Rising next returns to league play, traveling to face Miami FC on April 18 at Pitbull Stadium
Phoenix Rising’s 2026 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup run came to an end in the South Bay, as Rising fell to the San Jose Earthquakes 2-0 on April 15 at PayPal Park. Defender Daniel Flores made his first start of 2026, while a pair of PRFC Academy players appeared in their third Open Cup match as Rising competed in the Round of 32 for a fourth time in five seasons.
“If you look at our boys and the way they played, I’m proud of them,” Head Coach Pa-Modou Kah said. “It was not meant to be, but what we can do is put our heads up. We have another game in Miami and we’ll be ready to go battle for three points.”
The schedule doesn’t let up for Rising, which now travels across the country to face Miami FC to close its third three-match week of the 2026 season. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. (PT) on AZFS and ESPN+.
SUMMING UP THE CUP
Rising’s match in San Jose marked a third consecutive run to the Round of 32 in the Open Cup, but the first time its entire run came solely against teams from the Golden State.
The club kicked off its run on March 17 against amateur side San Ramon FC, netting four goals in a 4-0 win at 38th & Washington. Notably, forward Anthony Capetillo became the youngest goal scorer in club history that night as he capped off Rising’s first win of 2026.
In the Second Round, Rising picked up a 2-1 win over Orange County SC on April 1 at Championship Soccer Stadium. Defender Aleksandar Vukovic netted the match winner in the first half of extra time to send Rising through to the Round of 32.
Kah’s club finished its 2026 Open Cup run with six goals, scored by five different players. Vukovic led the way with two goals, while Juan Carvajal, Capetillo, Hope Avayevu, Gunnar Studenhofft netted a goal each.
“For me, you look at the positive aspects and you can see that we were toe-to-toe with (San Jose),” Kah said. “But goals change games, and we were at the wrong end of it.”
GOAL-SCORING PLAYS
SJ – Nick Fernandez (Timo Werner), 3rd minute: On a corner kick taken from the right, Timo Werner found Nick Fernandez at the top of the box. Fernandez dribbled central before using his right foot to fire the ball to the bottom-right corner of the net from outside the box.
SJ – Jack Jasinski (Nick Fernandez), 23rd minute: A combination near midfield sprung Jack Jasinski down the right who used his right foot to pick out a finish at the near post.
NOTES
-Saturday marked Rising’s fourth U.S. Open Cup Round of 32 appearance in the past five seasons.
-For a third straight season Rising faced an MLS team (Seattle Sounders, Houston Dynamo, San Jose Earthquakes).
-Daniel Flores made his first start of the season against the ‘Quakes.
-Flores has now made three appearances in 2026 across all competitions.
-Defender Eziah Ramirez made his third start of the season.
-All three of the PRFC Academy product’s starts have come in U.S. Open Cup play.
-Rising resumes USL Championship play on the road against Miami FC on April 18.
Phoenix Rising (USL Championship) at San Jose Earthquakes (MLS)
April 15, 2026 – PayPal Park (San Jose, Calif.)
Goals by Half 1 2 FT
Phoenix Rising 0 0 0
San Jose Earthquakes 2 0 2
Scoring Summary:
SJ: Fernandez (Werner), 3
SJ: Jasinski (Fernandez), 23
Misconduct Summary:
SJ: Gónzalez (caution), 13
SJ: Marie (caution), 28
SJ: Jasinski (caution), 37
SJ: Gónzalez (ejection), 39
PHX: Pelayo (caution), 46
PHX: Dennis (caution), 84
PHX: Capetillo (caution), 90+1
Lineups:
PHX: GK Rakovsky, D Flores (Biasi, 45), D Vukovic (Capetillo, 65), D Scearce ©, D Pelayo (Boye, 77), D Ramirez (Dennis, 45), M Sacko, M Gómez, M Moursou (Studenhofft, 64), M Johnson, F Avayevu
Substitutes Not Used: GK Odunze, M Gaydon
TOTAL SHOTS: 17 (Sacko, 6); SHOTS ON GOAL: 4 (Multiple players, 1); FOULS: 13 (Multiple players, 2); OFFSIDES: 4; CORNER KICKS: 5; SAVES: 5
SJ: GK Edwards Jr., D Marie (Tsakiris, 77), D Romney, D Floriani (Skahan, 77), D Jasinski, M Harkes, M González, M Fernandez, M Werner © (Leroux, 45), M Buck (Roberts, 62), F Adimabua (Bouda, 62)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Daniel, D Munie
TOTAL SHOTS: 14 (Multiple players, 3) SHOTS ON GOAL: 7 (Fernandez, 2); FOULS: 13 (Multiple players, 2) OFFSIDES: 1; CORNER KICKS: 9; SAVES: 4
Referee: Elton Garcia
Assistant Referees: Bruno Rizo, Fernando Fierro
Fourth Official: Jamie Padilla
Attendance: 7,868
All statistics contained in this box score are unofficial.
