5. What’s at stake?
FC Cincinnati had already captured national attention with its stunning second-divi- sion attendance figures rivaling those of Major League Soccer clubs.
Now its surprising run through the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup — which has included two wins over MLS teams — is making headlines.
FCC takes on its third MLS squad tonight in the semifinals when it hosts the New York Red Bulls as the first lower-division club to make the final four since 2011.
Here are the top five things to know about the sold-out match at Nippert Stadium:
FCC is coming off its worst loss in club history after falling 5-0 at Louisville City on Satur- day, but the club might have been saving a little something for tonight.
The Orange and Blue did not start a handful of regulars, as Matt Bahner and Jimmy McLaughlin came off the bench and Justin Hoyte sat out with an injury, and
1. Bouncing back:
Jackson loved the toughness Hall showed by hang- ing onto the ball when Peppers crushed him. “It was big time. It’s a big-time play,” Jackson said. “That would have given us an opportu- nity to score points.”
A day after Jackson used three live contact periods, the Browns practiced not only short-yardage situations, but goal line as well. There hadn’t been two con- secutive practices of such a they were down a man for the final 54 minutes. FCC trailed just 1-0 when Sem de Wit, who started at center back in place of Hoyte, was sent off with a red card.
Cincinnati will be without its leading scorer, Djiby Fall, because of yellow card accumulation, so the big question is: Who will step up in the attack?
Fall, who has 15 goals through all competition, happens to be the only player on the team to score in this tournament, finding the back of the net in all four of his Cup appearances. He sat out the Round of 16 game against Chi- cago Fire SC with an injury that surfaced just before the match, and it took a 3-1 win in penalty kicks to break a scoreless tie.
FCC likely will look to three players to fill the void: Danni Konig, who was signed during Fall’s six-game suspension at the end of April, has eight goals in 19 league games; McLaughlin has three goals with several other close
2. Fall is out:
physical nature since Jackson was hired last year. “They haven’t blinked,” Jackson said. “They’ve asked for more, and that’s what I like about this team. They haven’t backed down from anything.”
Asked why he didn’t demand as much from his players in practices last year, Jackson said, “Better football team (this year). I expect more from this team. I want more from this team, and that’s the expectation. I really believe we’re going to be a better football team. We’ll put a better product chances; and Kyle Greig, who is on loan from the Vancouver Whitecaps, scored in his first start Aug. 5.
3. Defense is the driver:
FC Cincinnati’s defense has shined the most in the Open Cup matches. The Orange and Blue have not been scored on, and with two games that went into extra time, that amounts to 510 minutes of shutout soccer.
Goalie Mitch Hilde- brandt has been lights out and stopped three penalty kicks to lift FCC over the Fire.
The Red Bulls (12-9-2) are fourth in the MLS Eastern Confer- ence, right between the other two major league teams FCC has beaten in this tournament (Chicago is third and Columbus fifth).
New York is in the Open Cup semifinals for the fifth time in franchise history, owning a 1-3 all-time record in this round. The lone vic- tory came back in 2003 with a 3-2 defeat of D.C. United on the campus of Rutgers
4. About New York:
out on the field than what we did a year ago because I think these guys understand where we are.”
Peppers wasn’t the only first-round selection who had a good day. Rookie tight end David Njoku, the 29th overall pick, caught a pass from Osweiler between safety Kai Nacua and line- backer James Burgess in the short-yardage period and a 2-yard touchdown pass from Osweiler on a back-shoul- der fade against linebacker B.J. Bello. Njoku had missed time recently with a back injury. “Just got to get in University.
The Red Bulls have had three different goal scorers in the tournament. Daniel Royer netted the game-winner against New York City FC, Sacha Kljestan scored against the Philadelphia Union, and Bradley Wright-Phillips had the game-winning goal in the 87th minute versus the New England Revolution in the quarterfinals.
The winner travels to play Sporting Kansas City in the final Sept. 20, and FC Cincinnati will try to become just the second non-MLS club to win the Cup in the MLS era, joining the 1999 Rochester Rhinos.
The Orange and Blue already have set the attendance record for a non-final, drawing 32,287 fans to the Round of 16 game against Chicago, and tonight’s figure should surpass that as a sellout.
It will not pass the Cup’s all-time attendance record, though, as Seattle holds that at 35,615 for the 2011 final. That figure is beyond Nippert Stadium’s soccer capacity. better shape,” Jackson said. “He’s been gone for a while. You’ve got to play. You’ve got to be out here every day grinding. It’s hard. This is a hard business and he’s a young man who’s learning how to play. I’m asking a lot of him. He’s trying, and he’s just got to continue to get better.”
On the last play of prac- tice, Kizer launched a bomb to Seth DeValve on fourthand-15. The tight end caught Kizer’s pass with Burgess covering him at the 5-yard line and dragged the linebacker into the end zone.
Taylor Sparks DAYTON — drilled a three-run triple to break a 4-4 tie and the Dayton Dragons went on to defeat the West Michigan Whitecaps 7-4 in the first game of a four-game series Monday night at Fifth Third Field.
The series between the Dragons and Whitecaps marks the final meetings of the regular season between the clubs before they meet in the first round of the Mid- west League playoffs begin- ning Sept. 6 in Dayton.
Hector Vargas’ two-run infield single and Cassidy Brown’s two-run double in the first inning gave the Dragons a 4-1 lead. West Michigan tied it in the third before Sparks’ two-out hit in the fourth put Dayton up for good.
Matt Blandino (3-4) earned the win.
He worked the first five innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on eight hits with no walks and four strike- outs.
Alex Webb replaced Blandino to start the sixth and
“I did think about, ‘Am I ever going to win one?’” he said when he won the Masters. “I’ve had so many good chances and either I lost them or someone has done something extraordinary to beat me.”
Over the last 20 years, winning a major weighed most heavily on Phil Mickelson. He finally won the 2004 Masters when he was 34, and he now has five majors. In his eighth start in a major, he squandered one of his best chances in the 1995 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills. Mickel- son played the par-5 16th hole in 6 over for the week and wound up four shots behind. It would have been hard to believe then that it would take Lefty nine more years.
It’s harder than ever to win on the PGA Tour, and the majors are no different. The talent pool is getting deeper and younger. Three times over the last four years, players in their 20s have won three out of four majors.
Hideki Matsuyama, the 25-year-old Japanese star, was runner-up at the U.S. Open (but never in serious contention at Erin Hills), closed the game to earn his first career save.
Webb allowed three hits with one walk and three strikeouts.
Webb’s four-inning stint matched the longest of the year for a Dayton reliever, and it was his first outing of the season out of the bullpen after six starts.
The Dragons had only six hits, but three of them combined to drive in seven runs.
Michael Beltre was 2-for-4 with a run scored.
Sparks had the triple and a walk.
West Michigan had 11 hits but went just 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position.
The teams meet again tonight. and he had a one-shot lead walking off the 10th green Sunday at Quail Hollow. Is his time coming? He could be like Spieth (who was runner-up in the Masters before he won). He could be like Garcia.
“All I can do is try harder next time,” Matsuyama said.
And then there’s Rickie Fowler, who at 28 would ordinarily be considered too young for the label of “best without a major.”
Then again, the phrase “too young” is getting old.
Fowler had his seventh top-5 finish in a major at Quail Hollow and now has played 30 majors since turning pro. The high finishes would figure to serve him well. Fowler waited behind to celebrate with Thomas, as he has graciously done for others, and he posed with Thomas and the Wanamaker Trophy.
Thomas spoke honestly of the jealousy he felt when Spieth quickly compiled three legs of the career Grand Slam (Spieth is 3 months younger than Thomas). But he thinks that’s true for just about anyone toward the winner of any major, and he’s probably right. If they’re not, they should be.
“It’s just nice to have one,” Thomas said.