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he game and said it wasnt the right
Topic Started: Oct 29 2012, 09:42 AM (21 Views)
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TUKWILA, Wash. Dexter McCluster Jersey . -- As Osvaldo Alonso and Fredy Montero saw things, it was just a matter of time. Alonso and Montero each scored a pair of goals in the second half, and the Seattle Sounders tallied five times in a span of 20 minutes on Tuesday night to end Cal FCs run through the U.S. Open Cup with a 5-0 fourth-round victory. Andy Rose also scored for Seattle, which was kept off the board for nearly 50 minutes by the amateur side from Thousand Oaks, Calif., before Alonso converted a penalty kick. "The first half was a hard half because they were very strong in their defence," Alonso said. "But the second half, we entered the field feeling happy and positive about the fact that if we scored the first goal, then the next goal and the next goal and the next goal were going to come." Thats precisely what happened. Montero ran onto a long through ball from Cordell Cato and ripped it into the back left corner late in the 58th minute. Rose got the last head on an airborne ball in the box and sent it into the right side midway through the 66th minute. Montero curled in a 25-yard direct free kick from beyond the top left corner of the box midway through the 68th -- a goal that initially was called offside, but then allowed. Alonso finished it with a straight-on 35-yard blast late in the 70th minute. "It was like just waiting for us to score a goal," Montero said. "Lucky for us, it was a penalty. We knew the diffrerence was going to be the first goal." The Sounders, going for an unprecedented fourth straight U.S. Open Cup, will be on the road for the quarterfinals on June 26, visiting Major League Soccer rival San Jose. Seattle is 15-0-1 in Open Cup play since joining MLS as an expansion team in 2009, but has played just three road games during that time: two in 2009 and one in 2010. Cal FC, coached by former U.S. national team star and television analyst Eric Wynalda, went further than any other U.S. Adult Soccer Association (fifth-tier) team in the modern era in the Open Cup (1995-present). Despite being together for barely a month, it was the first USASA team to knock off an MLS side when it beat the Portland Timbers in overtime last Wednesday in Oregon, 1-0. "All in all, if you look at the goals we set for ourselves, we did exceed a lot of peoples expectations," Wynalda said. "They recognize what happened tonight. That first goal really was a punch in the gut. When we had to make the switch to try to get more forwards on the field, it opened up and (the Sounders) showed their quality. "We just wanted to get to about the 60th minute and throw some forwards on the field," Wynalda added. "But we never got there." Despite an 11-2 shot advantage through the first 49-plus minutes, the Sounders still had nothing on the board when a shot by Montero from the top of the penalty area went off the arm of Cal FC defender Jesus Gonzanez just inside the box. Alonso sent the ensuing PK into the back left corner before goalkeeper Derby Carillo, who was going that direction, could get there to stop it. That was all the Sounders needed, as they wound up outshooting Cal FC, 28-4. "We felt we needed to be calm a little bit. We were trying to force things down the middle," Seattle coach Sigi Schmid said of his teams scoreless first half. "The effort was there - we just needed to change our tactics a little bit." Monteros two tallies gave him seven Open Cup goals for his career, tying him with former teammate Nate Jaqua for the franchise record. Tamba Hali Jersey . -- If Peyton Manning is sore, hes not saying. Derrick Johnson Jersey . Still, the under-23 team will play on. The Cuban team will play Honduras on Thursday night in Tampa, Fla. http://www.chiefsprostore.com/eric-berry-jerseys . "Its not pressure, its an opportunity, thats the way were going to present it to them," says coach Todd Gill. The former Maple Leafs defenceman guides this years entry at the tournament, which takes place in Piestany and Breclav, Czech Republic. Matt Cassel Jersey . Morris ruled out Blount again after he missed practice all week in London. Blount took a hit on his left knee in a Week 5 loss to the San Francisco 49ers and missed the win over the New Orleans Saints. Peyton Hillis Jersey . As a follow-up, TSN.ca offers you the opportunity to chime in on all the big issues with our insiders. Read up on all the questions and answers, and put in your own two cents on our popular Your Call feature.WASHINGTON -- All those changes didnt get the Washington Capitals any further in the playoffs. Thats the big-picture view, the one that says this season was another disappointing performance by an immensely talented roster. Remember last summer, when the Capitals in quick succession added five players who were the final pieces to really, for-sure, this-time-without-a-doubt take them to the Stanley Cup? Remember how they were the fashionable choice to win the Eastern Conference in September, a notion reinforced after their 7-0 start? Then theres the other view, the one that focuses on the last two months, when Nicklas Backstrom and Mike Green finally got healthy and the team started to find a comfort level with the defensive mindset preached by new coach Dale Hunter, who had taken over when the tuned-out, run-and-gun Bruce Boudreau was fired in November. After barely scraping into the playoffs, the Capitals eliminated the second-seeded and defending champion Boston Bruins in a seven-game, low-scoring series and nearly did the same to the top-seeded New York Rangers. "You know, we had our chances to win it, and so did they," Hunter said following Saturday nights 2-1 Game 7 loss at Madison Square Garden. "Its like two good teams battling each other. What can you say? Its just that we came up short tonight. We had our chances that we didnt bury. And they buried two, and we only got one." Therein lies the rub. When the goal is to play a 2-1 game, its quite often that its the other team that scores two. In fact, 13 of the Capitals 14 playoff games were decided by one goal. A lineup that includes Alex Ovechkin, Alexander Semin, Backstrom and Green scored just 29 goals in those 14 games. So the Capitals are at a crossroads. Do they stick with Hunter, assuming he wants to return? If he doesnt, do they stay with the defensive close-to-the-chest system with another coach? If they do, do they have the right personnel for it? Ovechkin, in particular, is paid handsomely with the expectation thhat every year he will be among the leagues elite players. Jamaal Charles Jersey. This season, he was not. Even in the playoffs, there were flashes of the Great Eight here and there, but he would disappear for long stretches. Sometimes Hunter would keep him off the ice altogether for extended periods, preferring to go with other matchups. Saturday night, with the season on the line during the adrenaline rush of a Game 7 -- and with the Capitals trailing most of the game -- Ovechkin managed to put only two shots on goal, the same number as defencemen John Carlson and Roman Hamrlik. After the game, Ovechkin uncharacteristically sat at his locker for several minutes after the interviews were done, still in his full uniform, staring straight ahead. He has now played seven seasons in the NHL, and hes yet to get past the second round of the playoffs. The Capitals took the day off Sunday, but questions about Hunter, Ovechkin and everyone else will resume when they reconvene to pack up their belongings for the summer. Hunter was asked about his future immediately after the game and said it wasnt the right time to address such matters, but he made an interesting switch from "we" to "you" when answering another question about the style of play he implemented. "Its the right way to play, to win," he said. "Next year well, you know, you can, you know, start off and thats your goal. To win." Its also clear that Hunter, if he returns, will have to do a better job of learning how to push the buttons of his players. Ovechkin wasnt the only one who wasnt his top-notch self for Game 7. Except for a few minutes in the second period, the Capitals were clearly outplayed by the Rangers. "We didnt play our best game, didnt have enough fight, enough grit," defenceman Karl Alzner said. "Didnt battle for pucks enough, had a power play that was awful. Its really too bad that in a game of this magnitude we stunk the bed, pretty much. Its just not good enough for us." ' ' '
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