The Rochester Rhinos may be the only USL team left in the tournament, but they have been here before. The Rhinos will make their third appearance in the Semifinals of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup after a 2-1 victory over the Wilmington Hammerheads of the USL Second Division. For the Rhinos, it will be their first appearance in the final four since 1999, the year they won the Open Cup.

They will travel to Boyds, MD on July 21 to face D.C. United, the club that beat them in the 1996 Open Cup Final. United got past a USL Second Division club of their own, knocking off the Harrisburg City Islanders 2-1. 

In the other Semifinal, the Houston Dynamo will make their way to the Starfire Soccer Complex in Tukwila, WA on July 21 where they will face the Seattle Sounders. The Dynamo exorcized some demons on Tuesday night, eliminating the Charleston Battery at Blackbaud Stadium, something they have been unable to do in the 2007 and 2008 tournaments. The difference in Seattle’s 1-0 win over Kansas City was an 89th minute penalty kick that Sebastien Le Toux converted for the game’s only goal.