Velocity volley breaks Ballard FC’s hearts in U.S. Open Cup debut
By Charles Hamaker
Seattle, WA – The 2024 season will present a few different challenges for Ballard FC, as they move their home stadium to Memorial Stadium for the year and they work to defend their USL League Two title with a different roster, but the club didn’t seem to show any sort of nerves or make any excuses in a U.S. Open Cup battle where they should’ve had the odds stacked against them. Going against the Spokane Velocity, a club that’s a league higher than them, while still trying to gain chemistry with a largely fresh roster could’ve been an easy excuse to point too if Ballard had struggled, but they were the more dangerous side through the large majority of this match and could’ve come away with multiple goals to their name. That wasn’t how things went for Ballard in this matchup at Memorial, as the attack failed to find the correct final touch and ultimately a volley from Spokane Velocity midfielder Andre Lewis saw the visiting side advance further into this year's edition of the U.S. Open Cup.
Ballard FC showed relentless attack and pressure in the first half of the match, and it seemed inevitable that they’d score. (Photos by Liv Lyons)
Firing early, but looking for the finishing touch
From the fourth minute of this match onward, Ballard saw the majority of the chances in this one and provided a long stretch of heavy pressure against Spokane. The boys from Ballard challenged Velocity goalkeeper Peter Swinkels early and often, as possession hardly ever left the Spokane half through the first 45 minutes. Chances were created, such as a cross that Alex Mejia couldn’t accurately head on goal, a Peter Kingston run up the side going wide, a header by Demian Alvarez just missing wide. The relentless pressure and press from Ballard kept Spokane on their toes and challenged them into turnovers on multiple occasions, yet the hosting side just couldn’t get their headers or shots to go just a bit more on target to find the back of the net. The inability to get those shots and attempts closer to on-target ultimately could be looked at as the primary reason why Ballard isn’t moving forward in this tournament.
Despite not having as much pressure on the offensive end in the second half as compared to the first, Ballard FC still had some good looks on goal and dangerous possession in the Spokane Velocity box. (Photos by Liv Lyons)
Heartbreak in extra time
The unrelenting push and attack from Ballard didn’t fully carry over into the second half, as Spokane was able to get some grip on the pace of play and get a few near chances of their own, including several passes across the goal mouth of Ballard. The Velocity had several balls bounce around in the opposing box, but just as Ballard couldn’t in the first half, Spokane failed to get the right foot on a ball to push it past goalkeeper Charlie Lanphier. That such luck changed as we were deep into extra time, as Velocity midfielder Andre Lewis smashed home a volley off a long throw in from Romain Métanire that found it’s way through traffic and came in so quickly that Ballard keeper Lanphier couldn’t react. Spokane’s lone shot on goal of the night had counted, while Ballard’s attempts on goal had failed to meet the mark.
“We were prepared for overtime and penalty [shootout] as well. I’ve seen everything in the Open Cup, so that doesn’t surprise me. We switched off for a half-second and they were able to put in a great hit on goal. It was fantastic and kudos to the [Ballard players]. On very little training, the effort they put out was immense and I could not be prouder.”
As seen in the background, the turnout at Memorial Stadium was strong, as shown by the clubs support group called “The Bridgekeepers.” (Photo by Liv Lyons)
Definite positives to take away from a historic matchday
Adding in all the context ahead of this match, it’s very impressive that Ballard FC performed the way that they did on short notice and against a side that’s in a league above the one that they’re going to be playing in. The turnaround necessary to pull this off, the lack of training that this unit was able to get as a group, the preparation against a side that’s closer to the professional level than they are, all of that adds a lot of extra stress to everyone involved throughout the club itself. For Ballard and its players to look far and away like the better club in this match, a U.S. Open Cup match nonetheless, is somewhat of an achievement in its own right and nothing at all to scoff about. If anything, seeing the way that the group fought tonight and knowing that some of the players that will be on the clubs roster this year couldn’t participate tonight gets me excited to think about what can be achieved when we reach the USL League Two regular season.
“Going against a professional team, I just told the guys it was a great opportunity. To do it in Seattle at Memorial Stadium, under the lights — what an opportunity and they left it on the field.”
Now, with the context of this match acknowledged and knowing that the group on the pitch tonight may not necessarily be reflective of what we see throughout the course of the regular season, there is the need to be critical if we’re going to see growth from this match and move forward from it. The finishing obviously needs to be better, as while chances generated are great but both the Sounders and Reign in this city will tell you that not being able to convert them will only come back to hurt you in the future. Considering the sort of offensive firepower that Ballard possesses on this roster and just how much they generated, I’m not exactly worried about their offensive attack one training camp begins and we get to the regular season, but it should be ensured that there is no carry over in finishing struggles from this match into the season.
Quick note
2,452 fans attended this first round U.S. Open Cup matchup between the Spokane Velocity and Ballard FC at Memorial Stadium
What’s next?
Following tonight’s heartbreaking loss in the first round of the U.S. Open Cup to the Spokane Velocity, Ballard FC looks ahead to their USL League Two season opener on Sunday, May 19th. The season opener for the 2024 campaign, in which Ballard will look to defend their USL League Two title, takes place on the road against the Tacoma Stars as they’ve added a few new teams to their name in addition to the franchise that’s made it’s name as an indoor soccer club that calls the accesso ShoWare Center home. That Sunday season opener on May 19th has a kickoff time of 2PM PST and should be broadcast via YouTube by the Tacoma Stars, as has been the case for other USL League Two clubs in the Pacific Division when they are the hosting side. Given the positives shown by Ballard in this contest, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the club have a strong offensive showing throughout the season.
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