BOYDS, Md. (June 20, 2018) – Orlando City SC advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2018 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup after a 1-1 (4-2) win in penalty kicks against D.C. United on Wednesday at Maryland SoccerPlex. Orlando City will face the Philadelphia Union in the quarterfinal on July 18.
“Cup games are always hard because it’s like a mini final and you have to play to a winner,” Lions interim head coach Bobby Murphy said. “With our guys, the change of the shape, the weather delay - there was just a lot thrown at us tonight. I thought the guys coped with it really well, even the patches in the game where we were up against it and they were on top of us. We didn’t capitulate. We dug in and held firm. They stuck together and they fought. Penalties are always a toss up so you don’t feel great about winning in penalties but you’re sure happy to move on.”
Murphy rolled out a three-back lineup with captain Jonathan Spector, Lamine Sané and Amro Tarek before goalkeeper Earl Edwards, Jr. Mohamed El-Munir and RJ Allen were the wingbacks as Cristian Higuita and Sacha Kljestan manned the midfield. Chris Mueller, Stéfano Pinho and Justin Meram were the forwards.
The match was paused in the sixth minute for a 90-minute lightning delay.
D.C. opened the scoring in the ninth minute when Luciano Acosta rifled a close-range shot into the net.
Meram equalized in the 17th minute after he took a pass from Kljestan that went through a defender’s legs and shot it through United goalkeeper Steve Clark. Higuita began the sequence, working it to Mueller and then Allen.
City was positive for the remainder of the half but couldn’t find the breakthrough. Edwards came up huge early in the second half and again late on as D.C. pressed. City’s 2015 third-round SuperDraft pick made an incredible save in the 97th minute when he reached behind him and pulled the ball off the line and through his legs.
After 120 minutes with the game tied at one, the match moved to penalty kicks. Will Johnson got things started with a cool finish before Edwards parried away Yamil Asad’s attempt. Kljestan slotted his PK home before Acosta tried a chip but hit the bar. Mueller also scored, Jose Villarreal had his shot saved but Josué Colmán scored to give City the 4-2 win.
It is the first time City advances to the quarterfinals since 2015.
The Lions return to Major League Soccer (MLS) play when they host the Montreal Impact on June 23. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET at Orlando City Stadium.
Tickets to all City home matches are available at OrlandoCitySC.com or by calling 855-ORL-CITY.
Match Notes
- M Sacha Kljestan picked up his fourth assist in his second U.S. Open Cup game of 2018.
- F Justin Meram scored his second goal with City, and his first in the Open Cup with the team.
- Orlando City improves to 2-0 in penalty shootouts in the Open Cup in the Club’s MLS era.
Scoring Summary:
DC - Luciano Acosta (Darren Mattocks) 10’
ORL - Justin Meram (Sacha Kljestan) 17’
Penalties:
ORL - Will Johnson (goal - 1-0)
DC - Yamil Asad (save - 1-0)
ORL - Sacha Kljestan (goal - 2-0)
DC - Luciano Acosta (crossbar - 2-0)
ORL - Chris Mueller (goal - 3-0)
DC - Ian Harkes (goal - 3-1)
ORL - Jose Villarreal (save - 3-1)
DC - Patrick Mullins (goal - 3-2)
ORL - Josué Colmán (goal - 4-2)
Misconduct Summary:
DC - Oniel Fisher (Yellow Card) 24’
DC - Chris Durkin (Yellow Card) 52’
DC - Chris Durkin (Second Yellow, Red Card) 99’
ORL - Mohamed El-Munir (Yellow Card) 116’
ORL - Chris Mueller (Yellow Card) 117’
Lineups/Substitutions:
D.C. United - GK Steve Clark, D Joseph Mora (Jalen Robinson 45+1’), Steve Birnbaum, Frederic Brillant, Oniel Fisher, M Chris Durkin, Yamil Asad, Luciano Acosta, Ian Harkes, Zoltan Stieber (Junior Moreno 102’), F Darren Mattocks (Patrick Mullins 112’)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Travis Worra, Jared Jeffrey, Dane Kelly, Bruno Miranda
Orlando City SC - GK Earl Edwards, Jr., D Amro Tarek, ⓒ Jonathan Spector, Lamine Sané, M Mohamed El-Munir, Sacha Kljestan, Cristian Higuita (Will Johnson 82’), RJ Allen, F Justin Meram (Jose Villarreal 120+1’), Stéfano Pinho (Josué Colmán 74’), Chris Mueller
Substitutes Not Used: GK Joe Bendik, D Scott Sutter, M Richie Laryea, Tony Rocha
Details of the Game:
Time: 7 p.m. ET
Weather: Rainy
Date: June 20, 2018
Attendance: 3,254
Stats:
Possession:
DC - 54.1 %
ORL - 45.9 %
Shots:
DC - 11
ORL - 21
Saves:
DC - 2
ORL - 5
Fouls:
DC - 10
ORL - 14
Corners:
DC - 4
ORL - 6
