Tacoma Defiance are headed to the third round of the U.S. Open Cup after their extra-time 2-1 win at Starfire over Spokane Velocity FC. Goals in the 3rd and 99th minute of the game from Joonmo Kang and an own-goal created by Edson Carli pushed Defiance to victory, while a 79th minute goal from Luis Gil tied the game for Spokane and ultimately forced an extra 30 minutes of play.
Defiance took an early through Kang. Travian Sousa received the ball on the left and drove down the wing before playing the ball to Sebastian Gomez, who took a touch to set the ball up in the box before a simple touch back put it on the foot of Osaze De Rosario. Rosario’s first-time hit looked like a shot going wide, but ended up perfectly in stride for Kang to punch into the roof of the net and make it 1-0.
Following the goal Spokane were the team in the driver’s seat for much of the game. Jacob Castro was forced to come up with some big plays to hold onto the lead as Spokane pushed for their equalizer. They ultimately found it thanks to some impressive play from Nil Vinyals as he ran down the right before playing a pass to the middle where Luis Gil had split the centerbacks, and Gil provided the slight touch needed to redirect the ball right into the bottom corner in the 79th minute. Defiance turned the tables following the equalizer and were the more threatening team as they hit the woodwork multiple times in the final 10 minutes of regulation, with Carli first hitting both the post and crossbar in the 83rd and Yu Tsukanome putting a header off the post in the 90th minute.
Coming out of the break after the end of regulation time, Defiance remained on the front foot. Gomez hit the woodwork with a header in the 92nd minute and a flurry of attempts in the next several minutes ultimately built to an own-goal created when Gomez sent a ball through the box that Carli picked up before dribbling at goal and hitting a ball that was deflected into the goal to give the hosts a 2-1 lead.
From there the primary focus became keeping Spokane from getting a second of their own, and ultimately Defiance came out on top. They’ll learn who they play in the next round following a draw on Thursday. Defiance next take the field on Sunday, when they host Vancouver Whitecaps 2.
Key players
Joonmo Kang: It wasn’t just the goal — although Kang’s finish in the 3rd minute to take a very early lead was certainly a highlight — that made this performance stand out. Kang certainly didn’t have his hand in everything while he was on the field — he created 1 chance as he went 16/20 passing and had 34 touches in his 62 minute appearance — but his goal was well-taken, and he added 2 won tackles on 3 attempts, 4 clearances, and 3 ground duels won on 6 attempts. The more he settles into the team and grows comfortable and familiar with the players around him, I expect we’ll only continue to see better and better performances from him.
Edson Carli: The unsigned Academy player will presumably stop showing up in this section of these recaps when he stops doing the things that make people buy tickets for soccer games. He won’t get any sort of stat sheet credit for creating the second goal, unfortunately, but he created it nonetheless. He had 3 passes into the final third, 6 touches in the box, an audacious roulette and back heel pass that nearly came off to play Gomez into the box, and three quality shots including the attempt that hit the post and crossbar. He also went 3/5 on ground duels as he fought to help his side advance. Based on this performance, I don’t expect he’ll stop entertaining and making things happen any time soon.
Cody Baker: Making his first appearance in any competition this season, Baker went 90 minutes and hardly put a foot wrong. Baker completed 48 of 51 passes, with 9 passes into the final third while going 4/5 on long balls. He also succeeded on the one cross he attempted and his lone dribble. Playing at right back Baker also took his defensive responsibilities seriously as he won 3/4 tackles, had 4 recoveries, and won 7 duels. It wasn’t exactly an Alex Roldan impression, but Baker covered ground well, did a good job on both sides of the ball, and at times stepped into midfield to help keep the double pivot from getting over run. It’s a really solid outing, especially in context, and a good reminder of what Cody Baker has to offer.
Full Match Replay of Tacoma Defiance vs. Spokane Velocity FC
MATCH SUMMARY
Tacoma Defiance 2 - Spokane Velocity 1
Wednesday, April 2, 2025
Venue: Starfire Stadium
Referee: Christopher Calderón
Weather: 47 degrees and rainy
SCORING SUMMARY
TAC – Joonmo Kang (Osaze De Rosario) 3’
SPK – Luis Gil (Nil Vinyals) 79’
TAC – Own Goal 99'
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
SPK – Marky Hernandez 17'
TAC – Stuart Hawkins 30’
SPK – Bryce Meredith 40'
SPK – Camron Miller 61'
LINEUPS & STATS
Tacoma Defiance – Jacob Castro; Cody Baker (Leo Burney 91’), Kaito Yamada, Stuart Hawkins , Travian Sousa; Peter Kingston, Snyder Brunell – Captain (Danny Robles 91’); Joonmo Kang (Jackson Khoury 62', Yu Tsukanome (Charlie Gaffney 100’), Sebastian Gomez (Birame Diaw 106’); Osaze De Rosario (Edson Carli HT)
Substitutes not used: Lars Helleren
Total shots: 13
Shots on goal: 1
Fouls: 15
Offside: 4
Corner-kicks: 8
Saves: 5
Spokane Velocity FC – Ryan Bilichuk; Javier Gil, Marcelo Lage (David Garcia 106’), Camron Miller, Ismaila Jome; Bryce Meredith (Luis Gil 63’), Jack Denton (Collin Fernandez 63’), Marky Hernandez (Shavon John-Brown 77’), Nil Vinyals (Andre Lewis 88'), Masango Akale (Derek Waldeck 77’); Anuar Pelaez
Substitutes not used: Carlos Merancio
Total shots: 16
Shots on goal: 6
Fouls: 12
Offside: 4
Corner-kicks: 12
Saves: 0
