USOC Third Round Results: Revenge of the Minnows

By: Laurie | July 4th, 2009

(Weekend Quiz is coming soon, after I fill up on creativity and caffeine. Promise.)

I know you’re wondering how the third round came out in my Best US Tournament Nobody Pays Attention To, the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup.

Remember how I said that Round 3 is the first round that MLS is involved in, but that it’s not at all unusual for lower-division teams to advance past this round because MLS sides don’t necessarily take this tournament all that seriously in the early stages? I was not kidding.

On Tuesday, the first night, when six of the eight matches were played, four MLS sides were knocked out: Columbus, Chicago, Chivas and New England. And two of those, Chicago and New England, were eliminated by USL-2 sides. (Two full levels below MLS. This would be like Premiership clubs getting knocked off by League One sides in the FA Cup.)

How embarrassing. Kind of made me wonder of Commissioner Don Garber then got on the phone to the coaches of Seattle and Houston, Wednesday’s MLS teams, and said something along the lines of, “Stop the bleeding! This is making us look bad!”

We may never know, but both of Wednesday’s MLS sides were victorious. Not coincidentally, Seattle’s superstar-in-the-making, Fredy Montero, made an unexpected appearance in the second half of their game with Portland when things were tighter than expected.

Results of last week’s matches (links are the the Offside team blog match reports), Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Third Round. Advancing teams in bold.

June 30

Rochester (USL-1) 1:1 Columbus (MLS)
Rochester advance on PKs 5-3

Wilmington (USL-2) 1:0 Chicago (MLS)

New England (MLS) 1:2 (aet) Harrisburg (USL-2)

D.C. United (MLS) 2:0 Ocean City (PDL)

Charleston (USL-1) 3:1 Chivas USA (MLS)

Minnesota (USL-1) 3:3 Kansas City (MLS)
Kansas City advance on PKs 4-2

July 1

Austin (USL-1) 0:2 Houston (MLS)

Portland (USL-1) 1:2 Seattle (MLS)

Quarterfinal pairings, from the Open Cup site. All games scheduled this Tuesday, July 7:

Harrisburg City Islanders (USL-2) at D.C. United (MLS)
Maryland Soccerplex – Boyds, MD | 7:30 p.m.
Broadcast: TBA

Wilmington Hammerheads (USL-2) at Rochester Rhinos (USL-1)
Marina Auto Stadium – Rochester, NY | 7 p.m.
Broadcast: TBA

Houston Dynamo (MLS) at Charleston Battery (USL-1)
Blackbaud Stadium – Charleston, SC | 7:30 p.m.
Broadcast: USLLive.com

Kansas City Wizards (MLS) at Seattle Sounders F.C. (MLS)
Starfire Sports Complex – Tukwila, WA | 10 p.m.
Broadcast: Seattle Online Radio | No USLLive.com

Are you a visual kind of person who likes a bracket format? Here you go.