On

Robert Ssejjemba makes a move past a  Riverhounds defender on his way to scoring  his 6th minute goal in Richmond’s 1-0 win   over the Pittsburgh Riverhounds.  Photo: Patti Anderson

the strength of Robert Ssejjamba’s goal in the 6th minute, the Richmond Kickers qualified for the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup for the 6th consecutive time, defeating the Pittsburgh Riverhounds 1-0 at University of Richmond Stadium.

Ssejjemba received a cross from Chris Carrieri, who then dribbled around Riverhounds defender Nathan Salsi to send a low shot past goalkeeper Terry McNellis, and into the left corner of the goal. Pittsburgh tried numerous times to strike back and draw the game level, but the Kickers defense held firm and kept the ’Hounds out of the net.

The New Hampshire Phantoms will make their return to the Open Cup for the third time in four seasons, with a 3-1 win over the Long Island Rough Riders at Southern New Hampshire University. Narciso Fernandes gave the Phantoms a 1-0 lead just before halftime, and Almir Barbosa doubled the lead nine minutes after the restart. Derrick Entienne pulled on back for Long Island in the 63rd minute, only to see Jason Karalexis put the Phantoms back up by two goals five minutes later. The loss also eliminated Long Island from U.S. Open Cup contention.

The Cincinnati Kings were the lone USL 2nd Division club to have the weekend off. However, they still clinched a spot in the ’06 Cup with the Western Mass Pioneers’ 3-2 win at Harrisburg. The City Islanders stormed out to an early 1-0 lead, as David McClellan scored from a Teafore Bennett assist in the second minute. Ibrahim Sumed made it 2-0 for the home side in the 25th minute, again with help from Bennett.. Harrisburg enjoyed the two goal advantage for only a minute though, as Omar McFarlane tallied for the Pioneers on a pass from Vadim Ivanushchenko. the Ukrainian native scored himself seven minutes later, knotting the score at 2-2 heading into halftime. The score stood at 2-2 until five minutes remained, when the City Islanders Dave Kern took town second-half sub Kyle Tiexeira down in the box, earning a penalty for Western Mass Brazillian Everson Maciel converted from the spot to give Western Mass a cruicial 3-2 win, eliminating Harrisburg from Open Cup qualification, and boosting the Pioneers’ chances of making the Open Cup field once again.

In the other USL Second Division match of the night, the struggling Wilmington Hammerheads escaped with a point at home after stealing a 3-3 draw in the closing minutes with Charlotte. Second half substitute Anthony Maher scored twice in the final three minutes to save the point for the Hammerheads. If Wilmington’s postponed match against Western Mass from May 12 is not rescheduled before the qualifying deadline (May 28), next weekend the Hammers will have to rely on losses from either the Pioneers or Pittsburgh, along with a win of their own over Cincinnati, in order to qualify for the 2006 U.S. Open Cup.

As far as positioning is concerned, Richmond are also confirmed to begin the Open Cup in the second round, as only two other teams can top their worst possible points percentage. The only team that can knock Cincinnati or New Hampshire out of the top three are the Western Mass Pioneers. However, if the Pioneers postponed match from May 13 vs. Wilmington is not rescheduled by May 28, the Pioneers will have no chance to break into the top three. The top three teams in the USL Second Division qualifying standings will enter the U.S. Open Cup in the second round, along with defending USL-2 champions Charlotte Eagles. The final two qualifiers will start in the first round, with PDL and USASA clubs.