How South Georgia’s Tormenta Joined the Open Cup Giant-Killers Club
South Georgia Tormenta have become one of the Open Cup’s most reliable Div. III Cinderellas – and Michael Battista takes a closer look at the hows and whys of it.
South Georgia Tormenta FC have been here before.
The USL League One side have made a habit of beating their so-called betters in American Soccer’s most historic tournament, starting back in 2022.
These are games that, by basic logic, they shouldn’t be winning. “When we get those chances to express ourselves against USL championship sides [above them in the country’s soccer pyramid] I think we really take advantage of it,” said Jake Dengler, veteran defender and one of the team’s scorers in the previous round’s 4-2 upset over Miami FC.
Dengler and the rest of the players, whose experiences in the Open Cup range from debutants to champions, don’t care about expectations. Neither do the club’s fans, who embody best what Statesboro, Georgia – among the smallest markets in American pro sports – is as a community.
The Devil Down in Georgia
South Georgia Tormenta tend to (no pun intended) torment higher-division teams. They’ve never lost to a USL Championship (Div. II) side in the U.S. Open Cup since making their tournament debut three years ago. The 2022 edition saw the club reach the Round of 32 by beating Charleston Battery and Birmingham Legion FC both, before falling to a pre-Messi Inter Miami CF of Major League Soccer.
It’s all-for-one-and-one-for-all in Statesboro
They’re now one of four Division III teams still alive in the 2024 U.S. Open Cup, and the upcoming rematch against the USL Championship-topping Battery is on the road at Patriots Point. Whoever wins will host the winner of Charlotte Independence’s game against MLS’ Atlanta United FC. The chance to host a higher-division team for the second time ever (Rio Grande Valley Toros was the first, in 2023) is a huge incentive.
“I think every lower-level team wants to play somebody in the league above,” said Darrin Van Tassell, Tormenta co-owner and founder. “It was certainly a big deal for those amateur teams that we played early [like this year’s First Round amateur opponents FC America CFL Spurs] and we recognize that.”
It’s the same for the fans who’ve watched the team grow up from an amateur side. Maria Smith knows how important these types of experiences are in building a culture. Thinking back to the Open Cup games, some of which she traveled for, she can’t help but say the loss to Inter Miami is her favorite memory.
“Even though it was a loss, the experience that they get from actually having that connection with such a team is valuable,” she said. “They get to say, ‘hey, you know, we did what we can and we can learn from it’.”
Conor Doyle is the Tormenta captain – and a U.S. Open Cup legend
Tormenta got a first taste of the Open Cup in 2018 as an amateur team from the PDL (now USL League Two), winning in the First Round but falling to Charleston Battery (yes, them again) in the next. However, 2019 brought with it a unique opportunity as both the newly created first team and the forerunner PDL team competed in the same tournament.
While the pros fell in their first game, Tormenta 2 pulled off the Cupset over USL League One side Chattanooga Red Wolves SC. That team was led by eventual first team coach Ian Cameron, meaning he has the honor of being a part of all five Tormenta Cupsets.
Another man who took part in that year’s shock result was Conor Doyle, who was on the losing Chattanooga Red Wolves side and who now wears the Ibis crest of South Georgia Tormenta.
A Stepping Stone
Tormenta followed up the Round of 32 appearance in the 2023 tournament by going on to win a USL League One title, but they also know their role in the U.S. Soccer pyramid. Players are developed there in Statesboro and, hopefully, they then go on to bigger and better things.
Miami FC, the USL Championship side Tormenta upset in the last round, has had multiple Statesboro alumni in recent years, including Daltyn Knutson and Gabrial Cabral. Kazaiah Sterling, the Tottenham Hotspur product who made his American name in Statesboro, is now with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds in the USL Championship. Even D.C. United midfielder Conner Antley can trace his roots back to Statesboro. The list goes on.
Dengler has seen the roster change, the ages get younger as he gets older (currently 24). And it's all part of the plan for what Tormenta wants to be in the U.S. Soccer ecosystem.
“It's a great platform for us because Tormenta is supposed to be a place that you want to come to prove yourself and get out,” he said. “You don't want to stay at Tormentor forever.”
Maria Smith, supporting the team for years, understands this better than most. Not because she’s originally from England or because she’s a Manchester United fan who knows bigger teams rule the pecking order, but because she’s a Pre-K teacher.
Jake Dengler scored in the last round for Tormenta
She knows the value of a solid foundation for future outcomes.
“When children come through your class and you see them graduate, you're just so proud of them. You support them no matter what,” Smith said. “We've already had a couple of games where some of our former players have come back and played against us. But we're gonna high-five them and hug them just the same way.”
Experienced Resumes
Co-captain Conor Doyle knows how much of an impact the Open Cup can have on a team and a career. The 32-year-old signed a professional contract with English Championship side Derby County F.C. early on in his playing days and took part in the famous F.A. Cup while there.
But his first taste of the Open Cup came when he was sent back to the States on a six-month loan with D.C. United in 2013. United were in the midst of a season to forget, one where they’d finish last in Major League Soccer with the lowest points total in league history, but Doyle was able to play a role in the team’s remarkable run to the 2013 Open Cup Final
Sports fans in Statesboro have taken to Tormenta since the club’s founding
“It was my first experience of a big tournament and getting to play in it – and then win it,” he said. “You could see how much it meant to everyone because of the treacherous season that they had endured and we were continuing to endure.”
“Winning trophies is always special and it brings a group closer together,” added Doyle. “I’ll never forget those celebrations after the Final.”
Doyle’s career never really left the Open Cup sphere of influence. In 2022, he was a part of another USL League One’s side’s date with history when his Union Omaha reached the Quarterfinals on the backs of two MLS Cupsets. He can remember the thousand-plus fans who traveled to Sporting Kansas City that year. Sitting in the corner of Children’s Mercy Park, they cheered the Nebraska underdogs even in heavy defeat.
Tormenta looked likely winners from the opening kick-off against the Miami FC
“[The fans] rally around and they know it means when they see these big names that could be coming into a small city like Statesboro,” Doyle said. “You can't get anything better than that.”
Dengler attests to the same after seeing it first-hand during his time in Statesboro.
“Tormenta was definitely the first time I actually got a true run of it [the Open Cup] and we actually got Charleston Battery in that first game [in 2022],” said Dengler, who can still remember the jitters he had making his Open Cup debut with amateur heroes FC Baltimore Christos back in 2019.
A Statement in Statesboro
Dengler also remembers the feelings of traveling to Statesboro for the first time. He hit dirt roads pretty quick after leaving the city limits.
But he admits that after three years, including recently signing a new contract to stay with Tormenta, the city – and its giant corn fields – feels like home. He gets recognized on the street there and felt welcomed from his first days in town.
“I've told a lot of people Statesboro is what you make it,” said Dengler. “These past three years, I think we made it a really fun place as a team and the culture here is just amazing.”
Van Tassell knows that as his team grows, including the eventual completion of the under-construction Tormenta Stadium District, the culture will only expand. Shopping, entertainment and housing all connected by soccer in this little town in a quiet corner of Georgia.
“I think the best of college towns [Statesboro is home to Georgia Southern University] really love themselves. I think that they wish more people knew about them and we're really eager for others to hear our story,” said Van Tassell, doing the hard work in the Front Office. “We're not the capital cities of our states. And we certainly aren't the biggest in the country.
“I think it's a reminder that if you support somebody, they want to be a part of you also,” he added. “That’s what’s happening here. And it's special.”
Michael Battista is an award-winning journalist and regular contributor to TheCup.us, Hudson River Blue, & New York Sports Nation. Follow him at @MichaelBattista on X/Twitter.