Seattle, Wash., (Tuesday, August 5, 2003) - The San Jose Earthquakes were eliminated from the 2003 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup following a 1-0 loss to the A-League's Seattle Sounders on Tuesday night at Husky Field at the University of Washington.
The Earthquakes dominated the match for most of the game, controlling the ball throughout the match and out-shooting Seattle 19-4. The Sounders were able to make a 41st minute goal by Kyle Smith stand up despite enormous San Jose pressure, eliminating the Quakes from the Open Cup and marking the first time ever that San Jose has failed to qualify for the quarterfinal round of the tournament.
The Quakes had their first opportunity to score in the 14th minute following a corner kick from the right side of the field by Jeff Agoos. Agoos sent a short kick to midfielder Brian Mullan, who fired a pass back to Agoos, allowing the defender to chip a ball into the penalty box. San Jose defender Craig Waibel flicked the ball towards the far post with his head, where the Quakes Brian Ching headed the ball down and toward the goal. Seattle goalkeeper Rich Cullen and a Sounders defender were able to combine to knock the ball off the goal line.
The Quakes continued to pressure the Seattle goal in the 21st minute, as Agoos delivered a long ball down the left sideline to a streaking Ian Russell. Russell and Seattle defender Ryan Edwards went for the ball, as did Cullen, who then collided with Edwards, allowing Russell to move in alone toward the goal. As Russell moved forward, referee David Simon whistled the play dead, calling a foul on Russell.
San Jose had its best opportunity of the game thwarted by Cullen in the 40th minute when Corrales knocked down a Seattle clearance in the middle of the field following a flurry of three straight Quakes corner kicks from the left side. Corrales found Manny Lagos making a run behind the Seattle defense in the middle of the field, leaving the Quakes forward alone with Cullen. Lagos took a dribble toward the advancing Seattle goalkeeper before sending a shot to his right that Cullen was able to knock down.
Seattle took the lead just a minute later when Cullen sent the ball upfield. The Sounders moved the ball to Andrew Gregor about 35-yards away from the San Jose goal. Gregor found Seattle forward Kyle Smith streaking behind the San Jose defense on the right side of the penalty box, and Smith moved in alone on San Jose goalkeeper Pat Onstad. Smith fired a shot on the ground to the left of Onstad, that bounced off the far post and into the net for a 1-0 lead.
San Jose opened the second half with an all-out assault on the Seattle net. U.S. National Team players Landon Donovan and Richard Mulrooney entered the game for San Jose after half-time, and the Quakes nearly scored on a Lagos shot in the 54th minute off a cross from Russell. Ching had another opportunity to score on a header in the 81st minute that barely went over the crossbar following a cross from Jamil Walker.
The Quakes pressured the Sounders goal relentlessly in the final ten minutes, as Seattle was forced to defend with seven players on the back-line. The Sounders were held without a shot in the second half, and only seriously threatened the San Jose goal once on a cross in the 53rd minute that got past Onstad but was cleared away by Todd Dunivant. The Quakes had numerous attempts on goal in the second half, leading to 11 corner kicks, but the Quakes best attempts were either off the mark or blocked by Cullen.
The Earthquakes continue their busy week with a return to MLS action on Friday, August 8 in a battle of the top teams in the Western Conference as they face the Kansas City Wizards at 5:00 p.m. PT at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City. The game will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Net and on KABL 960 AM.
Notes:
-Since 1997, the Earthquakes are now 7-6 in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.
-The Sounders now lead the all-time series against the Earthquakes 3-2-1.
-Due to U.S. National Team commitments, the Earthquakes Landon Donovan and Richard Mulrooney played in their first game for the Quakes since July 2, a 4-4 tie with the MetroStars.
-Arturo Alvarez was not with the Earthquakes tonight. Alvarez remained in Houston to rest following a busy two weeks that saw him play four games for the U.S. Under-18 National Team at the Northern Ireland Milk Cup and then help the U.S. Under-20 National Team to a 4-0 record at the USASA Houston Soccer Festival.
Quotes:
Frank Yallop, on game: "We are obviously disappointed in the result. We had a number of chances, and we had enough opportunities to score at least one goal - we probably had six or seven really good chances. Once they scored, I thought they defended well, but we still need to do better in front of the net."
Jeff Agoos, on game: "I thought we dominated every statistical category tonight except the one that matters the most, unfortunately. Games are decided by goals and we came up short in that area tonight. We wish Seattle the best the rest of the way in the Open Cup."
Brian Mullan, on Seattle Sounders: "They have a lot of quality players on their team. They scored a good goal in the first half, and then made the most of it."
Ian Russell, on game: "It is really frustrating for us. They got that one chance and scored on it, which is a really frustrating way to lose. I thought we dominated the game, but we couldn't score, and now we are out of the Cup."
Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup
San Jose Earthquakes 0, Seattle Sounders 1
Husky Stadium, Seattle, Wash. Attendance: 2,510
1 2 F
San Jose Earthquakes 0 0 0
Seattle Sounders 1 0 1
Lineups
SJ - GK Pat Onstad, D Craig Waibel (Richard Mulrooney, 63rd), D Eddie Robinson, D Jeff Agoos, D Todd Dunivant, M Brian Mullan, M Ramiro Corrales, M Ronnie Ekelund (Jamil Walker, 76th), M Ian Russell (Chris Ronér, 80th), F Manny Lagos (Landon Donovan, 57th), F Brian Ching
SEA - GK Rich Cullen, D Danny Jackson, D Ryan Edwards, D Zach Scott, D Scott Jenkins, M Jason Farrell, M Andrew Gregor, M Viet Nguyen (Darren Sawatzky, 73rd), M Alex Bengard (Sean Michael-Callahan, 78th) F Marco Velez (Chad Brown, 86th) F Kyle Smith (Kevin Sakuda, 63rd)
Scoring Summary
Smith (Bengard), SEA, 41st.
Cautions/Ejections
Russell (Yellow), SJ, 19th; Gregor (Yellow), SEA, 25th; Jenkins (Yellow), SEA, 33rd; Ekelund (Yellow), SJ, 69th; Edwards (Yellow), SEA, 71st; Sakuda (Yellow), SEA, 82nd; Cullen, (Yellow), SEA, 89th; Donovan (Yellow), SJ, 90th;
Statistics SJ SEA
Shots 19 4
Saves 1 9
Fouls 20 16
Offside 3 3
Corner Kicks 11 0
