Orlando City’s wait for a first-ever trophy during the club’s MLS era ended on Wednesday night with Oscar Pareja’s side using a trio of late goals to down Sacramento Republic in the 2022 U.S. Open Cup Final.
Facundo Torres scored two goals in a five-minute span while Benji Michel added an insurance tally in stoppage-time to lead the Lions past their USL opponents, 3-0, at Exploria Stadium. Orlando City became the 11th MLS franchise to lift the U.S. Open Cup and also clinched their birth into the 2023 Concacaf Champions League with the triumph.
Sacramento Republic held their own for majority of the match, frustrating the MLS hosts and keeping their lively attack at bay. Republic goalkeeper Danny Vitiello had little to do in the opening 70 minutes of the match, watching as his teammates blocked five shots from Orlando City players.
Just one minute after Douglas Martinez’s header forced Pedro Gallese into his first save of the match, the Lions broke the deadlock through Torres’ left-footed strike. The 22-year-old one-timed a shot from outside of the Republic box and cashed in by beating Vitiello to the top-left corner.
After earning a 1-0 lead, the Lions kept their foot on the gas and Michel’s pressure in the 79th minute helped earn his side a penalty kick. Dan Casey tripped Michel in the box, allowing Torres the opportunity to slot home his second goal in five minutes for a 2-0 advantage.
Torres played distributor on the final tally of the match, setting up Michel for a confident finish into the bottom-left corner of Vitiello’s goal. It was the second-consecutive Open Cup match that Michel scored.
The victory not only handed Orlando City its first trophy in club history, but was also the fifth-straight win in all competitions for the Eastern Conference squad. Orlando City sits fifth in the East in MLS play and will next travel to first place Philadelphia Union on Saturday.