Quakes advance to Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Quarterfinals for first time since 2017

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MLS San Jose Earthquakes

Quakes advance to Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Quarterfinals for first time since 2017

May 21, 2025 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
San Jose Earthquakes News Release


San Jose Earthquakes celebrate during their U.S. Open Cup Quarterfinal win
San Jose Earthquakes celebrate during their U.S. Open Cup Quarterfinal win
(San Jose Earthquakes)

SAN JOSE, Calif. - The San Jose Earthquakes defeated the Portland Timbers 1-0 in extra time on Tuesday night in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Round of 16 to run their unbeaten streak to six matches in all competitions.

After a scoreless first half marked by an Ariel Lassiter shot on goal that Quakes goalkeeper Earl Edwards Jr. parried away, Beau Leroux almost struck first for San Jose in the 56th minute with a low attempt from the top of the box, but Timbers goalkeeper Maxime Crépeau batted it offline at the last moment. In the 86th minute, controversy ensued when the Quakes' Cristian Espinoza appealed for a penalty kick after being dragged down by fellow captain Kamal Miller, but a free kick was awarded outside the edge of the box instead. Neither side netted after regulation to send the match into extra time.

In minute 111, Benji Kikanović found a streaking Jack Skahan but his one-on-one opportunity was foiled by Crépeau. Finally, in the 117th minute, San Jose achieved the breakthrough, as Preston Judd dragged his defender long enough to play Mark-Anthony Kaye, who directed the ball toward goal. The ball was deflected by Skahan into the net to send the Black and Blue to the final eight of the tournament for the first time since 2017.

With the win, the Quakes will face an opponent to be determined either Tuesday, July 8, or Wednesday, July 9. The match will air on either CBS Sports Network or CBS Sports Golazo Network and will stream on Paramount+. San Jose and the other seven advancing teams will quickly learn their path to an Open Cup crown, as CBS Sports Golazo Network's flagship program, Morning Footy, will host the Draw that will lock in the bracket-including hosting scenarios-for the tournament Quarterfinals, Semifinals and Final on Thursday, May 22, at 6:30 a.m. PT.

The Black and Blue will stay home in their return to Major League Soccer regular-season play on Saturday, May 27, when they take on Houston Dynamo FC. Kickoff from PayPal Park will take place at 7:30 p.m. PT and will be broadcast via MLS Season Pass on Apple TV, as well as via local radio on KSFO 810 AM (English) and KZSF 1370 AM (Spanish).

GAME NOTES

The Earthquakes moved to 23-19 all-time in U.S. Open Cup play.

Tonight was the fifth time the Earthquakes and Timbers have faced each other in U.S. Open Cup play. The clubs have split the previous four matches, which all took place in Portland, with the first two against the USL iteration of the Timbers and the latter two versus the MLS side. Coincidentally, all four games were shutouts. San Jose emerged victorious 3-0 in the 2004 Round of 16 and 2-0 in the 2005 Fourth Round, while Portland won 2-0 in the 2016 Fourth Round and 2-0 in the 2018 Fourth Round. In addition, the Quakes defeated the Timbers 1-0 in a 2011 U.S. Open Cup play-in game in Portland that was decided by an Ike Opara header in extra time.

The two teams last met just 17 days ago in MLS regular-season play, with the Black and Blue winning 4-1 at PayPal Park. Both Cristian Espinoza and Chicho Arango had three goal contributions apiece and earned MLS Team of the Matchday honors. That victory was the catalyst for the Quakes' current six-game unbeaten streak in all competitions (4-0-2).

Tonight's win also marked the third in a row in all competitions for the Quakes over the Timbers, with all three matches taking place at PayPal Park.

The Quakes stayed unbeaten (3-0-2) in all games started by recent acquisition DeJuan Jones.

San Jose earned back-to-back clean sheets in all competitions for the first time this season.

Earl Edwards Jr. finished off a second consecutive clean sheet for San Jose after coming on at halftime last Saturday against the New England Revolution in MLS play. His shutout streak now stands at 136 minutes.

Hernán López made his first start since returning from right shoulder surgery in the U.S. Open Cup Round of 32 on May 7.

Though San Jose has never won the U.S. Open Cup, the club came closest in 2004 and 2017, reaching the Semifinals in both instances. Tonight marks the 10th time the Quakes have made the Quarterfinals and the first since that 2017 run.

Now in its 110th edition, the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup has crowned U.S. Soccer's national champion since 1914. The history-filled tournament is conducted on a single-game-knockout basis and is open to professional and amateur teams affiliated with U.S. Soccer. The 2025 U.S. Open Cup winner will earn a berth in the 2026 Concacaf Champions Cup and have its name engraved on the Dewar Challenge Trophy. The 2025 tournament features a total purse worth $1 million that includes a $600,000 award for the champion.

San Jose's defense has vastly improved between April (10 goals conceded in four games) and May (five goals conceded in six matches). In addition to three clean sheets this month, the unit has risen statistically to third in MLS in aerial duel percentage (54.6%) and seventh in clearances (118).

San Jose Earthquakes 1 - 0 Portland Timbers

Tuesday, May 20, 2025 - PayPal Park; San Jose, Calif.

Weather: 64°F Mostly Sunny

Man of the Match Presented by Northern California Honda Dealers: Jack Skahan

*all stats unofficial

Match Officials:

Referee: Ramy Touchan

AR1: Darren Bandy

AR2: Peter Hanson

4th Official: Robert Vincze

Scoring Summary:

SJ - Jack Skahan (Mark-Anthony Kaye, Preston Judd) 117'

Misconduct Summary:

POR - Antony (caution) 38'

SJ - Hernán López (caution) 40'

POR - Dario Zuparic (caution) 75'

SJ - Dave Romney (caution) 77'

POR - Felipe Mora (caution) 86'

POR - Kamal Miller (caution) 87'

POR - Jonathan Rodríguez (caution) 87'

SJ - Vítor Costa (caution) 92'

SJ - Max Floriani (caution) 107'

SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES: Earl Edwards Jr. (GK); Dave Romney, Daniel Munie, Max Floriani; Vítor Costa (Benji Kikanović 103'), Ian Harkes (Mark-Anthony Kaye 103'), Beau Leroux (Reid Roberts 120'), DeJuan Jones; Hernán López (Preston Judd 46'), Cristian Espinoza (C), Ousseni Bouda (Jack Skahan 72') (Paul Marie 120').

Substitutes not used: Francesco Montali (GK).

POSS.: 59%; SHOTS: 29; SOG: 9; CORNERS: 12; OFFSIDES: 1; SAVES: 5; FOULS: 17

PORTLAND TIMBERS: Maxime Crépeau (GK); Claudio Bravo, Eric Miller (Juan Mosquera 72'), Kamal Miller (C), Finn Surman; Dario Zuparic, Joao Ortiz (David Da Costa 72'), Omir Fernandez (Ian Smith 91'), Antony (Jonathan Rodríguez 61'), Ariel Lassiter; Gage Guerra (Felipe Mora 72').

Substitutes not used: Trey Muse (GK), Daniel Nuñez.

POSS.: 41%; SHOTS: 14; SOG: 5; CORNERS: 2; OFFSIDES: 5; SAVES: 9; FOULS: 24

EARTHQUAKES HEAD COACH BRUCE ARENA

On the team's performance tonight:

"Defensively, we played well. Our back line was terrific. [Daniel] Munie and [Max] Floriani, given the minutes they've had to play in the last week, were tremendous. I give Portland a lot of credit-they had a really good game plan. They were pretty direct and put balls behind us and put us under pressure from the opening minutes of the game."

On Mark-Anthony Kaye's game-winning assist to Jack Skahan:

"Mark-Anthony put together a terrific play to get the game [-winning assist] for us. I thought we were going to go to penalties. We're real pleased. 120 minutes is challenging. We've got to get our team recovered for Saturday. Our next opponent is Houston [Dynamo FC] and they play tomorrow night in the Open Cup. That'll be interesting. We have to move on. We'll be in the Quarterfinals, which is great. We have to try to recover and get ready for a crazy week ahead with Houston, the LA Galaxy and St. Louis [CITY SC] before we take a break. I'm pleased with our guys. They've done a good job."

On the goalkeeper Earl Edwards Jr. earning the clean sheet for the second straight match:

"Earl is a good goalkeeper. He had a couple of tough games earlier in the year. I think he did a good job in New England playing the second half. Earl is here because we think he's a good goalkeeper. He's been a very good backup to Daniel."

On his approach to extra time after a scoreless draw in regulation:

"There were no messages to give them before extra time. They were on the field on their own. We were certainly thinking about what we needed to do in the last 30 minutes. We checked in on the players and wanted to see who needed to be taken out. No one put their hand up."

On his thoughts moving forward in the MLS regular season:

"We've made some mistakes during the regular season, but correctable mistakes by some individuals that we can correct. We're getting better. I think hopefully as we get into the second half of the season, we're a better team defensively. If we can continue to be a team that can score some goals, we're going to win some games."

On the importance of winning the U.S. Open Cup for San Jose:

"This club has not achieved much over the last X number of years, however you want to define that. And I think that this is an important competition to start getting back to winning ways and being a club that's more respected competitively. So I think this competition is an important one to us in particular."

EARTHQUAKES MIDFIELDER MARK-ANTHONY KAYE

On combining with Preston Judd to assist Jack Skahan on the game-winning goal:

"Preston did a really good job, pulled the ball up, and I realized that if I made a run for it, he would play me into the box. My first touch took me a little wide, but I knew if I just kept the ball in a good area, my teammate would put it in. Happy for Jack that he was able to score. He's been working very hard, and guys like that deserve the spotlight.

On his mindset facing longtime Canadian National Team Maxime Crépeau during the decisive sequence:

"I thought about it, but I know Max very well. I know the keeper very well. I played with him on the National Team for years, so I knew that he was ready for a one-timed shot. And I think if I took my first touch, it would kind of set him in a way where he wasn't ready for what would happen next. And if you saw on the goal, he overcovered the near post. But yeah, I did think about it, but I wanted to give myself a better opportunity to shoot or pass."

On the rebuilding project in San Jose and the importance of winning the U.S. Open Cup:

"A lot of us have come in here with Bruce leading us to change the culture and bring back a winning mentality. So whenever you have an opportunity to play for a trophy, you take the game seriously. You can see that obviously, with the way Bruce talks to you guys about Open Cup. It's a historic tournament. Who doesn't want to win it? So when you have the opportunity to win games at home to keep your chance alive, you want to do that."

On extending the unbeaten streak to six games in all competitions despite losing several starters to injury:

"No one knows how hard every player on the team works, other than the guys inside this building. So it's unfortunate we have so many injuries, but there's those guys that are ready to step up. Training is important. The competition here is important. So, yeah, it's just a part of football. Injuries happen, and that's why you have a squad of 29 players and not a squad of 12 players. So we'll continue to perform, and push the standards, and hopefully more guys get healthy, and then it makes it even harder on the coaches to select 11 players."

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San Jose Earthquakes celebrate during their U.S. Open Cup Quarterfinal win
San Jose Earthquakes celebrate during their U.S. Open Cup Quarterfinal win
   



Major League Soccer Stories from May 21, 2025


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