Second-half goals propel Fire to quarterfinals
BRIDGEVIEW, IL (June 30, 2015) — The Charlotte Independence on Tuesday night fell 3-1 to MLS side Chicago Fire in the 2015 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup Round of 16. After controlling the opening 45 minutes and going into halftime with a 1-1 tie, Charlotte conceded two goals in the second half and was unable to finish their own chances. With the loss, the Independence is eliminated from the tournament. Chicago moves on to host Orlando City SC in the quarterfinals.
Charlotte opened the scoring in the fifth minute as Alex Martinez found Tomasz Zahorski with space in front of the box. Zahorski ran between Fire defenders Matt Polster and Greg Cochrane to receive the pass and finished far post.
Pressure from the Fire began to mount in the 20th minute. Joevin Jones had two consecutive chances on net, but Independence keeper Hunter Gilstrap was able to turn them both away. Jones got another opportunity 10 minutes later off a beautiful long ball from Lovel Plamer, but pulled his shot high and wide.
Chicago finally was able to capitalize in the 38th minute. Palmer sent a cross to Mike Magee in the center of the box and he chipped it over a diving Gilstrap. Following the goal, Zahorski created another chance for himself from in close, but the ball knocked right off the shins of Fire keeper Sean Johnson.
Rejuvenated after halftime, the Fire handedly controlled possession for the majority of the second period. Charlotte couldn’t quite clear a Chicago corner in the 50th minute, allowing Palmer to strike from long range for a 2-1 advantage.
The Independence didn’t see another chance until the 62nd minute, when substitute Ryan Finley had a point blank shot off a cross from Carlos Alvarez. Johnson made an incredible diving save to keep the visitors from equalizing. Finley would have two more opportunities over the next 25 minutes, but Johnson continued to deny the forward’s efforts.
Chicago’s third goal came in the 82nd minute when substitute Patrick Nyarko found Magee cutting inside. Magee found the back left corner of the net for his second score of the night, sealing victory for the four-time US Open Cup champions.
Following elimination, Charlotte will return its focus to USL play. The club welcomes fellow expansion side Saint Louis FC to Ramblewood Soccer Stadium on Saturday, July 4. Kickoff is set for 7:00pm ET.
