U.S. Open Cup success had not come for the San JoseEarthquakes in almost a decade, but on Tuesday evening at Cagan Stadium on thecampus of Stanford University the Quakesdispatched of NASL side Fort Lauderdale Strikers to advance to the fourth roundof the tournament. A pair of goals from rookie Sam Garza was enough to countera wonder strike from Strikers forward Mark Anderson and send the intrepid 1,271fans in attendance home happy.As is often the case when two teams meet for the first timein nearly three decades, the Earthquakes and the Strikers played tentativelyfor the matchs first ten minutes. Fort Lauderdalerarely ventured past the centerline, and SanJose seemed content to control possession across thedefensive back four. It wasnt until the 15th minute that eitherteam even had a shot attempt, when the Quakes' Ike Opara headed a free kick fromthe foot of Tressor Moreno wide of the goal. However, the venture into the attacking third began to occurat an accelerated rate over the ensuing minutes. In the 17th minute,following a deflected pass from Sam Garza intended for Sercan Guvenisik, StevenLenhart found himself alone at the top of the area with only Strikersgoalkeeper Matt Glaeser to beat. His hard shot to the keepers left was kickedaway from danger. A minute later, Lenharts strike partner Guvenisik nearlyput the Earthquakes on top, but his headed ball from Josh Suggs bounced up inthe six-yard box and was deflected over the crossbar for a corner kick. The Earthquakes were almost caught out on a Strikerscounterattack in the 21st minute when, on a through ball to the topof the area, defender Justin Morrow slipped and allowed Walter Restrepo a pathon goal. However, goalkeeper David Bingham rushed forward to neutralize theball and clear it to safety. The match settled down and both teams traded fruitless tripsinto the attacking third over the next quarter hour. Perhaps the lack of actionlulled Bingham into a sense of calm because in an unfortunate moment of poorpositioning, he was made to pay by the opportunistic Strikers. Following a well timed tackle from the Strikers, the ballrolled into the path of forward Mark Anderson just inside his own half of thefield. Taking a small touch to settle himself after looking to be surprised atreceiving the ball, Andersonspied Bingham well off his goal line, and uncorked a shot from the Strikersside of the centerline. Bingham could only back peddle and thrust his armsskyward in an attempt to save the shot, but his efforts were for naught and theball settled into the net on the fly. The Earthquakes looked shocked by the Strikers goal andimmediately switched to a higher gear on offense. The team tried to breakthrough over the final five minutes of the half, but instead retreated to thelocker room at halftime trailing 1-0. The second half began with the Earthquakes clearly burned bythe actions of the first half, and they poured forward in numbers looking forthe tying goal. In the 47th minute, it looked like the goal had beenfound, when a slick pass from Morenowas received by Garza on the right wing and crossed across the front of goal.Guvenisik met the ball at the far post and sent the ball on target, but theStriker goalkeeper just managed to keep the ball from crossing the goal line. The sustained pressure by San Jose appeared to have paid dividends inthe 61st minute, as Garza found a deflected ball at his feet just inside theright corner of the area. However, his shot was well off target and soared highinto the evening air. In the 63rd minute, the Earthquakes finallyequalized, as Garza made amends for his earlier miss with a well placed balllow inside the post. The goal was justly deserved, and the Earthquakes continuedto press the Strikers on the restart. In the 70th minute, followinga giveaway from the Fort Lauderdale defense in adangerous area, San Josetook the lead. Not looking to do anything fancy, Lenhart redirected theloose ball back into the path of Garza. The Earthquakes rookie one-timed a shotinto the back of the net to put the home side up 2-1. Trailing by a goal and with time running out on theirtournament life, the Strikers looked for every opportunity to get into theattacking third. In the 72nd minute and again in the 74thminute, goal scorer Anderson had the chance to level the score, but twice hewas denied by excellent saves from goalkeeper Bingham. The danger past, the Earthquakes again restored theirdominance in possession and poured forward looking to salt the match away.Second half substitutes Simon Dawkins and Steven Beitashour brought afirst-team feeling to the proceedings, and the final 15 minutes of the matchwas played almost exclusively in the Strikers' end. Just once was Bingham tested in that time, when in the 85thminute he was called to parry away a fierce strike from defender Scott Lorenzplaying in an advanced position on a restart, but that was all the Florida sidewas able to muster. As the fans rose to their feet during the three minutes ofstoppage time, the referee blew his whistle to signal the end of the match andthe Earthquakes celebrated their 2-1 victory.
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