PORTLAND, Ore. – Forward Frederic Piquionne scored four goals as the Portland Timbers defeated the Wilmington Hammerheads of USL PRO 5-1 in the third round of the 2013 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Wednesday night at JELD-WEN Field. The Timbers advance to the fourth round of the competition and will play host to the Tampa Bay Rowdies of the North American Soccer League (NASL) on Wednesday, June 12, at JELD-WEN Field at 7:30 p.m. (Pacific).
Tickets for the fourth-round match start at $15, and are available for purchase at the JELD-WEN Field box office and online. Timbers season ticket holders will be able to purchase their seats through their online account through Monday, June 3, at 5 p.m. (Pacific).
Piquionne turned in a performance for the record books, scoring all four goals in the first half to guide the Timbers to victory over the Hammerheads. Piquionne became just the second player in the U.S. Open Cup’s modern era (1995-present) to score four goals in one half and became just the second Timbers player in the club’s history (across all eras) to tally four goals in a league or cup game. Defender Futty Danso tallied Portland’s fifth goal in the 73rd minute and midfielder Will Johnson finished the night with three assists.
The goals started early. The Timbers earned a corner kick in the opening moments of the match. From the left corner flag, Johnson served in a ball to the back post, where Piquionne out-jumped his marker and put away the opening goal of the night in the second minute; it was the Timbers’ quickest goal scored in U.S. Open Cup play.
The Timbers doubled their lead in the 17th minute, as a build-up led to a cross into the penalty area by defender Michael Harrington and Piquionne headed it home.
A chipped pass into the box from midfielder Kalif Alhassan from the left side set up Piquionne’s third goal of the night in the 34th minute. Piquionne took a touch, cut inside and hit a half-volley past Hammerheads goalkeeper Troy Hernandez into the bottom right corner for a 3-0 Portland lead. On his third goal, Piquionne joined forward Bright Dike as the only Timbers players to record three goals in a U.S. Open Cup match.
Portland struck again in first-half stoppage time off a set piece. A free kick by Johnson from the left side led to another headed goal by Piquionne for his fourth of the half, becoming just the third MLS player to record four goals in U.S. Open Cup play.
After Wilmington midfielder Paul Nicholson pulled one back in the 61st minute via an acrobatic finish, the Timbers found their fifth goal of the match 12 minutes later. A corner kick by from the right side by Johnson set up Danso for a looping header from near the penalty spot that beat Hernandez for his first goal of the season.
Goalkeeper Milos Kocic matched a team season-high with seven saves against Wilmington, including four in the first half.
The Timbers return to MLS play on Saturday, June 8, as they face the Chicago Fire on the road at Toyota Park at 5:30 p.m. (Pacific). The match against the Fire will be broadcast live on ROOT SPORTS, with radio broadcasts available on 750 The Game and in Spanish on La Pantera 940AM.
2013 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup – Third Round
Portland Timbers (MLS) vs. Wilmington Hammerheads (USL PRO)
May 29, 2013 – JELD-WEN Field (Portland, Ore.)
Goals by Half 1 2 F
Portland Timbers 4 1 5
Wilmington Hammerheads 0 1 1
Scoring Summary
POR: Piquionne (W. Johnson), 2
POR: Piquionne (Harrington), 17
POR: Piquionne (Alhassan), 34
POR: Piquionne (W. Johnson), 45+2
WIL: Nicholson, 61
POR: Danso (Johnson), 73
Misconduct Summary
WIL: Parratt (Caution), 6
WIL: Wallace (Caution), 58
WIL: Nicklaw (Caution), 67
Lineups & Stats
POR: GK Kocic, D Miller, D Jean-Baptiste, D Danso, D Harrington (McKenzie, 74), M Zemanski, M Nagbe (Zizzo, 45), M Johnson, W. ©, F Valencia, F Piquionne (Rincón, 45), F Alhassan
Substitutes Not Used: GK Gleeson, D Fehr, M Evans, M Valeri
TOTAL SHOTS: 13 (Piquionne, 5); SHOTS ON GOAL: 6 (Piquionne, 4); FOULS: 9 (Valencia, 3); OFFSIDES: 1; CORNER KICKS: 10; SAVES: 7
WIL: GK Hernandez, D Daly (Taylor, 64), D Steres, D Utterson, D Wallace, M Evans, M Parratt (Arnoux, 25), M Nicholson, M Nicklaw, F Greig (Perry, 74), F Elenio
Substitutes Not Used: M Briggs
TOTAL SHOTS: 10 (Nicholson, 3); SHOTS ON GOAL: 8 (Nicholson, 3); FOULS: 13 (Four players, 2); OFFSIDES: 0; CORNER KICKS: 1; SAVES: 1
Referee: Alejandro Mariscal
Assistant Referees: Jeremy Hanson, Andrew Marihart
4th Official: Ronald Lagraff
Attendance: 10,924
Time of Game: 1:49
Weather: Partly Cloudy, 62 degrees
All statistics contained in this box score are unofficial.
