Tuesday, July 8, 2008

The Charleston Battery became the first USL team to reach the US Open Cup semifinals for a third time since MLS began play, and the Seattle Sounders returned to the final four for a second straight year by knocking off MLS opposition. The pair will meet in the Semifinals, ensuring a USL side in the final for the first time since Rochester won in 1999. USL-2 Crystal Palace Baltimore was knocked out in penalties.

With the Crystal Palace and Seattle games going to penalties, the USL sides technically finished the night unbeaten at 1-0-2 in their three contests, with tiebreakers deciding who advanced from the two draws. It is the third time two USL teams have reached the Semifinals in the same year. The Sounders and the expansion Carolina RailHawks were in the final four last year, the first occasion since Charleston and the Rochester Rhinos made the 1999 Semifinals.

NUMBER THREE FOR BATTERY 

The Charleston Battery became the first USL team to reach the US Open Cup Semifinals for a third time since MLS began play by handing FC Dallas a 3-1 defeat at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas. It was the third straight year in which the two sides had met in the tournament. Dallas knocked Charleston out 2-1 in overtime in the Quarterfinals last year in South Carolina and bounced the Battery out via penalties the year before 5-3 after a 3-3 draw.

Lazo Alavanja and Ian Fuller first half strikes gave the visiting Battery a commanding advantage throughout the second half. Randi Patterson secured the victory with a stoppage time strike which saw a consolation tally a few minutes later from Dallas to spoil the shutout.

The victory gave Charleston a sweep of the two Texas-based MLS sides in the tournament on successive rounds having defeated the defending MLS champion Houston Dynamo for a second straight year in the last round.
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SOUNDERS SILENCE ANOTHER 

The Seattle Sounders became the first USL team to reach the US Open Cup Semifinals in back-to-back years, edging the visiting Kansas City Wizards in seven rounds of penalties 6-5 after a thrilling scoreless draw that saw two Sounders shots off the woodwork. A third shot rang off the woodwork again in the penalty kick tiebreaker, but Sebastien Le Toux’s missed spot kick only negated a Sounder advantage forged by an earlier Chris Eylander save against US international Jimmy Conrad. The two sides went to the seventh round before another Eylander save enabled defender Zach Scott to net the deciding goal.

The Sounders, who also reached the semifinals in 1995, became the first team since MLS began play in 1996 to post four consecutive shutouts in a single tournament, besting the 1996 DC United and 1999 Colorado Rapids. DC only needed three victories to win the title in their first year, but did continue the run over the course of two tournaments with shutouts in their next two games the following year.

In Seattle’s two runs to the Semifinals the past two years, the club has allowed only one goal in four matches against MLS opposition, downing Chivas USA 3-1 and Colorado Rapids 5-0 last year before posting a 2-0 win over Chivas USA in addition to the scoreless draw against Kansas City this year.
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PENALTIES PUSH OUT PALACE

Crystal Palace Baltimore fell nearly became the first USL Second Division team to reach the Semifinals since the San Francisco Bay Seals run in 1997 that included two victories over MLS sides before falling to DC United 2-1 in the final four. A Dan Lader equalizer in the 20th minute erased an early deficit and the third tier club held on against the defending tournament champions and MLS Cup finalists for the next 100 minutes to force the tiebreaker.

The Revolution were perfect from the spot, making Val Teixeira’s saved shot in the fourth round fatal as Mauricio Castro converted his in the top of the fifth round to seal New England’s return to the Semifinals.
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COMPLETE SCOREBOARD

Crystal Palace Baltimore (3) 1 :: PK :: 1 (5) New England Revolution
NE: Kenny Mansally (Brandon Tyler) 6
CPB: Dan Lader 20
Cautions
CPB: Val Teixeira 78, Bryan Harkin 109
NE: Amaechi Igwe 33, Chase Hilgenbrinck 59
Ejections
CPB: Sergio Flores 119
Penalties
NE: Chase Hilgenbrink goal, Kheli Dube goal, Chris Tierney goal, Amaechi Igwe goal, Mauricio Castro goal
CPB: Shintaro Harada goal, Bryan Harkin goal, Matthew Mbuta goal, Val Teixeira save


Charleston Battery 3 :: 1 FC Dallas
CHA: Lazo Alavanja 28
CHA: Ian Fuller (Stephen Armstrong) 43
CHA: Randi Patterson 91+
DAL: Kenny Cooper (Dax McCarty) 94+
Cautions
CHA: Aaron King 77


Kansas City Wizards (5) 0 :: PK :: 0 (6) Seattle Sounders
Cautions
KC: Lance Watson 23
Penalties (7 rounds)
KC: Ryan Pore goal, Jimmy Conrad save, Ryan McMahen goal, Roger Espinoza goal, Kerry Zavagnin goal, Mike Harrington goal, Tyson Wahl save
SEA: Danny Jackson goal, Sebastien Le Toux miss, Kenji Treschuk goal, Kevin Sakuda goal, Leighton O’Brien goal, Youssef Kante goal, Zach Scott goal


Chicago Fire 1 :: OT :: 2 DC United
CHI: Daniel Woolard (Logan Pause) 36
DC: Francis Doe (Jaime Moreno) 77
DC: Bryan Namoff (Jaime Moreno) 99
Cautions
CHI: Bakary Soumare 48, Logan Pause 78, John Thorrington 81
DC: Francis Doe 52, Jaime Moreno 89