SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC (MLS) vs. KANSAS CITY WIZARDS
Tues., July 7, Starfire Sports Complex, Tukwila, Wash., 7 p.m. PT
LAST YEAR: This is the second consecutive year the Kansas City Wizards have played their U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal in Seattle ... Last year, the Wizards and USL-1 Seattle Sounders met, the Sounders advancing 6-5 in a penalty shootout to the USL-1 Seattle Sounders at Qwest Field after a scoreless draw over 120 minutes.
SOUNDERS: Chris Eylander, Kevin Sakuda, Danny Jackson, Taylor Graham, Zach Scott, Josh Gardner (Yousouff Kante 83), Leighton O'Brien, Kenji Treschuk, Hugo Alcaraz-Cuellar (Jason Cascio 86), Sebastian LeToux, Andre Schmid (Michael Rodriguez 61)
WIZARDS: Eric Kronberg, Chance Myers, Rauwshan McKenzie (Jimmy Conrad 46), Tyson Wahl, Matt Marquess, Jonathan Leathers (Ryan McMahen 83), Kerry Zavagnin, Roger Espinoza, Lance Watson (Michael Harrington 63), Michael Kraus (Nelson Pizarro 57), Ryan Pore
SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC
THIS YEAR IN THE OPEN CUP:
Seattle Sounders FC won the club's first match in the U.S. Open Cup proper, defeating the USL-1 Portland Timbers 2-1 at PGE Park on July 1. ... Roger Levesque put Sounders FC ahead after 47 seconds, then Stephen King doubled it in the 27th minute, before Mamadou Keita pulled a goal back just before halftime (43). ... Here's Schmid's team: Kasey Keller, James Riley, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Patrick Ianni, Nathan Sturgis, Sanna Nyassi (Jarrod Smith 79), Peter Vagenas, Stephen King, Roger Levesque (Tyson Wahl 92+), Sebastien Le Toux (Fredy Montero 66), Nate Jaqua ... The MLS expansion side reached the tournament proper after two home victories in the MLS qualifying round. In the second play-in round, Sounders FC defeated Real Salt Lake on April 28 at Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila, Wash. (Le Toux 24 pen, 55; Nyassi 26; King 53; Le Toux 55) ... Then in the third qualifying round, Sounders FC defeated the Colorado Rapids 1-0 in Tukwila on a 61st-minute goal from Kevin Forrest.
USL SEATTLE SOUNDERS: A year ago, the USL-1 Seattle Sounders reached the semifinals, falling to the Charleston Battery. Along the way, they defeated the Kansas City Wizards in a penalty shootout after a scoreless draw in the quarterfinals, and defeated Chivas USA for a second year running in the third round ... Current Sounders FC forward Sebastian Le Toux led all Open Cup goalscorers with five ... The year before, the Sounders lost 2-1 in extra time to FC Dallas in the semifinals at Qwest Field, after defeating Chivas USA 3-1 and the Colorado Rapids 5-0 along the way ... The Sounders had once earlier defeated an MLS foe, a 1-0 win against the San Jose Earthquakes in the fourth round in 2003. ... The last time the Sounders had reached as far as the semifinals came in 1995, when the A-League side lost to the El Paso Patriots at that stage.
KANSAS CITY WIZARDS
THIS YEAR IN THE OPEN CUP:
The Wizards survived their U.S. Open Cup third round tie against the USL-1 Minnesota Thunder, winning 4-2 in a penalty shootout after playing to a 3-3 draw over 120 minutes. ... Michael Kraus and Abe Thompson scored two minutes apart to put Kansas City ahead after 19 minutes, but Ricardo Sanchez converted a pair of penalty kicks, the second in the 84th minute, to bring Minnesota level. Rauwshan McKenzie scored his first professional goal to give the Wizards the lead midway through extra time, but Melvin Tarley once again came through for the Thunder with a 114th-minute equalizer. ... In the shootout, the Wizards hit all four of their attempts, while reserve goalkeeper Boris Pardo saved the final two from Minnesota, giving the Wizards a quarterfinal date with either Seattle Sounders FC or the USL-1 Portland Timbers. ... Here's Onalfo's team: Boris Pardo; Lance Watson, Jonathan Leathers, Rauwshan McKenzie, Matt Marquess; Michael Harrington (Claudio Lopez 89), Kurt Morsink, Graham Zusi (Herculez Gomez 77), Roger Espinoza; Abe Thompson, Michael Kraus (Josh Wolff 98)
OPEN CUP HISTORY: The Wizards have won the competition once, in their only appearance in the final, defeating the Chicago Fire 1-0 in 2004 at Arrowhead Stadium on a goal by Igor Simutenkov. ... The farthest the Wizards had previously advanced was the semifinals in 2002, where they lost to the Columbus Crew in extra time. ... The Wizards have been knocked out on five occasions by lower-division opposition - including three successive years, 1997-99, when they lost to the San Francisco Bay Seals (D3 Pro), Nashville Metros (A-League) and Chicago Sockers (PDL). ... The Kansas City Wizards reached the competition proper last year for the first time since 2006, their run ending at the quarterfinals.
WHAT'S NEXT: The winner of the Seattle-Kansas City match takes on the winner of the Charleston-Houston match in the semifinals. If Seattle Sounders FC win, they will host the semifinal. The Kansas City Wizards will play host if the Houston Dynamo win; if the Charleston Battery win, they will entertain Kansas City in South Carolina.
