Real Salt Lake Drops To Houston Dynamo In U.S. Open Cup Semifinal

HOUSTON – Real Salt Lake drops out of the U.S. Open Cup in the semifinal after the Houston Dynamo FC broke a tie in extra time.

Héctor Herrera and Adalberto Carrasquilla got in on the action for Houston. Anderson Julio was the sole goal-scorer for RSL.

Houston will go on to face Lionel Messi and Inter Miami FC in the U.S. Open Cup final on September 27.

Dynamo book Miami Final ticket | @opencup

*And a spot in the @TheChampions 👏🏽 pic.twitter.com/YQ7sSDIMpE

— U.S. Open Cup (@opencup) August 24, 2023

Real Salt Lake Loses To Houston Dynamo FC In Extra Time

First Half

RSL and Houston traded shots early on. None of the first four attempts were on goal.

Defender Justen Glad nearly opened up scoring in the 16th minute with a header from the center of the box.

The shot was saved by Houston goalkeeper Andrew Tarbell.

Don’t change the channel, America – our second semifinal is well underway in Houston 🚀

Tune in to #HOUvRSL on @CBSSportsGolazo / @NBCUniverso! pic.twitter.com/ur0RtR7JON

— U.S. Open Cup (@opencup) August 24, 2023

Real Salt Lake’s Zac MacMath saved a shot taken by Héctor Herrera just minutes later.

RSL and the Dynamo last faced off in early May. The game ended in a scoreless draw.

RELATED: Real Salt Lake Gets Second-Straight Shutout In Draw Against Houston Dynamo FC

In the 41st minute, MacMath was undercut by a Houston forward and took a hard fall. After a short delay, play resumed and MacMath stayed on the pitch.

Just before halftime, disaster nearly struck for RSL.

Midfielder Héctor Herrera made the most of his touch in the box after MacMath committed to the ball. Amine Bassi drew MacMath in, found Herrera, and Houston got on the board.

After giving up a goal to Herrera, the Dynamo would find the back of the net again following a set-piece situation. However, an offsides call brought the goal back and concluded the first half.

Offsides call saves @realsaltlake from going down 0-2 before the half. Houston currently dominating time of possession (67/33) which led to an extra shot on goal and the lead for the Dynamo.

45′@realsaltlake 0@HoustonDynamo 1#RSL #HOUvRSL

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) August 24, 2023

Second Half

Houston had RSL on its toes to start the second half.

The Dynamo attempted six shots in the first eight minutes of the half.

Chicho Arango was shown a yellow card in the 58th minute.

MacMath saving back-to-back shots set up an RSL transition attempt. After the Houston defense caught up, Real Salt Lake reset and found the equalizer.

The goal was scored by forward Anderson Julio.

RELATED: Anderson Julio Checks In, Scores Equalizer In U.S. Open Cup Semifinal

step on & score? THAT’S WHAT ANDO DOES pic.twitter.com/WA3AVnWiWh

— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) August 24, 2023

Emeka Eneli was shown a yellow card for a foul in the 67th minute.

Houston’s Herrera was looking to add to his tally in the second half. He took two more shots, one missed to the right and one was saved.

Julio took a shot for the lead but it was blocked by a Dynamo defender.

Five minutes of stoppage time was added.

five more minutes to score pic.twitter.com/vwcjXu8rAy

— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) August 24, 2023

Real Salt Lake had its back against the wall for the majority of the second half. Houston continued to apply pressure but the RSL defense held strong.

Griffin Dorsey set up a great look for Houston in the 93rd minute but MacMath slid in and grabbed a pass in the six-yard box.

Extra Time

Tied at 1-1 after the five minutes of stoppage time concluded, 30 minutes of extra time was needed in Houston.

In the 105th minute, Adalberto Carrasquilla sent a shot to the bottom left corner to give the Dynamo a lead in extra time.

Extra time’s halftime followed the goal.

Houston takes the lead in extra time.

Adalberto Carrasquilla sends a strike past MacMath.@realsaltlake 1@HoustonDynamo 2#RSL #HOUvRSL

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) August 24, 2023

With 15 minutes remaining, RSL needed at least one score to keep their U.S. Open Cup hopes alive.

Justen Glad was shown a yellow card for a foul in the 106th minute.

Brayan Vera was shown a red card after getting into an altercation in the game’s closing minutes.

Red Card for Vera. 🟥

Getting chippy here late. Punches thrown leads to a one-man disadvantage for @realsaltlake.#RSL #HOUvRSL

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) August 24, 2023

In the 124th minute, Houston’s Luís Caicedo put the nail in the coffin.

He scored from the center of the box off an assist from Amine Bassi to give his club a 3-1 advantage.

An unfortunate end doesn’t change the result.

Real Salt Lake drops to the Houston Dynamo FC, 3-1, on the road in the U.S. Open Cup semifinal.

Coco seals it for @HoustonDynamo 🧡 #USOC2023 | @opencup pic.twitter.com/wc7SPv6NT7

— U.S. Open Cup (@opencup) August 24, 2023

With the win, Houston also claims a spot in the Concacaf Champions Cup.

How To Watch Real Salt Lake

All Major League Soccer games are broadcasted on Apple TV with MLS Season Pass.

All Real Salt Lake English-language radio coverage for the 2023 season and beyond will be carried on various KSL radio signals. KSL Sports Zone (97.5 FM/1280 AM) and KSL Newsradio (102.7 FM / 1160 AM) are both stations under the Bonneville International umbrella.

Are you on Threads yet? Let’s connect, give us a follow @kslsports. 

Chandler Holt is a co-host for the Jazz Notes podcast and a Digital Sports Producer for KSLSports.com, specializing in all things basketball and football. Follow Chandler on Twitter @ChandlerHoltKSL or on Threads @chandlerho1t.

Want more coverage like Real Salt Lake loses to Houston Dynamo? Take us with you, wherever you go.

Download the new & improved KSL Sports app from Utah’s sports leader. You can stream live radio, video and stay up to date on all of your favorite teams.