omar Tena, who is a high school senior from El Paso. Eugene Brooks, the team’s main scoring threat, is a native of El Paso and played at the college level in California. Finally, the team has a player with Open Cup experience. Ugljesa Vrbica, a native of Serbia & Montenegro, played with the 2006 Cup entrant Arizona Sahuaros last season.

Indios USA also features a youth program that ranges from U-6 through U-15, and their U-13 team is ranked in the top ten in the nation. Doblado says one advantage Indios has over the Patriots is the fact that their players have the opportunity to advance to their affiliated clubs, Ciudad Juarez and Pachuca.

Looking to make their mark

The team is off to a fast start in NPSL play, sitting in first place with a 4-0-1 record in the Southwest Conference. Indios USA also went unbeaten in the Region IV qualifying tournament, finishing 2-0-1 in group play. In the semifinals, they knocked off the Arizona Sahuaros 3-1 to qualify for the Open Cup. In the final, they defeated Banat Arsenal 3-2 for the right to represent Region IV in the USASA National Cup finals in Seattle later this summer, a feat the club takes a lot of pride in.

“To be able to represent the NPSL and Region IV in Seattle is something that we take very seriously,” Doblado said proudly. “It is important to have a good representation from a league and demographic standpoint.”

As far as facing the USL First Division’s Minnesota Thunder, Doblado is hopeful, yet realistic. “It will mean a lot to our young league and new program to be able to succeed to the next round. We know we are viewed as the underdogs but will give it all we have.”

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