ORLANDO, Fla. – The New England Revolution fell to Orlando City SC, 2-1, after extra time in the Round of 16 of the 2019 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on a soggy Wednesday evening at Exploria Stadium. Orlando’s Benji Michel opened the game’s scoring with a 96^th-minute strike, while Tesho Akindele sealed the victory and Quarterfinal berth for the Lions with a 101^st-minute finish past goalkeeper Matt Turner. Revs Forward Justin Rennicks scored his first professional goal in the 117^th minute, but New England ultimately fell just short of tying the game.

After a scoreless first half, the pace quickly picked up as a flurry of scoring chances occurred for both sides early in the second half. In the 60^th minute, midfielder Cristian Penilla fired a shot inside the six-yard box, but a last-second challenge from Orlando’s Dillon Powers kept the game level. Both teams then hit the woodwork late in the second half, as forward Juan Fernando Caicedo fooled two Orlando defenders on a quick turn, but his shot deflected off of the post to keep the game scoreless. 

Orlando’s opening strike came off of the foot of substitute Benji Michel, who slotted a deflected ball past goalkeeper Matt Turner in the 96^th minute. Orlando forward Tesho Akindele then scored a 101^st-minute goal, which proved to be the game winner. Revolution Homegrown Player Justin Rennicks scored his first professional goal in the 117^th minute off of a Carles Gil assist, but the late effort was ultimately not enough. In net for his second-ever U.S. Open Cup appearance, Matt Turner made five stops.

New England returns to MLS action on Wednesday, June 26, when the club hosts the Philadelphia Union at Gillette Stadium. That match kicks off at 7:00 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Boston, 98.5 The Sports Hub, and in Portuguese on 1260 AM Nossa Radio.

New England Revolution 1, Orlando City SC 2
June 19, 2019 – Exploria Stadium (Orlando, Fla.)

Revs Fall to Orlando City SC, 2-1, After Extra Time in 2019 U.S. Open Cup Round of 16

·         The Revolution fell to the Lions, 2-1, after extra time on Wednesday evening, ending their 2019 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup run in the Round of 16.

·         The Revs move to 21-17-5 in 43 total games in U.S. Open Cup competition, including an 8-12-2 mark in away matches and an 8-12-1 record against MLS opposition.

·         New England ends a five-game unbeaten streak across all competitions.

·         The club’s all-time record in extra time of U.S. Open Cup matches moves to 3-6-5.

Rennicks Scores First Professional Goal in Second Revs Appearance

·         Forward Justin Rennicks came off of the bench for Wilfried Zahibo in the 103^rd minute and scored his first professional goal in the 117^th-minute off of a Carles Gil assist. 

·         The 20-year-old Homegrown product registered 17 minutes in the loss after returning to the team after playing in the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Poland earlier this month. With the U-20s, Rennicks scored the game-winning goal against France in the Round of 16. 

·         Rennicks made his professional debut on March 9 against Columbus Crew SC, a 45-minute appearance. 

Gil Leads Charge in Midfield

·         Midfielder Carles Gil returned to the Revs lineup in tonight’s match, leading the way with a passing accuracy of 81.7 percent and 12 total crosses. He also led the team with 66 passes in Orlando’s half and provided the assist on Justin Rennicks’ first professional goal.

·         The 26-year old Captain registered 120 minutes and won seven fouls in the loss. Gil has played 1,560 minutes across all competitions this season.

Turner Makes Second U.S. Open Cup Start in Net

·         Goalkeeper Matt Turner recorded his second career U.S. Open Cup appearance and registered five saves in the loss.

·         Across all competitions in 2019, Turner has registered a 2-2-1 record with 18 saves.

Revolution Starting XI Sees Four Changes

·         The Revolution's starting lineup saw four changes from the team's most recent match on June 11 at New York Red Bulls, as Brandon Bye, Carles Gil, Cristian Penilla, and Wilfried Zahibo replaced Luis Caicedo, DeJuan Jones, Tajon Buchanan, and Juan Fernando Caicedo

GAME CAPSULE

Referee: Marcos de Oliveira
Assistant Referees: Walter Heatherly, Matthew Osterhouse
4th Official: Matthew Miscannon
Weather: 73 Degrees and Scattered Thunderstorms
Attendance: 5,556

Scoring Summary:
ORL – Benji Michel 1 (Unassisted) 96'
ORL – Tesho Akindele 1 (Unassisted) 101'
NE – Justin Rennicks 1 (Carles Gil 1) 117’

Misconduct Summary:
NE – Juan Agudelo (Yellow Card – Simulation) 95'
ORL – Sacha Kljestan (Yellow Card – Argument) 105’
NE – Edgar Castillo (Yellow Card – Unsporting Behavior) 115'
ORL – Benji Michel (Yellow Card – Unsporting Behavior) 119'

New England Revolution: Matt Turner; Edgar Castillo, Andrew Farrell, Jalil Anibaba, Brandon Bye; Scott Caldwell (Diego Fagundez 99’), Wilfried Zahibo (Justin Rennicks 103’), Carles Gil ©, Cristian Penilla (Juan Fernando Caicedo 68’), Juan Agudelo (Antonio Delamea 104’); Teal Bunbury

Substitutes Not Used: Brad Knighton, DeJuan Jones, Tajon Buchanan

Orlando City SC: Adam Grinwis; Joao Moutinho, Robin Jansson, Lamine Sané, Ruan; Sacha Kljestan ©, Cristian Higuita (Carlos Ascues 44’), Dillon Powers (Alex De John 110’); Santiago Patiño (Nani 65’), Tesho Akindele, Chris Mueller (Benji Michel 81’)

Substitutes Not Used: Brian Rowe, Kyle Smith, Shane O’Neill