Tarley Scores Four Goals in Thunder's Upset Over Rapids Thunder Advance to Face the Kansas City Wizards in Next Round of U.S. Open Cup

Melvin Tarley led the Thunder past the Colorado Rapids Wednesday night in Open Cup Competition by scoring all four goals in the 4-1 victory. The Thunder's next home game will be August 10 against the Vancouver Whitecaps. Kick off is set for 7:05 p.m.

August 3, 2005 (St. Paul, MN)-

Melvin Tarley carried the Minnesota Thunder on his back again when he scored all four goals in the Thunder’s 4-1 victory over the Colorado Rapids (MLS) in the fourth round of the U.S. Open Cup on Wednesday at James Griffin Stadium.

The Thunder will now advance to take on the Kansas City Wizards on Wednesday, August 24 in Kansas City in the U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals.

Tarley has now scored six goals this season against MLS keepers, as he netted two goals in the Thunder’s 6-4 win over Real Salt Lake on July 13.

The scoring started in the 38th minute, when defender Nathan Knox sent a long ball that slotted through several Rapids players to reach Tarley, who then shot to the low left post to give the Thunder a 1-0 lead going into halftime.

Tarley’s second goal came just minutes into the second half. Jay Alberts played a ball to Tarley at the top of the 18-yard box. Rapids goalkeeper Joe Cannon saved Tarley’s first attempt on goal, but the ball deflected off of him and Tarley followed it in to score on an open net for a 2-0 lead.

Minutes later, Alberts nearly scored his own goal when his shot from 20 yards out hit the inner left post.

Colorado countered in the 68th minute to make the score 2-1 when Alain Nkong received the ball at the top of the 18-yard box, turned and scored to the upper right corner.

But Tarley was not done yet. In the 72nd, he intercepted a bad back pass from a Rapids defender to Cannon. Tarley then faked Cannon left to score on an open net to give the Thunder a 3-1 lead.

Tarley put the game out of reach for Colorado four minutes later, when he scored his fourth goal on an assist by Freddy Juarez to make the score 4-1. He received a loud standing ovation from the crowd when he was substituted out of the game in the 81st.

“It’s amazing,” Thunder coach Buzz Lagos said of Tarley’s performance. “He had another great night. I feel great for (Tarley) and it’s wonderful to see him step up. His confidence is sky-high right now.”

Lagos also credited the play of his defense, who only allowed one goal to an MLS team. “We’re much sharper and more mature. Things are really starting to click for us.”

The Thunder return to USL league play this weekend, when they travel to the west coast for two games. On Friday, the Thunder will face the Portland Timbers at 10 p.m. CST in what Lagos views as a very important game in trying to reach the playoffs. The Thunder will then travel to Seattle on Saturday to play the Sounders at 9 p.m.

The Thunder’s next home league game is on Wednesday, August 10 when they host the Vancouver Whitecaps at James Griffin Stadium in St. Paul. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. For tickets, call 651-917-TEAM or visit online at www.mnthunder.com.





Starting Lineups:

Colorado: Cannon; Lewis (Freeman 50), Kotschau, Borchers, Denton; Cooke (Gargan 66), Melamed, Nkong, Cullen; Gonzalez (Pequaro 50), Cunningham (Harris 59)

Minnesota: Warren; Knox, Wilson, C. Dombrowski; Juarez, Tenoff (T. Dombrowski 71), Alberts, Lara (Friedland 63), Schmidt; Menyongar (Matteo 76), Tarley (Paye 81)
Minnesota substitutions not used: Platter, Branan, Brunt



Game Summary:
Scoring Summary:

Minnesota: Tarley 38 (Knox)
Minnesota: Tarley 48 (Alberts)
Colorado: Nkong 68 (Denton)
Minnesota: Tarley 72
Minnesota: Tarley 76 (Juarez)


Game Statistics:

Colorado: Shots: 12, Fouls: 9, Offside: 0, Corners: 1
Minnesota: Shots: 14, Fouls: 9, Offside: 3, Corners: 1

Goalkeeper Statistics:

Cannon (Colorado):Shots faced: 14, Saves: 7, Goals allowed: 4
Warren (Minnesota): Shots faced: 12, Saves: 5, Goals allowed: 1

Cautions:

CLR: Denton 33


Attendance: 3,191