CHICAGO (June 13, 2007) – The first round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup kicked off on Tuesday, June 12, with15 of the 16 scheduled matches taking place, while one, Charlotte Eagles vs. Lynch’s Irish Pub, was rescheduled for Wednesday, June 13.
The tournament began with an exciting match between Danbury United (Conn.) of the USASA and the Western Mass Pioneers of the USL Second Division. The Pioneers opened the scoring with a penalty kick in the 59th minute that was converted by Everson Maciel. Danbury fought back to score in the 86th minute on a goal by Mauro Costa. In stoppage time of the second half, Danbury had a penalty kick blocked but then scored first in the first overtime period (92nd minute) courtesy of Mauro Dos Santos. The Pioneers responded fiercely, however, and Jeff Deren converted a penalty in the 105th minute which was followed by a goal from Easton Wilson in the 109th minute to make the game 3-2 in favor of the Pioneers. Western Mass will now face the Rochester Raging Rhinos in the second round.
The Aegean Hawks FC held off the Harrisburg City Islanders for the first half, but the Islanders scored four second-half tallies on goals from Adam Clay (56th minute), Mo Ouduor (68th minute), David Schofield (69th minute), and Steve Fisher (87th minute) to defeat the Hawks 4-0. The Islanders will face off against the Ocean City Barons in the second round.
The people of Ocean City, N.J., witnessed an upset as the hometown team, the Ocean City Barons (PDL), defeated Crystal Palace Baltimore (USL-2), 1-0. The Barons goal came courtesy of Byron Charmichael in the 45th minute. The Ocean City Barons will play the Harrisburg City Islanders in the second round.
At PAETEC Park in Rochester, N.Y., the Rochester Raging Rhinos won, 1-0, over the Long Island Rough Riders on a goal by Nate Delicate in the 20th minute. The Rhinos will face the Western Mass Pioneers in the second round.
The game between the Richmond Kickers and the Michigan Bucks ended 4-2 in favor of Richmond. The Kickers scored two goals in the first half through Robert Ssejjemba in the seventh minute and Trevor McEachron in the 36th minute. Richmond added a third in the 70th minute, but then Michigan fired back with two goals three minutes apart by Nik Djokic (73rd minute), and Xavier Balc (76th minute). The Kickers, however, sealed their victory in the 86th minute with a strike from Matt Watson. Richmond will take on the Cleveland City Stars in the next round.
At William Jewell College, the visiting Cleveland City Stars defeated the Kansas City Brass, 4-0. The Stars scored two goals in each half with Ian Leibbrant (two goals), Adam Moffat, Nigel Codrington putting the ball in the back of the net. The Stars will now face the Richmond Kickers in the next round.
In Cary, N.C., the Carolina Railhawks of the USL First Division defeated RWB Adria (Chicago, Il.) of USASA, 4-1, with the help of two Conally Endozien goals scored three minutes apart in the 31st and 34th minute. Joey Worthen opened the scoring in the fifth minute for the Railhawks, and Caleb Norkus closed out the scoring with a strike in the 64th minute. RWB Adria had a goal from Carlos Carrillo in the 76th minute and then had Sinisa Alebic sent off in the 89th minute. The Railhawks will face Bavarian FC in the second round.
Bavarian SC of the USASA completed a 1-0 upset victory over the Cincinnati Kings of the USL Second Division in Glendale, Wis., on a 10th minute goal by Steve Sperl. Bavarian SC will play the Carolina Railhawks in the second round.
The fans in Atlanta witnessed the highest scoring game of the evening as the Atlanta Silverbacks defeated the visiting Azzuri, 10-0. Six of the ten goals came in the second half and two Silverback players, Rodrigo Rios and Warren Ukah, completed hat tricks. Rios scored his goals in the 14th, 25th, and 90th minutes, while Ukah scored three goals in a row, all within a four minute span (84th minute, 86th minute, 88th minute). Atlanta will play the winner of the match between Lynch’s Irish Pub and the Charlotte Eagles, a match that will take place Wednesday, June 13.
Meanwhile, in South Carolina, the Charleston Battery were victorious over the Central Florida Kraze, 3-0. All three goals came in the first half courtesy of Stephen Armstrong in the fifth minute and two from Luke Vercollone in the 12th and 42nd minute. Down to ten men following the 76th minute ejection of Josiah Miller, the Kraze were unable to mount a second half comeback. Charleston now will take on the El Paso Patriots in the second round.
There was another upset in El Paso, Texas, as the El Paso Patriots (PDL) and Miami FC (USL-1) tied 2-2 during regulation play and El Paso won the ensuing shootout, 4-3, to advance to the next round. El Paso opened the scoring in the 21st minute thanks to Michael Griego, but Miami FC fought back and scored two goals within eight minutes courtesy of Zinho (70th minute), and Sean Fraser (78th minute). The Patriots scored an equalizer in the 89th minute (Omar Mora) forcing the game into overtime, followed by penalty kicks. El Paso will now play the Charleston Battery in the second round.
In St. Paul, Minn., the Minnesota Thunder defeated the El Paso Indios USA, 3-2. El Paso opened the scoring in the fifth minute on a goal by Marco Vidal, but the Thunder answered back with three goals courtesy of Jeremiah Bass (37th minute), Darren Spicer (40th minute), and Leo Gibson (66th minute). Joel Rios brought El Paso back within reach in the 77th minute, but Indios USA were unable to find an equalizer. The Thunder will now face the California Victory in the second round.
The California Victory lived up to their name and picked up a win on the road as they defeated the BYU Cougars, 2-1. A goal in each half by Raul Palomares in the 23rd minute and Yuri Morales in the 65th minute, were enough to keep the Cougars at bay despite an 89th minute strike by Daniel McKinley. The Victory will face the Minnesota Thunder in the second round.
The Seattle Sounders soundly beat Banat Arsenal, 4-1, in Tukwila, Wash., as the Sounders scored four first-half goals. Nathan Knox opened the scoring in the ninth minute but Arsenal fired back to tie the score on a goal by Hughes in the 18th minute. Sebastian Le Toux added two goals in a five-minute span (32nd minute and 37th minute) to put the Sounders back in the lead, and Gregory Howes scored in the 45th minute to make the score 4-1. The Sounders will take on fellow west coasters, the Portland Timbers, in the second round.
Two first half goals by the Portland Timbers were sufficient enough to defeat the Bakersfield Brigade, 2-0, in Bakersfield, Calif. Lawrence Olum scored in the fourth minute to give the Timbers an early lead which was doubled in the 18th minute by Luc Harrington. Portland will face off against the Seattle Sounders in the next round.
The second round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup will take place on Tuesday, June 26. The winning teams from the second round will face eight MLS squads in the third round on July 10.
At stake in the tournament is $180,000 in prize money broken down as follows: $100,000 to the champion, $50,000 to the runner up and $10,000 to the team which advances deepest in the tournament from each of the Division II, Division III and amateur levels.
The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, the U.S. Soccer Federation’s National Championship, is an annual competition open to all amateur and professional soccer teams affiliated with U.S. Soccer. It is the oldest annual team tournament in U.S. sports history and among the oldest soccer tournaments of its type in the world. In 1999, the competition was renamed to honor long-time soccer pioneer Lamar Hunt.
2007 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Schedule/Results
2007 LAMAR HUNT U.S. OPEN CUP FIRST ROUND
| No. | Date | Teams | Venue; Location | Result |
| 1 | June 12 | Aegean Hawks FC (Arlington, Va.) (USASA) at Harrisburg City Islanders (USL-2) | Skyline Sports Complex; Harrisburg, Pa. | 0-4 |
| 2 | June 12 | Crystal Palace Baltimore (USL-2) at Ocean City Barons (PDL) | Carey Stadium; Ocean City, N.J. | 0-1 |
| 3 | June 12 | Long Island Rough Riders (PDL) at Rochester Rhinos (USL-1) | PAETEC Park; Rochester, N.Y. | 0-1 |
| 4 | June 12 | Western Mass Pioneers (USL-2) at Danbury United (USASA) | Portuguese Cultural Center; Danbury, Conn. | 3-2 |
| 5 | June 12 | Michigan Bucks (PDL) at Richmond Kickers (USL-2) | UR Stadium; Richmond, Va. | 2-4 |
| 6 | June 12 | Cleveland City Stars (USL-2) at Kansas City Brass (PDL) | William Jewell College; Liberty, Mo. | 4-0 |
| 7 | June 12 | RWB Adria (Chicago, Ill.) (USASA) at Carolina Rail Hawks (USL-1) | SAS Soccer Park; Cary, N.C. | 1-4 |
| 8 | June 12 | Cincinnati Kings (USL-2) at Milwaukee Bavarians (USASA) | Bavarian Soccer Park; Glendale, Wis. | 0-1 |
| 9 | June 12 | Azzurri (Dallas, Texas) (USASA) at Atlanta Silverbacks (USL-1) | Remax Greater Atlanta Stadium; Atlanta, Ga. | 0-10 |
| 10 | June 13 | Lynch’s Irish Pub FC (Jacksonville, Fla.) (USASA) at Charlotte Eagles (USL-2) | UNCC Transamerica Field; Charlotte, N.C. | 0-2 |
| 11 | June 12 | Central Florida Kraze (PDL) at Charleston Battery (USL-1) | Blackbaud Stadium; Charleston, S.C. | 0-3 |
| 12 | June 12 | Miami FC (USL-1) at El Paso Patriots (PDL) | Patriots Stadium; El Paso, Texas | 2-2 (3-4 pk) |
| 13 | June 12 | El Paso Indios USA (USASA) at Minnesota Thunder (USL-1) | James Griffin Stadium; St. Paul, Minn. | 2-3 |
| 14 | June 12 | California Victory (USL-1) at BYU Cougars (PDL) | BYU South Stadium; Provo, Utah | 2-1 |
| 15 | June 12 | Banat Arsenal (Phoenix, Ariz.) (USASA) at Seattle Sounders (USL-1) | Starfire Sports Complex; Tukwila, Wash. | 1-4 |
| 16 | June 12 | Portland Timbers (USL-1) at Bakersfield Brigade (PDL) | Bakersfield Christian H.S.; Bakersfield, Calif. | 2-0 |
2007 LAMAR HUNT U.S. OPEN CUP SECOND ROUND
| No. | Date | Teams | Venue; Location | Time |
| 17 | June 26 | Harrisburg City Islanders (USL-2) at Ocean City Barons (PDL) | Carey Stadium; Ocean City, N.J. | 7:30 p.m. ET |
| 18 | June 26 | Western Mass Pioneers (USL-2) at Rochester Rhinos (USL-1) | PAETEC Park; Rochester, N.Y. | 7:35 p.m. ET |
| 19 | June 26 | Cleveland City Stars (USL-2) at Richmond Kickers (USL-2) | Univ. of Richmond Stadium; Richmond, Va. | 7 p.m. ET |
| 20 | June 26 | Milwaukee Bavarians (USASA) at Carolina Rail Hawks (USL-1) | SAS Soccer Park; Cary, N.C. | 7:30 p.m. ET |
| 21 | June 26 | Winner Game 10 at Atlanta Silverbacks (USL-1) | Remax Greater Atlanta Stadium; Atlanta, Ga. | 7:55 p.m. ET |
| 22 | June 26 | El Paso Patriots (PDL) at Charleston Battery (USL-1) | Blackbaud Stadium; Charleston, S.C. | 7:30 p.m. ET |
| 23 | June 26 | California Victory (USL-1) at Minnesota Thunder (USL-1) | James Griffin Stadium; St. Paul, Minn. | 7:05 p.m. ET |
| 24 | June 26 | Portland Timbers (USL-1) at Seattle Sounders (USL-1) | Starfire Sports Complex; Tukwila, Wash. | 7 p.m. PT |
2007 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Schedule June 26 Second Round 16 Round 1 winners face off
July 10 Third Round Round 2 winners face eight MLS teams
Aug. 7 Quarterfinals Round 3 winners
Sept. 4 Semifinals Quarterfinal winners
Oct. 2 Final Semifinal winners
Composition of participating teams: 8 Major League Soccer
9 United Soccer Leagues First Division
7 United Soccer Leagues Second Division
16 Amateur (8 USL Premier Development League, 8 USASA regional qualifiers)
Total Number of Teams: 40
Total Number of Games: 39
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