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Philadelphia Union 3, Harrisburg City Islanders 1 (after extra time)
CHESTER, Pa. – Maurice Edu and Andrew Wenger rescued the Philadelphia Union from a big upset bid from the Harrisburg City Islanders, scoring late goals to lead Philly to a 3-1 win in the fourth round of the US Open Cup on Tuesday at PPL Park.
Wenger scored twice in the second extra-time session after Edu – starting at center back for the first time this season – tied the game in the 89th minute on a feed from Sébastien Le Toux.
Harrisburg struck first in the 38th minute when Jason Pelletier scored on a rebound after rookie goalkeeper Andre Blake – making his first start for club after playing four games for Jamaica this year – made a diving save on a Coady Andrews header.
Although new interim manager Jim Curtin vowed to take the tournament seriously, the Union struggled to handle their depleted USL PRO affiliate for much of Curtin’s first game in charge, only beginning to generate chances late in regulation. They nearly scored the game-winner in stoppage time, but 21-year-old Harrisburg goalkeeper Brian Sylvestre made a fantastic double save on Leo Fernandes and Andrew Wenger.
Sylvestre, rostered by the Vancouver Whitecaps as a Homegrown Player from 2011-12, finished with 10 saves.
The Union will host the NASL's New York Cosmos in the Round of 16 on June 24 at PPL Park.
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Rochester Rhinos 1, D.C. United 0
D.C. United’s 2013 Open Cup campaign ended with a bang – a third Open Cup title and a rare taste of glory during an abysmal campaign.
Their 2014 Open Cup run could not have ended more differently: an anti-climactic 1-0 loss to the USL PRO Rochester Rhinos in a torrential downpour at Sahlen's Stadium.
Neither team looked much like a title contender in the game’s opening 45 minutes, but Rochester nevertheless found a way to get on the board. In the 13th minute, midfielder Mike Garzi collected the ball on the left flank, streaked past United defender Jalen Robinson and drove a low cross along the goal line.
Rhinos forward Colin Rolfe did just enough to get a boot on the service, tapping it past United goalkeeper Andrew Dykstra to give Rochester the early lead.
United – who fielded a lineup consisting primarily of reserves – were dealt a blow early in the second stanza when center back Steve Birnbaum was handed his second yellow card. Down a man, their comeback hopes were hampered even further when a severe storm moved into the area, delaying the match on two separate occasions and temporarily turning the pitch into a veritable lake.
Rochester advance to face the winner of Wednesday evening’s encounter between the Richmond Kickers and the New England Revolution.
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Columbus Crew 2, Indy Eleven 1 (after extra time)
In a match with plenty of drama, the Columbus Crew beat Indy Eleven 2-1 in extra time to advance in the US Open Cup despite playing with as few as nine men by the end of the match.
The Crew started the game fast, when Bernardo Añor headed home a Ben Speas corner kick in the fourth minute to give Columbus – the home team playing at the University of Akron's FirstEnergy Stadium – an early lead. But Columbus were forced to play with 10 men for the majority of the match after Adam Bedell earned a straight red card in the 34th minute for a rash challenge.
Indy capitalized in the 63rd minute when Montreal Impact loanee Blake Smith beat Steve Clark to level the game for the visitors.
The Crew clung to the level score into extra time, when Daniel Paladini became the second Crew player sent off in the 110th minute thanks to a late elbow borne out of frustration.
But Indy could not capitalize on the advantage, and when Ethan Finlay was brought down in the box, the Crew earned a late penalty kick and substitute Jairo Arrieta capitalized in the 115th minute to hand Columbus a hard-earned win.
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FC Dallas 2, San Antonio Scorpions 0
FRISCO, Texas – It took a while, but FC Dallas finally broke down the San Antonio Scorpions through Fabián Castillo in the 74th minute to take their Lamar Hunt US Open Cup fourth-round match at Toyota Stadium. A second goal in the 81st minute by Andrés Escobar sealed the win.
Both teams played to maintain shape for much of the first half, with Dallas earning a reasonable edge in possession and a slight edge in chances. The second half saw San Antonio put more into getting behind the FCD defense with some success. Scorpions forward Billy Forbes produced a number of chances, but former FC Dallas forward Eric Hassli was kept relatively quiet.
The game-winner was Castillo’s third goal in as many games for FC Dallas.
FC Dallas will now play in Houston against the Dynamo in the fifth round on June 24.
– KEVIN LINDSTROM
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Colorado Rapids 5, Orlando City 2
COMMERCE CITY, Colo. – The Colorado Rapids took advantage of their first Lamar Hunt US Open Cup home match since 2007, besting soon-to-be MLSers Orlando City 5-2 at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park on Tuesday night behind a hat trick from forward Deshorn Brown.
The Rapids fielded a lineup filled with mostly starters and thoroughly outclassed their USL PRO challengers from start to finish, despite a surprise early goal from the visitors.
Colorado nearly went ahead several times in the opening quarter-hour, but in the 22nd minute and against the run of play, Orlando City midfielder Adama Mbengue took a terrific feed in the box, turned around and fired low, beating goalkeeper Clint Irwin for a surprise 1-0 lead.
The Rapids turned up the pressure following the goal, and in the 35th minute, they got their reward. Brown, making up for an earlier miss, terrifically brought down a volley and fired home for the equalizer.
Six minutes later, the hosts went ahead on Nick LaBrocca’s first goal of the season. Marc Burch delivered a perfect cross to LaBrocca, who was initially denied by Lions goalkeeper Miguel Gallardo, only for LaBrocca to follow through with the go-ahead goal.
In the 47th minute, Brown put the result to bed with another terrific finish, slotting home from a tough angle, and in the 56th he chipped Gallardo for the hat trick, the first of his professional career.
Luke Boden pulled back a 71st-minute header for Orlando, but Colorado restored their three-goal advantage just two minutes later when Dillon Powers finished from a tough angle. The Rapids will now host the Atlanta Silverbacks on June 24 at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.
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Portland Timbers 3, Orlando City U-23 0
PORTLAND, Ore. – Two first-half goals from Gastón Fernández, including one from distance in the 11th minute, sparked a Portland Timbers barrage Tuesday that ended in a 3-0 win over the Orlando City U-23s in a fourth-round game of the 2014 US Open Cup at a lively Providence Park.
Fernández drove a knuckling right-footed shot from the edge of the penalty area that beat Orlando City goalkeeper Tomas Gomez top shelf to open scoring. The Argentine attacker followed that up with a 36th-minute spot-kick goal from a penalty called on Gomez for undercutting a charging Maximiliano Urruti.
Rookie Taylor Peay, a second-half substitute, scored his first goal in a Timbers shirt, slotting past Gomez from a tough angle after a feed down the right flank from Urruti for the Timbers’ third in the 68th minute.
The Timbers, who trotted out a starting lineup that combined first-choice players and part-time starters, outshot the PDL side 25-5 and will face the winner of Wednesday’s matchup between Sporting Kansas City or Minnesota United in a Round of 16 game on either June 24 (at Kansas City) or 25 (at Minnesota).
– DAN ITEL
