The Big PictureÂ
Jonathan Lewis scored his fourth goal in three appearances across all competitions as the Colorado Rapids defeated Sacramento Republic FC 4-2 on the road to advance to the U.S. Open Cup Round of 16. The result extended the Rapids’ unbeaten run across all competitions to nine games (4-0-5).
Notable:
- F Jonathan Lewis opened the scoring in the fourth minute to collect his fourth goal in three appearances across all competitions.Â
- M Danny Leyva delivered the assist on Jonathan Lewis’ opening goal, marking his first contribution as a member of the Rapids since joining the club on loan from the Seattle Sounders FC.Â
- D Michael Edwards recorded his first start and collected his first goal as a member of the Rapids in the 15th minute of tonight's match.Â
- D Alex Gersbach delivered his first assist as a member of the Rapids on Edwards’ goal.
- M Sam Nicholson scored the Rapids’ game-winner in the 55th minute, his first goal of the season.
- F Michael Barrios delivered the assist on Nicholson’s goal and scored the fourth goal of the match. The Colombian has scored a trio of goals and has delivered a trio of assists across all competitions thus far in 2023.Â
- M Braian Gálvan delivered his first assist of the season in the 81st minute of tonight’s match.
Postgame Media Availability Recordings:
COLORADO RAPIDS HEAD COACH ROBIN FRASER
On the match:
“Obviously happy to advance. As I've been saying all week, we certainly intend to take this tournament seriously, and we've talked a lot about mentality, we talked about what it's like to play in an arena like this. And they were every bit as good as I thought they would be, probably actually better, even. I thought Sacramento, after giving up a couple of early goals, really applied a lot of pressure late in the game. I was certainly pleased with how we handled it, and then obviously, to relinquish the lead, and then come back in and find two more goals to win it. I was really proud of the group for that. A lot of credit to Sacramento. I think they're a very good team and a very committed team in the way they play. And it was a tough, tough night for us. But as I said, the bottom line is we're happy to have gotten through and advance to the next round.”
On Jonathan Lewis’ recent form:
“Jonny [Lewis] was hurt when the season started for the first couple of games, and he certainly was coming back and coming back into form probably three or four games in. I think what we see now, finally, is a fully healthy and fit Jonny. When he picks up the ball in certain parts of the field, he's very dangerous, and his ability with the ball, his timing and his running without the ball, those things are really important. When he does those things well, he becomes very dangerous.”
On his message to the team after nine unbeaten games:
“It's a commitment. Everything starts with a commitment, and it's been really good from the beginning. Now it becomes more difficult as we have more games and less rest, and we have to use more guys, and guys who get opportunities need to step up and play with the same level of intensity that we've seen over the last however many weeks it is now. So, it's not like nine games unbeaten and we're worried that this is going to come to an end. The fact of the matter is the big reason why it has happened has come down to our commitment and our approach in the games. And along the way with that confidence, we've gotten better and better at certain things. Right now, it's really, we need to keep going, keep our foot down and we don't let up. That sort of mentality has been good for us for the last several weeks and there's absolutely no reason to change that. So, the approach doesn't change. And for me, the approach is the most important thing.”
COLORADO RAPIDS FORWARD JONATHAN LEWIS
On the match:
“I think the first half, it was a little bit back and forth, and they definitely created some problems for us and credit to them, they were a decent team, and they came out and they got the crowd behind it. We scored the two early goals, but after that, they kind of took control, but I think in the second half, we weathered the storm and that's what we should have done from the first half, but I think, obviously, they got their second goal to tie it up, but I felt like in the second half, we were in control a lot more than in the first half.”
On the team’s approach to the U.S. Open Cup:
“For me, I just think, again, it's an opportunity. If you tell somebody you can win a trophy in five or six games, then I think most people will take that. So, for me, I think that we just—we have to take it a game by game, but again, this is a six-game tournament. I think it's six games to get to the finals and to win a trophy. So, you've got to win six games, so for us, it's like that focus and that mentality right there to win or go home. And, you know, we have that in the back of our heads, and we know that this could be an opportunity, a tournament that we can actually win, so I think everybody's just putting their head down. We know whoever we get next, again, it's going to be just another game, but there's going to be a lot more urgency in these games right now than even maybe an MLS game.”
