FC Tulsa Start off 2026 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Campaign in Arkansas
USL FC Tulsa

FC Tulsa Start off 2026 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Campaign in Arkansas

Published on March 17, 2026 under United Soccer League Championship (USL)
FC Tulsa News Release


TULSA, Okla. - FC Tulsa begin their 2026 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup quest on the road against Little Rock Rangers SC on Wednesday, March 18 at 7:00 p.m. at Mourot Stadium.

HOW TO WATCH FC TULSA VS LITTLE ROCK RANGERS SC - WEDNESDAY, MARCH 18, 2026 @ 7:00 P.M. - MOUROT STADIUM - LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS

Watch: U.S. Soccer Youtube Channel | In-game updates: @FCTulsa X/Twitter feed

LAST TIME OUT

FC Tulsa created numerous attacking threats but were unable to find paydirt in a 0-0 draw against San Antonio FC on Saturday night at ONEOK Field in their 2026 home opener.

The hosts came out of the gate with a flurry of attacking threats with Owen Damm and Harvey St. Clair dishing up some dangerous crosses. Play leveled out after the hydration break with neither team finding the back of the net in the opening frame. It was more of the same in the second half with the Scissortails outshooting San Antonio seven to five and holding 56 percent of possession. Remi Cabral and Stefan Lukic both had decent chances as late substitutes, but the scoreline remained blank after 90 minutes.

KEY STORYLINES

FC Tulsa advanced to the Third Round of the 2025 U.S. Open Cup propelled by wins against Tulsa Athletic and Forward Madison FC. Their run ultimately was spoiled by Phoenix Rising FC in a 5-3 loss on penalties.

The Scissortails' best run in the tournament was in 2024 where they reached the Round of 16 behind wins over Northern Colorado Hailstrom FC and Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC before falling to eventual finalists Sporting Kansas City. Including that matchup, FC Tulsa have faced competition from Major League Soccer sides on three occasions with the earliest possibility for that in this year's edition coming in the Third Round (Round of 32).

The early rounds of the Open Cup see USL Championship sides often showcase much of their reserve and youth talent. With a home league match at the weekend for the Black and Gold against Las Vegas, we could expect to see some lineup shuffling for this midweek clash.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Goalkeeper Triston Henry: The Canadian international should get the call between the sticks for the Scissortails on Wednesday night. Henry featured in six matches last season for Phoenix Rising FC while having a connection with sporting director and general manager Caleb Sewell from his time with Memphis 901 FC.

Defender Owen Damm: After coming on as a substitute in the season opener at Sacramento, Damm put in an effective shift on the left-hand side for Tulsa in their home opener last Saturday against San Antonio. The 22-year-old was everywhere on the pitch with a team-high 57 touches while winning five fouls and eight duels.

Forward Nelson Pierre: On loan from Vancouver Whitecaps FC in MLS, Pierre enjoyed a breakout season with their reserve side in MLS Next Pro tallying 13 goals in 22 appearances. The 20-year-old will be called on for his goal-scoring prowess and ability to recover quickly defensively.

OPPONENT INFO: Little Rock Rangers SC

Little Rock Rangers SC are a USL League Two side comprised mostly of collegiate and semi-professional players. Last season, they topped the Mid-South Division with an 8-1-3 (W-L-D) record advancing to the conference quarterfinal before falling to Dothan FC. The side returns Alejandro Padilla for 2026, the Mid-South Division Player of the Year and member of the Southern Conference Team of the Year.

KEY STATISTICS

- FC Tulsa's back line has allowed just 0.9 expected goals in their first two league matches.

- Last season, FC Tulsa won their first two U.S. Open Cup matches by a combined score of 4-1.

- This is the first ever match between these two clubs.

RECENT QUOTES

Head coach Luke Spencer on team performance tonight: "I think overall, it was a good performance from an effort and intensity standpoint. I thought we created enough chances, certainly enough set -piece opportunities. I just think we need to be cleaner in the final action finish. If I look at the growth from the game at Sacramento to this game, I'm very pleased with the growth that we saw."

Spencer on keeping players fresh with early match congestion: "That's something we spoke about early on in preseason. Everybody's going to be needed. Everybody needs to be prepared to take their opportunity when it comes. For us, we'll review this past game, see how everybody's feeling and see if we need to rotate the squad or if we can keep some consistency."

Alex Tambakis on defensive intensity: "Last year playing with New Mexico, I saw that this club is really good defensively. Everybody defends really well here and does it together from the striker to the keeper. That's something that FC Tulsa is known for defensively - keeping clean sheets. We were just a little unlucky up top."Owen Damm on prevalence of long throws in Tulsa attack: "I think [long throws] were a big part of our identity last year. For us, it is a set piece, and set pieces win games. The center of our identity is set pieces, and we had probably 20 of them on Saturday. To not get a goal is disappointing, but on the bright side, we are getting those set piece opportunities, and we didn't concede, so there's something to take away from this game."

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United Soccer League Championship Stories from March 17, 2026


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