Saint Louis FC Cupset Highlights First Night of 2019 U.S. Open Cup Fourth Round

Columbus Crew, New England Revolution, Houston Dynamo, Los Angeles FC and San Jose Earthquakes Also Advance;
Charleston Battery-Atlanta United Match Postponed, to Be Rescheduled by Noon Wednesday;
Fourth Round Concludes Wednesday with Nine Matches Beginning at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN+

CHICAGO (June 11, 2019) – Saint Louis FC of the Division II USL Championship dispatched four-time Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup champs Chicago Fire (MLS) on the first night of Fourth Round action in the 2019 edition of U.S. Soccer’s national championship. The five remaining teams to punch their ticket to the Round of 16 all hail from U.S. Soccer’s top professional division, Major League Soccer.

The Fourth Round continues Wednesday night with nine games across the country beginning at 7 p.m. ET. All the remaining Fourth Round games will be available to watch on ESPN+.

After the conclusion of Wednesday’s showdowns, the Round of 16 Draw will be conducted the following morning on Thursday, June 13 at 10 a.m. ET from Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. The Draw will be broadcast on U.S. Open Cup’s Twitter account @opencup and ussoccer.com.

Two first half goals gave second division Saint Louis FC (USL Championship) the cushion they needed to see off Division I club Chicago Fire (MLS) 2-1 on the campus of Lindenwood University outside of Saint Louis, Mo.

While USL Championship teams put in good showings across the country on the first night of the Fourth Round, MLS Clubs fared better in their remaining matchups with lower division teams. Columbus Crew nipped visiting Pittsburgh Riverhounds 1-0, while defending Open Cup champions Houston Dynamo had to hang on against Austin Bold. After going up 3-0, the title holders eked out a 3-2 win against the visitors from Texas’ capitol city. On the west coast, San Jose Earthquakes fell behind twice to neighbors Sacramento Republic before fighting back for a 4-3 home win.

The pair of matches between MLS clubs tonight saw New England Revolution come back on the road to defeat the New York Red Bulls 3-2 after extra time, and Los Angeles FC steal a 2-0 from Real Salt Lake in Sandy, Utah.

Not all the matches scheduled for the night were able to be played as the clash between Charleston Battery and Atlanta United was abandoned due to an unplayable surface on the field in South Carolina. The match is due to be rescheduled by 12 p.m. ET on Wednesday, June 12.

FOURTH ROUND RECAPS:
Columbus Crew SC (MLS) 1, Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC (USL Championship) 0
David Accam knows how to score in the Open Cup and displayed his finishing ability as Columbus Crew SC edged Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC, 1-0, at MAPFRE Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. A 55^th-minute goal was Accam’s first in a Crew uniform as he got on the end of a perfectly-curled ball into the penalty area from Pedro Santos. Scheduled to be traded from Crew SC to Nashville SC effective Jan. 1, 2020, Accam now has scored in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup with three different teams – Chicago Fire and Philadelphia Union being the other two. Crew SC, the 2002 Open Cup champion, advances to the Round of 16.

Charleston Battery (USL Championship) vs. Atlanta United FC (MLS), postponed
This game will be rescheduled by 12 p.m. ET on Wednesday, June 12 after tournament officials determined the field to be unplayable at Charleston’s MUSC Health Stadium.

New York Red Bulls (MLS) 2, New England Revolution (MLS) 3 AET
Teal Bunbury wants Bruce Arena to trust him, so the powerful forward continues to score important goals for the New England Revolution’s new coach. Bunbury, the former U.S. National Teamer under Arena, lofted a weighted shot between two defenders and into the far corner to score the game-winner in the 109^th minute as New England Revolution surprised New York Red Bulls in overtime, 3-2, at Montclair State University Soccer Park in Montclair, N.J. Bunbury, wearing the captain’s armband, has new lease on life under Arena with three goals in the new coach’s first two games. Juan Agudelo scored with a cheeky back-heel in the first minute to open the scoring for New England, who nearly took a 2-0 lead, but Juan Fernandez Caicedo’s 22^nd-minute blast hit off the crossbar. Tim Barlow scored in the 19^th minute for the Red Bulls before teammate Christian Casseres, Jr. gave the home team a 2-1 lead in the 54^th. The New Jersey-based club was left to rue a missed penalty by Alex Muyl in the 67^th, as Bunbury pounced for the equalizer in the 85^th minute. Nearing the end of regulation tied at 2-2, the Red Bulls were gifted a big advantage when Luis Caicedo earned a second caution in the fifth minute of second half stoppage time. While his marching orders reduced New England to 10 men for the 30-minute overtime session, Bunbury’s winner ultimately pushed the Revs over the line to the Round of 16.

Houston Dynamo (MLS) 3, Austin Bold FC (USL Championship) 2
Thomas Martinez showed an early offensive flair, and Houston Dynamo held on to defeat Austin Bold FC, 3-2, at BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston. Martinez scored in the 14^th minute and assisted on Ronaldo Pena’s goal in the 31^st for the Dynamo, defending 2018 U.S. Open Cup champions. Matias Vera added another for Houston Dynamo in the 40^th minute to make it 3-0 in favor of the hosts by half time. Austin Bold FC made a game of it in the second 45 however as Xavier Baez found a breakthrough in the 48^th minute. Promise Isaac scored a second 10 minutes later, but Houston absorbed the pressure over the final 30 minutes to secure the win and a date in the Round of 16 for the sixth consecutive year.

Saint Louis FC (USL Championship) 2, Chicago Fire (MLS) 1
In their first ever victory over Major League Soccer competition, Saint Louis FC made two first-half goals stand up to beat Chicago Fire, 2-1, at Hunter Stadium on the campus St. Charles, Mo.’s Lindenwood University. Saint Louis FC goalkeeper Tomas Gomez made a dazzling triple save in the first half, and Austin Martz and Gay Abend scored to give the home team a 2-0 lead at halftime. Martz headed in an inch-perfect delivery from Russell Ciceroni in the 17^th minute, and Abend put a second into the net four minutes later with an assist from Lewis Hilton. Djordje Mihailovic earned a penalty for the Fire in the second half, but Nemanja Nikolic's on-target strike from the spot was the Chicago Fire’s lone goal despite outshooting Saint Louis FC, 18-6, in the loss. Saint Louis FC advance to the Round of 16 for the first time in club history.

Real Salt Lake (MLS) 0, Los Angeles FC (MLS) 3
Los Angeles FC scored three different ways in a 3-0 road victory over Real Salt Lake at Sandy, Utah’s Rio Tinto Stadium that barley saw the visitors take it out of first gear while cruising to victory. Carlos Vela slotted in a left-footed shot in the eighth minute to score in his first Open Cup game. Lee Nguyen doubled the lead when he got on the end of a sweetly-played through ball from Latif Blessing midway through the second half, and Adama Diomande cleaned up a free kick rebound to score LAFC’s third goal in second half injury time. For the second consecutive year, LAFC advances to the Round of 16.

San Jose Earthquakes (MLS) 4, Sacramento Republic FC (USL Championship) 3
Valeri ‘Vako’ Qazaishvili entered the game as a substitute in the second half and scored two goals as the San Jose Earthquakes outlasted Sacramento Republic, 4-3, at San Jose, Calif.’s Avaya Stadium. Qazaishvili blasted a low shot that was deflected into the near corner in the 78^th minute and added another in the 91^st as San Jose got the better of their regional rivals in a back-and-forth matchup. Sam Warner gave Sacramento Republic FC the lead in just the 2^nd minute, but Magnus Eriksson tied matters up eight minutes later. A terrific free kick from Villyan Bijev had SacRep up 2-1 in the 14^th minute, but Cristian Espinoza equalized from the penalty spot before halftime and the visitors couldn’t keep pace with ‘Vako’ in the second half, scoring a consolation third goal via Drew Skundrich after San Jose had already put four on the board. An Open Cup Semifinalist last season, San Jose Earthquakes are on to the Round of 16 for the fourth time in five years.

Fourth Round Results

Date	Game (home team listed first)	Result/Time	Venue
June 11	Columbus Crew SC (MLS) vs. Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC (USLC)	1-0	MAPFRE Stadium; Columbus, Ohio
June 11	New York Red Bulls (MLS) vs. New England Revolution (MLS)	2-2, 2-3 AET	Montclair State University Soccer Park; Montclair, N.J.
June 11	Charleston Battery (USLC) vs. Atlanta United FC (MLS)	Postponed (poor field conditions)	MUSC Health Stadium; Charleston, S.C.
June 11	Houston Dynamo (MLS) vs. Austin Bold (USLC)	3-0	BBVA Compass Stadium; Houston, Texas
June 11	Saint Louis FC (USLC) vs. Chicago Fire (MLS)	2-1	Hunter Stadium (Lindenwood Univ.); St. Charles, Mo.
June 11	Real Salt Lake (MLS) vs. Los Angeles FC (MLS)	0-3	Rio Tinto Stadium; Sandy, Utah
June 11	San Jose Earthquakes (MLS) vs. Sacramento Republic FC (USLC)	4-3	Avaya Stadium; San Jose, Calif.
June 12	D.C. United (MLS) vs. Philadelphia Union (MLS)	7 p.m. ET	Audi Field; Washington, D.C.
June 12	New York City FC (MLS) vs. North Carolina FC (USLC)	7 p.m. ET	Belson Stadium (St. John’s Univ.); Jamaica, N.Y.
June 12	FC Cincinnati (MLS) vs. Louisville City FC (USLC)	7:30 p.m. ET	Nippert Stadium (Univ. of Cincinnati); Cincinnati, Ohio
June 12*	Minnesota United FC (MLS) vs. Sporting Kansas City (MLS)	7 p.m. CT	Allianz Field; St. Paul, Minn.
June 12	FC Dallas (MLS) vs. OKC Energy FC (USLC)	7 p.m. CT	Westcott Field (Southern Methodist Univ.); Dallas, Texas
June 12	Memphis 901 FC (USLC) vs. Orlando City SC (MLS)	7:30 p.m. CT	Mike Rose Soccer Complex; Memphis, Tenn.
June 12	Colorado Rapids (MLS) vs. New Mexico United (USLC)	7 p.m. MT	Dick's Sporting Goods Park; Commerce City, Colo.
June 12	LA Galaxy (MLS) vs. Orange County FC (NPSL)	7:30 p.m. PT	Dignity Health Sports Park Track Stadium; Carson, Calif.
June 12	Seattle Sounders FC (MLS) vs. Portland Timbers (MLS)	7:30 p.m. PT	Cheney Stadium; Tacoma, Wash.

* Date changed 5/31

Round of 16 Draw - June 13
Round of 16 - June 19* (also June 18-23 if home team chooses and visiting team has at least three non-game days on each side of chosen date, with any overlap of U.S. MNT Gold Cup games on June 18 and June 22 disallowed)
Quarterfinals - July 10*
Semifinals - August 7*
Final - August 27 or 28

* Any game from the Fourth Round through to the Semifinal Round where one of the participants has a league game the following Friday will be moved up a day (exception to this occurs when the team's opponent is scheduled for a league game the preceding Sunday; in this case, the provisions in the 2019 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Handbook to determine the match date will prevail). In addition, any game chosen by U.S. Soccer to be broadcast nationally in any round is subject to being moved up a day. The Commissioner has the authority to set outside of the confirmed schedule the date for any match if such a change is in the best interests of the tournament.