There were less goals - and slightly less excitement - as Louisville City welcomed Greenville Triumph to a one-third full Lynn Family Stadium, the in-form USL Championship side wasting no time in going ahead thanks to a second minute header from Sean Trotsch. Triuimph are playing well themselves in USL League One and they gave as good as they got, with no further goals seeing the game reach half-time at 1-0. Just as they had in the first half, City made a quick start to the second, the prolific Wilson Harris tapping from close range with 49 minutes on the clock, and both Harris and Wilson Perez went close to increasing Louisville's lead before Triumph dragged themselves back into the contest. That two goal lead looked momentarily vulnerable three minutes into stoppage time when Hayden Anderson finished a set piece move to make it 2-1, only for Jorge Gonzalez to restore City's two-goal advantage at the 97 minute mark. Despite a good chance for Triumph substitute Zion Scarlett, it finished 3-1. It also finished 3-1 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where the USL Championship's New Mexico United took on Lubbock Matadors of the fourth-tier NPSL. For some horrible reason, the game was moved to the gridiron-marked pitch at Rio Rancho High School, which might explain why it took almost an hour to find a goal. That came courtesy of a close-range finish from United veteran Harry Swartz on 58 minutes, and Daniel Bruce - who had made the final pass to Swartz for the first goal - added a second under a minute later, the Matadors' cup dreams looking in tatters. That was pretty much confirmed three minutes later when Mukwelle Akale scored from a free-kick to make it 3-0 but, to their credit, Lubbock never gave up and earned a consolation in stoppage time when the ever-lively Shuma Sasaki was brought down and converted the subsequent spot-kick. Matadors return to league action at the weekend but they've made a name for themselves here.
The grudge match at Detroit City's Keyworth Stadium began tamely, although the referee did issue three yellow cards in the first-half. Both sides had their chances but Michigan Stars' Tatenda Mukruva was definitely the busiest of the two goalkeepers. In the second-half, it was almost all one-way traffic, especially once Michigan's Hunter Olson was given his second yellow card for a silly foul in the 78th minute, but it looked like the away side from NISA would at least take it to extra-time as ninety minutes passed at 0-0. There was plenty of stoppage time, however, and certainly enough for Maxi Rodriguez to chase a through ball and give Le Rouge a lead they held onto, despite losing Brett Levis to a second yellow before the final whistle. 1-0 to Detroit City and we're still waiting to hear about the levels of darkness, smoke, and noise present from Stars' owner George Juncaj. The final match on Tuesday came from the West Coast where Oakland Roots welcomed fourth-tier El Farolito to their Hayward, California, home. Something of a local derby (the visitors are based across the Bay in San Francisco) and a repeat of a Second Round game from last year, there was an edge on the field, if not on the terraces, something heightened when the semi-professionals took a 1-0 lead in the twelfth minute through Honduran striker Dembor Benson. Roots stepped up their game at this point but El Farolito held firm, at least until first-half stoppage time when Guillermo Diaz headed home from a set-piece. The chances of an upset began to recede six minutes into the second-half when young midfielder Edgard Kreye was given a second yellow card and ordered off the field, but the visitors still had their chances to win the game, with Benson a constant menace. Roots brought eighteen-year-old Ali Elmasnaouy on with five minutes to go for his first-team debut, but eleven minutes of stoppage time still couldn't separate the teams. Extra-time beckoned and this is when Elmasnaouy wrote his name into the US Open Cup book with a 98th minute close range effort to give Oakland the lead for the first time. 2-1 is how it stayed, despite Trayvonne Lewis picking up a second yellow just after half-time in extra-time.
Wednesday eleven matches began with a North Carolina derby in Cary between USL Championship new kids North Carolina FC and Carolina Core of MLS Next Pro. As a test of the independent side's strength against a non-reserve team - MLS Next Pro contains all MLS reserve teams, save for Carolina and Chattanooga FC - it was a very one-sided affair, with the home side registering eight shots on target to Core's none, although Julian Placias's goal on the hour was the only one that found the net, the USL-C side going through 1-0. It was also local derby time in Virginia, where USL League One's Richmond Kickers were hosting USL Championship side Loudoun United at City Stadium. It was a very balanced game, with the visitors shading possession, but goal chances evenly were shared and both defences in good shape, 120 minutes of action unable to find a winner or, indeed, a goal. The penalty shoot-out saw nine straight spot-kicks converted until Richmond's Artur Bosua saw his effort saved by Dane Jacomen in the Loudoun goal to send the youngsters through.
It looked like penalties might also be required up in Connecticut, where the USL Championship's Hartford Athletic were at home to New York City FC II of MLS Next Pro. There were over forty shots at goal during the game, with fifteen of them finding the target, but it took over an hour for one to hit the net, Taylor Calheira's left-foot tap-in giving the baby Pigeons the lead. Athletic worked hard to get back into the game and got their reward when Romario Williams was fouled by Alexander Hauschild in the box, picking himself up to convert the penalty. That took the game to extra-time and it was Hartford's turn to take the lead, Deshane Beckford latching onto the end of Williams's header on 92 minutes. Parity lasted for just seven minutes before Calheira grabbed his second, a point-blank header. Hartford's legs began to tire at this point and, just as penalties looked inevitable, NYCFCII scored the winner when sixteen-year-old Maximo Carrizo fired home. There were no more goals and the 3-2 win to the third-tier side was slightly tarnished by a hullabaloo that saw Beckford and Markus Epps see red for the home side, with the visitors' Christopher Tiao also dismissed for his part in the ruckus.
The lowest-ranking side still left in the competition, Miami United, were on their travels to Memphis 901 of the USL Championship. United, who are playing in the fifth-tier UPSL this season, knocked out two professional sides to get this far and - in everything other than goals scored on the night - looked as capable as their hosts from three tiers above. It is goals, though, that settle games, and Nighte Pickering's brace in the 31st and 85th minutes was the difference between the sides, the last of the lower-tier teams falling at this hurdle. Another Miami side, The Miami FC of the USL Championship, were at home to USL League One's South Georgia Tormenta and you could have been forgiven for expecting they would short work of the visitors, even if Miami are going through something of a rebuild. However, the apple cart was upset in the twelfth minute when Jake Dengler headed home from a set-piece, and although Luisinho fired home an equaliser eight minutes later, the third-tier side were still very much in the game. That looked to be especially the case four minutes into first-half stoppage time when goalkeeper Khadim Ndiaye was shown a straight red for violent conduct in the aftermath of being fouled and was replaced by Gabriel Rodriguez, but Miami took the lead almost straight after, going into the break 2-1 up thanks to Luisinho's second. Tormenta took control from the restart and the home side hadn't even had a shot on goal before Irish striker scored a nice equaliser on 69 minutes. There were chances for both sides as the clock ticked down and, just when it seemed like extra-time would be called upon, Tormenta took the lead again, this time through Callum Stretch's header from a corner. Miami didn't have time to pick themselves back up before Sebastian Vivas scored Tormenta's fourth, sending the Championship side tumbling out at the same stage they exited last year, only this time to lower-tier opposition rather than Inter Miami.
Birmingham Legion reached the quarterfinals last year and hoped that the visit of Chattanooga Red Wolves would be the start of another cup run. As in Miami, the USL Championship hosts found themselves a goal down after twelve minutes when Leo Folla headed home from a free-kick for Chattanooga, a lead they held through the half-time break before Stefano Pinho's header from a corner - his first goal since his move from Indy Eleven over the winter - brought the sides level three minutes into the second-half. Legion had the better of the action afterwards but Matt van Oekel conceded a second penalty in four days when he brought down Ropapa Mensah in the box on 76 minutes, Ricky Ruiz stepping up to restore Red Wolves' lead. Four minutes later, another corner and another Pinho header made it 2-2, which is how it stayed until the final whistle, extra-time called on in Alabama, but not before Chattanooga's Gustavo Fernandes was shown a red card for a foul on the Brazilian striker. The extra man made all the difference in extra-time and Pinho scored another two - the first from another corner - to send Legion through. With NYCFCII having defeated USL Championship opponents in Hartford Athletic, hopes that MLS Next Pro rivals Chicago Fire II might do the same against Indy Eleven at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgewater, Illinois, and with eleven shots on target to Indy's two, chances were that they'd be warranted. However, as in Memphis, goals are the only statistic that matters and it was Indy's fourth minute goal from Douglas Martinez that separated the teams, despite Lil' Fire's overwhelming dominance of the game.
Further into the Midwest, FC Tulsa of the USL Championship hosted USL-1 Northern Colorado Hailstorm at the Hurricane Track & Soccer Stadium having started the season in mixed form. The first clear chance of the game went to the visitors as Brecc Evans saw his header saved by Tulsa goalkeeper Michael Creek in the 34th minute. Four minutes later, Noah Powder fouled Blaine Ferri in the Hailstorm box and Diogo Pacheco put Tulsa 1-0 ahead with the resulting penalty. They made it 2-0 a minute into first-half stoppage time when Milo Yosef got on the end of a set-piece but it was still anyone's game as the second-half kicked off. Sebastian Sanchez and Bradley Bourgeois missed chances to make it 3-0 for Tulsa and that allowed Hailstorm back into the game when Isidro Martinez reduced the arrears in the 65th minute. Ethan Hoard and David Garcia both went close to equalising as the clock ran out, but the home side held strong for a 2-1 win. Another Midwest side - Union Omaha of USL-1 - were at home to a decidedly out of form El Paso Locomotive, and a goalless first 45 minutes was almost upset in the twelve minutes of stoppage time when Amando Moreno fired over from a penalty given to the visitors after a Nortei Nortey handball. The big action in the second-half was also reserved for the very end as Noah Dollenmayer saw red for El Paso after a bad foul on Marco Milanese, with another nine minutes of time added on still not producing a goal. That was the same story in extra-time, despite chances for both sides, and the peanlty shoot-out was called upon. Omaha took the first penalty and ended up netting all five of their spot-kicks, meaning Rashid Nuhu's save from Gonzalo Pelua's third kick for El Paso made the difference, something of an upset (if a low level one).
New to NISA this year, Irvine Zeta looked handy in winning through to the third round and have started positively in the league, although they are still to record their first league win. They travelled north to Seaside, California, last night to face a handy looking Monterey Bay FC side that beat San Jose Earthquakes of MLS at this stage last year. Jerry Ayon, signed just three days ago from San Jose's reserve side The Town FC, opened the scoring for the home side on his debut, a header from a Rafael Baca cross in the 32nd minute. Zeta had a couple of chances to equalise either side of half-time and finally drew level just past the hour when George Almeida found the bottom right corner. Parity lasted for just three minutes, however, before Ayon scored again, sending Monterey through to a possible reunion with the Quakes.
The final game of the first round came from Las Vegas, where Jose Bautista's Las Vegas Lights hosted Spokane Velocity. Lights look a much better side this season and even put three wins in a row together until defeat at the weekend to Monterey Bay, but Velocity look to be enjoying things as USL-1's newest club. The first half was a fairly even affair and the deadlock was only broken in the 51st minute when Valentin Noel fired home from a Solomon Assante pass to give the home side the lead. Las Vegas had the better of the rest of the game, although both Kimarni Smith and Colin Fernandez had shots blocked for Velocity, and it looked like a home win banker when Derek Waldeck was given a second yellow for his reaction to being fouled three minutes into stoppage time. As it turned out, that extra time added on gave Spokane the chance to level, a long distance effort from Andre Lewis sending the game into extra-time. Both sides had chances to find a winner but it was Lights' Norway-born Dominican Republic international Riki Alba who scored next, his 112th minute strike ultimately the difference between the teams.
The sixteen winners - twelve USL Championship sides and four third-tier representatives from USL-1 and MLS Next Pro - will enter tonight's draw, along with the top eight from last year's USL, reigning champions Houston Dynamo, and - to their shame - MLS's bottom seven from the 2023 season.
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