May 3, 2023 – United Soccer League Championship (USL) – Sacramento Republic FC News Release
After three rounds, the 100-team starting field in the 108th edition of the U.S. Open Cup has now been reduced to 32 squads. An eventful tournament has set up the final stages to be played as spring turns to summer across the United States, and in the next round, Republic FC welcomes its first MLS opponent of the tournament in Colorado Rapids. Get to know the Colorado club ahead of next week’s huge win-or-go-home matchup at Heart Health Park.
What to Know
All season, Colorado has stopped teams in their tracks on a regular basis and played tightly contested games every single week. No matter the opponent, they’ve been a tough assignment, and enter on a seven-match unbeaten run dating to March 18. The club will be confident as they land in Sacramento as a result.
Since the start of their undefeated run, the club kept scoreless defending champion LAFC and a Vancouver Whitecaps squad that opened 2023 by scoring at least once in seven straight games. They held on for a point against Western Conference leader St. Louis CITY SC – a team averaging over two scores per match so far this season – and had the expansion side on their heels for a majority of the match, posting 13 shots on target. Their one win came in a difficult place to play on the road at Children’s Mercy Park against Sporting Kansas City.
The Rapids in Open Cup
Tuesday’s contest will provide the visitors a big opportunity to flip the script on recent years’ Open Cup performances and move on from the cupsets that ended their runs in recent entries. Colorado sent out a strong squad in the Third Round that created 13 scoring opportunities and held their foes to just a single shot on target in a dominant 3-1 win. Securing another win is clearly the goal to help jolt them forward.
Colorado’s highest Open Cup moment came in their fourth season, when they made a run to the final before falling to the last lower division side to hoist the Cup – the 1999 Rochester Rhinos. They reached the Round of 16 in back-to-back years in 2016 and 2017, falling both times to FC Dallas, the eventual champion in 2016.
What to Watch For
Between the sticks, goalkeeper and captain William Yarbrough has been stellar all season. Colorado’s captain has logged the second-highest save percentage in Major League Soccer and currently ranks in the top 10 in total stops. On the opposite end, an ensemble of seven different players have put their…