In a game with two ejections, Alex López scored his first goal in a Dynamo uniform to secure a 1-0 win over the Laredo Heat and a place in the fifth round of the US Open Cup.
Lopez took advantage of a stranded Laredo goalkeeper in the 38th minute, chipping 20-year-old Jorge Luis Ortega that settled in the far side of the net for the lone goal of the game and unlocked a well-organized Heat defense.
Center back Mattieu Braem made things worse for Laredo when he was sent off for a second yellow two minutes after the goal. The numerical balance was restored in the 53rd minute when Dynamo goalkeeper Tyler Deric handled the ball intentionally outside of his box to stop a shot from former Dynamo signee Felix Garcia, earning a straight red.
Usual Dynamo No. 1 Tally Hall replaced Deric and faced a quick call to action. He made two big saves in the final 20 minutes including a diving stop on a shot from distance, again from Garcia.
Houston will now host the winner of a June 18 match between FC Dallas and the San Antonio Scorpions.
Houston Dynamo vs. Laredo Heat
Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, Fourth Round
June 11, 2014 – BBVA Compass Stadium, Houston, Texas
Attendance: 4,929
Scoring Summary:
Houston: Alexander Lopez 1 (Omar Cummings 1) 38
Laredo Heat: Jorge Luis Ortega; Adam Villavicencio, Matthiew Braem (Ejected 40), Francisco Roberto Lara, Genaro Yair Hernandez; Salvador Luna, Jose Angel Hernandez (Rafael Ferreira 70), Juan de Dios Ibarra-Trevino (Miguel Fernandez Jimenez 66); Daniel Gustavo Garza, Felix Garcia, Irving Heriberto Villanueva (Orlando Esteban Bayona 57)
Unused substitutes: Will Lukoski, Kaique Fernandes, Fazlo Alihodzia
Houston Dynamo: Tyler Deric (Ejected 52); Kofi Sarkodie, Jermaine Taylor, AJ Cochran, Warren Creavalle; Alexander Lopez (Brian Ownby 64), Servando Carrasco, Giles Barnes Jason Johnson 75), Andrew Driver; Will Bruin, Omar Cummings (Tally Hall 53)
Unused Substitutes: Eric Brunner
Misconduct Summary:
LAR: Matthiew Braem (caution) 32
LAR: Matthiew Braem (second caution; ejection) 40
HOU: Tyler Deric (ejection) 52
LAR: Felix Garcia (caution) 70
Referee: Nima Saghafi
Assistant Referees: Mike Arrington, Pedro Trejo
Fourth Official: Christopher Mercado
