Richmond Kickers News Release -- www.richmondkickers.com
Monday, May 27, 2013
RICHMOND, Va. – The Richmond Kickers host Major League Soccer’s D.C. United in the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Tuesday night, presented by Chicken Fiesta. The gates open at City Stadium at 6 p.m. with food trucks, draft beer trucks and live music from The Fender Benders and kickoff is set for 7 p.m. Tickets are on sale now for $15, youth and adult, at RichmondKickers.com. The winner of Tuesday’s match will host the winner of the Philadelphia Union (MLS)/Ocean City Nor’easters (PDL) game in the Fourth Round on Wednesday, June 12.
“Bringing MLS to City Stadium for the Open Cup is one of our main team objectives at the start of the season,” said Leigh Cowlishaw, Richmond Kickers Director of Soccer. “Tuesday’s game promises to be a special occasion for the players, club and supporters alike.”
The Kickers enter Tuesday’s third-round match following a decisive 4-1 win over USASA side Icon FC in the second round one week earlier. Slated to face D.C. United for the 12th time in franchise history, Richmond last hosted their MLS affiliate in the U.S. Open Cup on May 29, 2012 when United edged the Kickers 2-1 in overtime to tip the 5-4-1 all-time series record slightly in their favor. The clubs met four times previously in the U.S. Open Cup, including a 2004 upset when the Kickers ousted the black-and-red, 2-1, in the Third Round at City Stadium.
The 2013 season marks the 15th time the Richmond Kickers have qualified for the U.S. Open Cup over the past 21 seasons, posting an overall record of 25-13 during tournament play. With a reputation of defeating MLS teams, the Kickers made history in 2011 when they became the first lower division team to defeat back-to-back MLS teams on the road.
The Kickers claimed the U.S. Open Cup title the first year of the Professional Era in 1995 and have since made it to the quarterfinal round five times (1995, 2001, 2004, 2007, 2011) and the semifinal round twice (1995, 2011), ousting five MLS teams along the way, including Colorado Rapids in 2000, D.C. United in 2004, LA Galaxy in 2007 and Columbus Crew and Sporting Kansas City in 2011. With 86 total goals scored during the Open Cup, the Kickers have set several franchise records, as well as a Professional Era U.S. Open Cup record for most goals (12) during the 8-4 rout over the Ocean City Barons in 2005 and Kickers midfielder David Bulow is the tournament’s all-time leading scorer in the modern era with 14 goals.
Unbeaten through their first nine games this season, the Kickers are coming off a 2-0 win against USL PRO rivals Harrisburg City Islanders. D.C. United loanees were integral in obtaining the critical three points with goalkeeper Andrew Dykstra posting nine saves to preserve his third shutout of the season and forward Michael Seaton rounding out the scoreline with his second professional goal. Signing 24 hours before the Kickers season opener out of the club’s preseason combine, midfielder Nate Robinson made his scoring debut, tallying the game-winning goal that allowed the team to leapfrog the City Islanders into third place in the USL PRO standings.
Meanwhile, the two-time U.S. Open Cup Champions (1996 and 2008), United, enter this year’s tournament in the Third Round, alongside 15 other U.S.-based MLS teams. Currently positioned in the Eastern Conference standings basement, United enter Tuesday’s match with a 1-9-2 regular season record, most recently dropping a 2-0 loss to the Portland Timbers on Saturday night.
Players to Watch
Kickers: On loan from D.C. United, goalkeeper Andrew Dykstra has made an immediate impact during his short tenure in Richmond. Having started nine games in all competitions thus far, Dykstra has posted an impressive 0.89 goals against average and three shutouts, most recently blanking the Harrisburg City Islanders in USL PRO action last weekend.
Joining the Kickers starting lineup two days after his 17th birthday, forward Michael Seaton became the youngest player in club history to represent the Kickers when he made his professional debut against the Wilmington Hammerheads on May 3. On loan from D.C. United, the Maryland native signed with D.C. as a Homegrown player in January after impressing with United’s Academy and notched his second professional goal in the Kickers 2-0 win over Harrisburg last weekend.
Midfielder Joseph Ngwenya is second in the USL PRO goals category with six in league play, adding a seventh against Icon FC in the U.S. Open Cup Second Round a week ago. Bringing eight years of MLS experience to Richmond, the Zimbabwean international most recently spent the 2011 season with D.C. United before signing with the Kickers prior to the 2013 campaign.
All-time U.S. Open Cup leading scorer, David Bulow notched his 14th goal in tournament history against Sporting Kansas City in 2011 to lead the Kickers to a stunning 2-0 upset and berth to the Semifinals. In his eighth season with the Kickers, the midfielder resides in fourth place on the club’s all-time scoring list with 44 career goals in a Kickers uniform.
United: Former Richmond Kickers midfielder and 2011 MLS MVP, Dwayne De Rosario, will make his homecoming at City Stadium Tuesday. Starting his professional career with the Kickers in 1999 at the age of 21, he had his breakthrough season in 2000 when he contributed 16 goals and six assists while leading the Kickers to a 20-7-1 record. The lynchpin in United’s attack, the prolific goal scorer has amassed 101 MLS goals, tied for sixth in the league’s all-time scoring charts.
U.S. Men’s National Team goalkeeper Bill Hamid made history in 2009 when he became United’s first Homegrown player. Since then, he has become a regular on the starting lineup, making 71 appearances with the black-and-red, posting 18 shutouts over the past four seasons. He was recently called into training camp to represent the U.S. in the international friendly against Germany on June 2.
In his sophomore MLS season, midfielder Nick DeLeon recently returned to the lineup after being sidelined through injury. The 2012 MLS Superdraft First Round pick proved to be essential to D.C. United's playoff push last year as he notched the winning goal in the Eastern Semifinal playoff series against the New York Red Bulls.
Acquired from Chivas USA prior to the 2013 season, forward Casey Townsend made his D.C. United debut in the club’s 2-1 loss to Dallas on May 11. The University of Maryland product made three appearances in Richmond on loan earlier this season and registered a pair of goals in the Kickers 4-1 win over USL PRO powerhouse Charleston Battery in April.