FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The New England Revolution (4-4-4, 16 pts.) enters the 2013 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup this week when the team travels to play affiliate club Rochester Rhinos (USL PRO) on Tuesday, May 28, in Rochester. Kickoff is set for 7:35 p.m. at Sahlen’s Stadium. The Rhinos are scheduled to provide a live video stream of the game at rhinossoccer.com.
On Sunday, the Revolution will host the two-time defending MLS Cup champion LA Galaxy at Gillette Stadium in a game that will be televised nationally on NBC Sports Network. Kickoff is set for 4:30 p.m., and 98.5 The Sports Hub will also have the game on the radio.
Revs warming up as summer approaches
Very quietly, the Revs are one of the league’s hottest teams as the official start of summer approaches … New England is 3-1-2 in its last six games, picking up 11 of the team’s 16 points in the last month … the Revs are now tied for sixth in the Eastern Conference with 16 points, and are tied for 11th in the league’s overall table … since April 20 – a 4-1 loss at New York – the Revs have climbed from ninth in the East with five points to their current spot of tied for sixth with 16 points and are two points shy of a playoff spot. | VIEW STANDINGS
U.S. Open Cup entry
The Revs enter the 2013 U.S. Open Cup bracket this week when they travel to face the Rochester Rhinos (USL PRO) at Sahlen’s Stadium on Tuesday, May 28 … the 2013 tournament is the 100th U.S. Open Cup (#USOC100) ... the Revs, who are entering the tournament’s bracket in the third round with the rest of the U.S.-based Major League Soccer teams, are 11-10-4 all-time in the Open Cup … New England also won the 2007 U.S. Open Cup title. | U.S. Open Cup History
Rochester a familiar foe
The Rochester Rhinos are a familiar U.S. Open Cup foe of the Revolution … this will be the fifth time the Revs and Rhinos have met in the U.S. Open Cup bracket … overall, New England holds a 2-0-2 record against the Rhinos with meetings in the 2003 fourth round (Revs 2, Rhinos 1), the 2004 fourth round (Rochester advanced in PKs after 1-1 draw AET), 2006 fourth round (New England advanced in PKs after 0-0 draw AET) and 2007 third round (Revs 4, Rhinos 2).
The Revs have recalled midfielder Gabe Latigue and defender Tyler Polak from the team’s USL PRO affiliate, the Rochester Rhinos, ahead of tomorrow’s U.S. Open Cup third-round match against the Rhinos … Latigue and Polak will join the Revs in Rochester and then will report back to the Rhinos on Wednesday, May 29 …on the season, Latigue has made six appearances for the Rhinos, while Polak has made eight appearances.
Two-time champs, Robbie Rogers headed to Gillette Stadium
Following Tuesday’s U.S. Open Cup match, the Revs return home for the second game in a three-game home stand when the club hosts the LA Galaxy … LA, which has won the last two MLS Cups, will be making its only trip to Foxborough this year and its first visit since 2011 … Sunday night, all eyes in the sporting world were on The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif., for the Galaxy-Seattle Sounders FC game when Robbie Rogers – recently acquired by the Galaxy via trade from Chicago – made his LA debutand simultaneously became the first openly gay active male athlete in North American professional sport.
Fagundez on a hot streak entering summer …
Teenage phenom Diego Fagundez is the Revs’ leading goal scorer with a career-high four goals, three of which have come in the last three games … Fagundez, 18, has scored one goal in each of the team’s last three games leading the team to a 2-0-1 record in those matches ... Fagundez’s four goals this season already match his career total (4) entering the 2013 season.
… But Fagundez doused for Tuesday
While he may be hot on the field, Diego Fagundez will have to wait until Sunday against the LA Galaxy to continue his scoring streak as the midfielder is suspended for Tuesday’s U.S. Open Cup match at Rochester … Fagundez picked up a red card in the team’s last U.S. Open Cup match (a 3-3 draw at the Harrisburg City Islanders on May 27, 2012) and must serve his suspension this game as it is the Revs’ next Open Cup contest since that game.
The “kids” combine again
One week after both scored against Houston, Diego Fagundez and Juan Agudelo both struck again on Saturday against Toronto in a 2-0 win … Fagundez’s goal in the 23rd minute put the Revs up 1-0, before Agudelo closed the scoring in the third minute of stoppage time with his second goal in as many games … his goal in Houston was originally credited as a Ricardo Clark own goal, but MLS reviewed the goal last week and awarded it to Agudelo on Friday.
Agudelo settling in nicely
Juan Agudelo, acquired on May 7 via trade from Chivas USA, has adjusted quickly to his New England surroundings … Agudelo made his Revs debut on May 18 at Houston, coming on as a first-half substitute and later scoring his first goal as a member of the Revs (and his third of the season) … one week later, he drew his first start in New England in a 2-0 win over Toronto at Gillette Stadium, and scored his second goal in as many games (and his fourth on the season).
Shuttleworth stones another
Bobby Shuttleworth has laid claim to the team’s starting goalkeeper role with a string of strong performances early this season … Shuttleworth is third in MLS in goals against average with an 0.90 GAA … he is also tied for second in MLS in shutouts with five, and ranks second in MLS in saves percentage (77.3 percent) … the fifth-year goalkeeper has only allowed more than one goal twice this season in 10 appearances.
Revs’ defense back on top
After its seventh shutout in 12 games on Saturday in a 2-0 win over Toronto, the Revs’ defense is back on top of MLS … the Revs lead the league in goals against average (0.75), have allowed the league’s fewest goals (nine) and are tied for the league lead in shutouts (7).
Tierney joins elite group
Chris Tierney made his 100th career start on Saturday against Toronto … he is the 12th player in New England history to make 100 starts in New England … all of his 100 starts – and all 111 of his appearances – have come in New England … the Wellesley, Mass., native is five appearances away from moving into the Revs’ career appearances top-10 chart (Andy Dorman is currently 10th with 116), while he is three starts away from moving into the team’s career starts top-10 list (Jeff Larentowicz is currently 10th with 103).
Tierney also lends a game-winning hand
Chris Tierney’s assist on Diego Fagundez’s first-half goal on Saturday against Toronto was his second assist of the season and the 18th of his career … Tierney is tied for ninth on the Revs’ career assist chart (tied with Andy Dorman) and his assist on Saturday moved him into third on the Revs’ career game-winning assist chart with nine … exactly half of his 18 career assists have been game-winning assists.
Revs’ rookies quietly making their mark
Two of the Revs’ rookies are quietly making their mark on the Revs’ season … defender Andrew Farrell – the number one overall pick in the 2013 MLS SuperDraft – has started 11 of 12 games and helped the Revs’ number-one ranked team defense … Scott Caldwell, the team’s second-ever Homegrown signing this winter after a four-year career at Akron, has now made seven appearances, including four starts as the team’s lone defensive central midfielder.
Revs, Midnight Riders team up for charity Thursday
On Thursday night, the Revolution and Midnight Riders – one of the team’s two official supporters groups – will hold a charity trivia night at The Banshee (934 Dorchester Ave., Boston) this Thursday, May 30 … all proceeds from the evening will be donated to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society in light of Kevin Alston’s recent diagnosis of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) … Revs players and personalities expected to compete in the trivia tournament include Kevin Alston, Stephen McCarthy, Matt Reis, Kelyn Rowe, club president Brian Bilello and staff writer & online host Jeff Lemieux … players can register for the tournament at midnightriders.com for $10 per player or $50 per team (up to six players).
THIS WEEK IN ROCHESTER
- The Rhinos take on the New England Revolution in the U.S. Open Cup on Tuesday … kickoff is set for 7:35 at Sahlen’s Stadium in Rochester, N.Y.
- The Revs currently have four players on loan to the Rochester Rhinos as part of the teams’ affiliation agreement: defender Bilal Duckett, midfielder Gabe Latigue, forward Matt Horth and defender Tyler Polak.
- Duckett and Polak have made eight appearances for the Rhinos … Horth has made seven while Latigue has made six appearances … Duckett leads the Revs’ players with 565 minutes played
THIS WEEK’S OPPONENT & SERIES INFORMATION
Revolution vs. LA Galaxy (regular season) 14-16-7
Home: 9-6-2
Away: 5-10-4
TEAM NOTES AGAINST LA GALAXY
Saturday’s game will be 37th all-time meeting between the Revs and Galaxy, with LA leading the all-time, regular-season series history, 16-14-6
The Revs are 9-6-2 at home against LA, including a 6-2-2 mark at Gillette Stadium
Sunday’s match will be the first – and only – time that the two teams meet in 2013
The Revs won the only meeting between the two teams in 2012, a 3-1 win in LA on March 31 … Kelyn Rowe scored his first career goal in the win
The Galaxy won the 2011 season series with a 1-0-1 mark … the teams opened the 2011 season with a 1-1 draw, in Carson Calif., on March 20 … LA earned a 1-0 road win on May 28, at Gillette Stadium to cap the series
LA won the first four season series (1996-99) between the two clubs, but nine consecutive season series were either won by the Revs or drawn between 2000 and 2008
In the last 10 meetings, there have been five shutouts and only the Revs have scored more than two goals in a single game … before last year’s 3-1 win at The Home Depot Center, New England’s last three-goal game against the Galaxy came on May 12, 2007, a 3-2 win at The Home Depot Center
New England and LA have met in the MLS Cup Playoffs twice – in both MLS Cup 2002 and MLS Cup 2005 ... the Galaxy won both meetings in overtime by a 1-0 score ... the 2002 meeting was in Foxborough, while the 2005 match was at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas
The Revs and Galaxy have played in one U.S. Open Cup match - the 2001 championship game in Fullerton, Calif., which LA won, 2-1, in overtime
PLAYER NOTES AGAINST LA GALAXY
- Kelyn Rowe scored his first career MLS goal in a 3-1 win last season against the Galaxy
- Chris Tierney has recorded one goal against the Galaxy, the game-winner on March 31, 2012
- Andy Dorman has one goal and two assists in seven career games against the Galaxy
- Chad Barrett has one assist against his former club in nine career appearances
- Saer Sene is the only other current member of the Revs who has scored a goal against the Galaxy … Sene scored in the 3-1 win last season
- Matt Reis – a former Galaxy player himself who made 39 appearances for the Galaxy from 1998-2002 - is 7-3-4 in 14 regular-season matches against his former club ... he has recorded four shutouts and posted a 0.93 goals against average
- Bobby Shuttleworth has never made an appearance against the Galaxy
REVOLUTION ACADEMY UPDATE
Under-18s go undefeated this week
The Revolution Under-18 team went undefeated this week, posting a combined 1-0-1 mark against the Montreal Impact on Friday, May 24, and Revolution Empire on Sunday, May 26 … on Friday, the U18s played to a 1-1 draw against Montreal at Regis College … on Sunday, the U18s earned a 3-1 win over Empire at Gillette Stadium … overall, the Revolution Under-18 team is 14-5-3 on the season and with 45 points overall and a 2.04 points per game mark, are in a strong position to claim their third U.S. Soccer Development Academy playoffs spot in four seasons (2010, 2012).
Under-16s suffer pair of losses
The Revolution Under-16 team suffered a pair of losses this week … on Friday, May 24, the U16s dropped a 2-1 match to the Montreal Impact at Regis College … on Sunday, May 26,the U16s then lost, 3-0, to Revolution Empire at Gillette Stadium … with an overall record of 10-6-6 on the season (36 points, 1.64 points per game), the Under-16s are currently outside of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy playoff picture by one one-hundredth of a point per game.
Under-14s fall in semis of U15 College Showcase
The Revolution Under-14s played in the Under-15 bracket of the Global Premier Soccer College Showcase this weekend, going 1-0-3 overall and falling in penalty kicks in the semifinals … the U14s won their group with a 1-0-2 record to advance to the semis … they posted draws against SF Viking Bombers of Massachusetts (1-1) and Yonkers United Celtic of New York (0-0) on Saturday, before defeating Soccer Nova Scotia of Canada, 1-0, on Sunday … on Monday morning, the team draw with Bayside FC Bolts of Rhode Island, 1-1, before falling in penalties with a shot at the championship match on the line.
Season to-date records
Heading into this weekend’s games, the Under-18s are 14-5-3 (45 pts.) overall and rank third in the Northeast Division of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy’s East Conference based on points per game … the Under-16s hold a 10-6-6 record (36 pts.) and are currently in sixth place in the division … the Under-14s entered the weekend with a record of 13-3-1 (40 pts.), and ranked second in U.S. Club Soccer’s Northeast Pre-Academy League based on points per game.
Summer Player Development Programs enrolling
The Revolution Academy’s Player Development Programs are now enrolling for summer sessions, with locations all over New England … the Revolution Academy trains players of all abilities in all aspect of the game, including ball mastery, speed of play, coordination and balance and movement with and without the ball … the objective of all the training programs is to replicate the speed, tempo and environment of the Revolution Youth Teams’ training sessions … through the age-appropriate player development sessions, the Revolution Academy fosters an atmosphere that is competitive, challenging, demanding and fun … encouragement and support from the professional coaching staff allows every player to gain a better understanding of – and continued passion for – the game … more information, including the full spring and summer schedule, is available here.
