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Third Round Recap: The More Things Change.....
Charleston, Seattle and CPB advance to Cup quarterfinals
In a near mirror image of the 2007 third round, the Seattle Sounders and Charleston Battery defeated the same MLS opponents once again, Chivas USA and the Houston Dynamo respectively, to advance to the 2008 U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals. Just as last year, at least one USL Second Division club will join them, as Crystal Palace Baltimore stunned the New York Red Bulls with a shorthanded 2-0 victory.
In Annapolis, Maryland, Palace jumped in the lead early with a 17th minute goal from Andrew Marshall, but were reduced to ten men 17 minutes later when Ibrahim Kante was sent off. New York could not capitalize on the man advantage, or a seven yard free kick awarded for the handling of a back pass, and Baltimore’s Gary Brooks’ 75th minute goal sealed the underdogs’ passage into the quarterfinals.
At Blackbaud Stadium in Charleston, the hometown Battery overcame a two man disadvantage and a late Houston equalizer to win the penalty shootout and advance to face another 2007 cup foe, FC Dallas.
At the Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila, Washington, Sebastien Le Toux jumped into the Open Cup goal scoring lead in clinching Seattle’s 2-0 victory over Chivas USA. Le Toux now has ten goals over the last two cup tournaments.
U.S. Open Cup Third Round Blog
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The third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup had plenty of drama and some great upsets. Check out the entire third round blog by clicking continue. 
Who needs wings? Palace stun Red Bulls
Marshall and Brooks lead CPB to a quarterfinal berth
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Lawrence E. Knight Stadium
(Broadneck HS)
Annapolis, Maryland
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2
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0
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CPB - Andrew Marshall (Harkin) 17’
CPB - Gary Brooks (Robson) 75’
CPB - Ibrahim Kante (SENT OFF) 34’
NY - Mike Magee (SENT OFF) 92’+
Match Report:
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Crystal Palace Baltimore pulled off the surprise of the third round, ousting the New York Red Bulls 2-0 at Lawrence E. Knight Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland.
Palace netted their first goal of the evening after seventeen minutes. A Bryan Harkin corner kick was headed in by Andrew Marshall past goalkeeper Zach Thornton to give the underdogs a 1-0 lead. The Red Bulls had a seemingly easy opportunity to tie the game shortly after. New York was awarded a free kick from seven yards out when CPB goalkeeper Matt Nelson handled a back pass. Mike Magee took the free kick, but his shot was blocked by one of the many Baltimore players defending the play.
Palace were forced to play the final 56 minutes with ten men, when Ibrahim Kante was shown a straight red for a dangerous two-footed tackle on Chris Megaloudis in the 34th minute. In all six yellows and two red cards were issued by referee Andrew Chapin.
Deja-Vu all over again, Sounders oust Chivas
Graham & Le Toux score to eliminate MLS foes for second year
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Starfire Sports Complex
Tukwila, Washington
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2
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0
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Taylor Graham (Josh Gardner) 43’
Sebastien Le Toux (unassisted) 80’
Match Report:
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Chivas USA will be one MLS club that will be happy to see the Sounders, at least this version, move to Major League Soccer.
For the second year in a row, the Seattle Sounders, the USL-1 variety, ousted Chivas USA from the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup with a 2-0 victory at Tukwila, Washington.
It all started to go downhill for Chivas just before halftime. Taylor Graham nodded home the opening goal from a Josh Gardner corner kick, which was gained when Chivas goalkeeper Brad Guzan made a slide save on a shot from Kenji Treschuk.
With ten minutes remaining, Seattle sealed the win. Sounders goalkeeper Chris Eylander punted the ball downfield to Sebastien Le Toux, then beat a onrushing Guzan to place the ball in an empty net. The goal was Le Toux’s tournament-leading fifth.
9-man Battery eliminate Dynamo again
Battery overcome two red cards, late equalizer to topple Dynamo
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Blackbaud Stadium
Charleston, SC
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1
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1
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AFTER EXTRA TIME
Charleston advance 4-3 on PKs
CHS - Marco Reda (Ian Fuller) 31’
HOU - Stephen Wondolowski 89’
CHS - Chris Corcoran (SENT OFF) 70’
CHS - Marco Reda (SENT OFF) 103’
PK Summary
HOU - Stuart Holden: Goal
CHS - Osvaldo Alonso: Goal
HOU - Chris Wondolowski: Goal
CHS - Stephen Armstrong: Goal
HOU - Geoff Cameron: Missed High
CHS - Darren Spicer: Goal
HOU - John Michael Hayden: Goal
CHS - Timothy Velten: Goal
HOU - Franco Caraccio: Saved
Match Reports:
Houston Dynamo
Charleston Battery
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Last year, the Charleston Battery defeated the Houston Dynamo in the third round at Blackbaud Stadium, but it took extra time to do so. This year also produced the same result, but penalty kicks were needed this time around. Charleston beat Houston 4-3 on penalties after extra time resulted in a 1-1 draw.
Charleston controlled much of the first half, finally punching through in the 31st minute, when Osvaldo Alonso took a free kick from outside the box on the left side, which found Ian Fuller’s head and eventually landed at the feet of Marco Reda, who put it past Dynamo keeper Tony Caig for the 1-0 lead. The second half was a much different story. In the 55th minute, a shot by Franco Caraccio was destined for goal, but Stephen Armstrong was there to clear it off the line. Then it started to really fall apart for the Battery.
The 74th minute saw a foul on Chris Wondolowski, on which recent sub Chris Corcoran was given a straight red. Charleston looked to hold on for the last 16 minutes, but it wasn’t to be. A ball served into the box from Chris Wondolowski was headed by Franco Caraccio to Chris’ brother Stephen, who headed it home in the 89th minute to tie the game for Houston.
Better late than never, FC Dallas advance
Two Abe Thompson stoppage time goals gain quarterfinals
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Pizza Hut Park
Frisco, Texas
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2
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1
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MIA - Alex Afonso 7’
DAL - Abe Thompson (Oduro) 48’+
DAL - Abe Thompson (Moor) 92’+
Match Reports:
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Abe Thompson sure has a thing for timing.
The FC Dallas forward scored goals in stoppage time at the end of both halves, with the latter coming just moments before the final whistle, to push FC Dallas over Miami FC 2-1 at Pizza Hunt Park.
It was Miami’s goal machine who started the evening’s scoring in the seventh minute. Alex Afonso, the leading goalscorer in the USL First Division, nutmegged two FC Dallas defenders before beating goalkeeper Ray Burse with a powerful shot, giving the USL-1 side a 1-0 lead. Sean Cameron nearly doubled the lead in the 38th minute, but his shot hit the right post. Miami looked to be headed into halftime with that lead, but Abe Thompson scored the fifth Open Cup goal of his career in the third minute of stoppage time, off a pass from Dominic Oduro.
Wizards conjure up extra time escape
Ivan Trujillo scores twice as KC wins in extra time
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WakeMed Soccer Park
Cary, North Carolina
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2
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4
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AFTER EXTRA TIME
CAR - Santiago Fusilier (Solle) 43’
CAR - Matthew Watson (Antoniuk) 57’
KC - Ivan Trujillo (Harrington) 67’
KC - Claudio Lopez (PK) 81’
KC - Ivan Trujillo 93’
KC - Ryan Pore (PK) 119’
CAR - Ryan Solle (SENT OFF) 108’
CAR - Chad Dombrowski (SENT OFF) 120'
Match Report:
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The Kansas City Wizards traveled to Cary, North Carolina to meet the Carolina Railhawks in what proved to be an evenly fought game with the fans getting their money’s worth.
The Wizards started strong but it was the Railhawks that took control of the first half and got on the board first with a 43rd minute goal by Santiago Fusiller after a nice volley by Ryan Solle. Matthew Watson added to their lead at 57 minutes with a fine strike to beat Kronberg. At this point the Wizards woke up and started taking control of the play and forced Carolina keeper Chris McClellan into making eight saves in the second half.
The Wizards got their first tally at 67 minutes when Ivan Trujillo scored off an assist from second half sub Mike Harrington. They kept the pressure on and were awarded a penalty in the 81st minute which Claudio Lopez converted to tie things up. Things didn’t get any easier for Carolina who went down to ten men when Ryan Solle was sent off for a second bookable offense. The overtime saw the Wizards go ahead when Trujillo walked in another goal with the Carolina defense looking for a flag.
Debutantes push Revolution past Kickers
Two newcomers rev up New England's title defense after two-hour delay
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Veterans Stadium
New Britain, Connecticut
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3
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0
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NE - Sam Brill (Tierney) 46’
NE - Joe Germanese (Hilgenbrinck) 63’
NE - Taylor Twellman (Tierney) 67’
Match Report:
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Had the New England Revolution lost to the Richmond Kickers in this third round matchup in New Britain, Connecticut, they may have blamed their poor choice of a stadium, as a nearly two-hour lightning delay pushed the start of the game close to 9:00. Strangely, no rain fell at their other prospective U.S. Open Cup homes: Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, and Lusitano Stadium in Ludlow, Mass., home of the Kickers’ USL-2 rival Western Mass but used often by New England for Open Cup home games. However, the performance of two players making their professional debut helped to kick-start the Revolution’s defense of their 2007 title by defeating Richmond 3-0.
If the Revolution would’ve lost this game, most fans would’ve certainly placed blame on coach Steve Nicol for trotting out a true B-side. Outside of star Taylor Twellman, who is returning from injury, and Kenny Mansally, who coincidentally was injured at the end of the match, the entire lineup consisted of players who have received nine total starts among the nine players over the course of the season. Of those nine, four were making their professional debut.
Burch's left foot sends DC to quarterfinals
United earn third straight Open Cup shutout vs. Rochester
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Maryland SoccerPlex
Boyds, Maryland
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2
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0
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DCU - Marc Burch (unassisted) 78’
DCU - Marc Burch (unassisted) 85’
Match Report:
DCUnited.com
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A pair of Marc Burch free kicks were the difference as DC United defeated the Rochester Rhinos 2-0 in the third round of the tournament on Tuesday. It was the third all-time meeting between these clubs (1996, 2000), with United earning 3-0 shutouts in each of the last two.
In their 11th U.S. Open Cup, this marks the eighth trip to the quarterfinals for the Black-and-Red. With the victory, DC earns a home date with the Chicago Fire in the quarterfinals next week at the Maryland Soccerplex in Boyds, MD.
Burch, starting at center back for United, used his left foot to score both goals on low driving shots that found the back of the net in the 78th and the 85th minute.
City Stars no match for the Fire
Four-time champs cruise to 4-1 victory
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Toyota Park
Bridgeview, Illinois
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4
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1
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CHI - Mike Banner 13’
CHI - Calen Carr (King) 23’
CHI - Chad Barrett (PK) 26’
CLE - Kiel McClung (Ruud) 61’
CHI - Mike Banner (Lowry) 73’
Match Report:
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The Chicago Fire scored three times in the first half to cruise to a 4-1 victory over the Cleveland City Stars of the USL Second Division.
The four-time champs took only thirteen minutes to jump into the lead, as reserve midfielder Mike Banner beat goalkeeper Hunter Gilstrap after slipping on an attempted one-timer shot from a cross by Calen Carr. Just ten minutes later it was Carr who netted a goal of his own, sending a left footed shot into the near corner of the goal. Three minutes later, Chicago tallied for the final time of the half when Chris Rolfe was brought down in the box by Cleveland’s Kiel McClung. Chad Barrett beat Gilstrap with the ensuing spot kick to put Chicago up 3-0.
McClung made amends for the penalty kick by scoring the City Stars’ lone goal on a 20-yard shot fired past Fire goalkeeper Nick Noble. Banner added his second goal of the night in the 73rd minute to all but end Cleveland’s hopes.
Third Round Previews
 As the eight surviving USL clubs get ready to challenge their MLS opponenets in the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, USOpenCup.com takes a look at each match with news and notes, as well as our "Tale of the Tape" feature, comparing the statistics and results of each matchup.
First round winners know their potential MLS opponents
Third round scheduled to kick-off July 1
On July 1, Major League Soccer will join the 2008 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup in the third round. All of the first round winners will battle in round two for the right to face an MLS team. Today, U.S. Soccer announced the potential pairings for round three.
Notable upsets in the Third Round of the U.S. Open Cup
1997 - San Francisco Bay Seals (D3 Pro) 2, Kansas City Wizards (MLS) 1
1997 - Chicago Stingers (D3 Pro) 2, Colorado Rapids (MLS) 1
The MLS era of the Open Cup was still young, Rochester caused a stir in ’96 with their amazing run to the final.
The San Francisco Bay Seals and Chicago Stingers were determined to top that, and top it they did.
Things you should know about the Third Round of the U.S. Open Cup
Since the expanded format in 1997, a PDL team has failed to reach the third round only three times (1998, 2002, 2007).
The biggest rout in the third round since 1995 came in 2003, when the Virginia Beach Mariners defeated the Carolina Dynamo 5-0. Dante Washington and Roland Aguilera both scored twice for the Mariners.
In 2007, a record five MLS teams were upset in the third round, with only three clubs advancing to the next round (a record low for MLS teams).
In 2007, two USL Second Division clubs (Richmond Kickers, Harrisburg City Islanders) won third round matches. It was the first time that two USL-2 teams advanced beyond round three in the same year. Prior to 2007, only one USL-2 club, the Wilmington Hammerheads, had ever advanced beyond the third round, and they did it twice (2003, 2006).
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