St. Louis CITY SC advanced to its first-ever U.S. Open Cup Semifinal after defeating Houston Dynamo in a penalty shootout following a 2-2 draw in regulation on Wednesday night at Energizer Park. Marcel Hartel opened the scoring for CITY SC in the 10th minute before Houston answered one minute later. The Dynamo took a 2-1 lead in the 42nd minute to carry the one goal advantage into halftime. Following the break, Hartel converted a penalty in the 52nd minute for his second goal of the match and the third brace of his CITY SC career. After two scoreless overtime periods, CITY SC secured a 4-2 victory in the penalty shootout after conversions from Eduard Löwen, Hartel, Timo Baumgartl, and Chris Durkin. Goalkeeper Ben Lundt recorded two saves in the shootout, including the match-clinching stop against Héctor Herrera.Â
St. Louis returns to MLS play this Saturday, May 23, facing Austin FC at Energizer Park with kickoff set for 1:45 p.m. CT.
Postgame Notes
- Marcel Hartel scored his third and fourth career U.S. Open Cup goals
- Tonight’s brace was Hartel’s third of his career with CITY SC
- Hartel leads the team in goals this season in goals (6) across all competitions
- With tonight’s win, CITY SC advanced to the U.S. Open Cup Semifinal for the first time in club history. The date, time, and opponent will be announced at a later date
- The penalty shootout win was the first-ever in CITY SC’s young history
May 19, 2026 – Energizer Park (St. Louis, MO)
Goal-Scoring Plays
STL: Marcel Hartel, 10th minute – Marcel Hartel scored with a left footed shot from the left side of the box to the high center of the goal.
HOU: Mateusz Bogusz, 11th minute – Mateusz Bogusz scored with a right footed shot from the center of the box to the center of the goal.
HOU: Artur, 42nd minute – Artur scored with a right footed shot from outside the box to the bottom corner.
STL: Marcel Hartel, (penalty kick), 52nd minute – Marcel Hartel with a right footed shot from the penalty spot to the bottom left corner.
Scoring Summary
STL: Marcel Hartel, 10’
HOU: Mateusz Bogusz, 11’
HOU: Artur, 42’
STL: Marcel Hartel, 52’
Misconduct Summary
HOU: Lawrence Ennali (caution), 29’
STL: Daniel Edelman (caution), 57’
HOU: Guilherme Augusto (caution), 59’
HOU: AgustÃn Bouzat (caution), 90’+4
STL: Chris Durkin (caution), 90’+7
HOU: Lawrence Ennali (ejection), 109’
HOU: Artur (caution), 110’
STL: Mykhi Joyner (caution), 118’
Lineups
STL: GK Roman Bürki © (Ben Lundt, 26’); D Lukas MacNaughton (Fallou Fall, 120’+3), D Timo Baumgartl, D Dante Polvara; M Conrad Wallem, M Chris Durkin, M Daniel Edelman (Eduard Löwen, 63’), M Tomas Totland (Mykhi Joyner 106’); F Marcel Hartel, F Sangbin Jeong (Brendan McSorley, 91’), F Sergio Córdova (Simon Becher, 63’)
Substitutes not used:Â DÂ Mbacke Fall
TOTAL SHOTS:Â 14; SHOTS ON GOAL: 4; FOULS: 16; OFFSIDES: 1; CORNER KICKS: 3; SAVES: 8
HOU: GK Jonathan Bond; D Antônio Carlos, D Agustin Resch, D Felipe Andrade (Duane Holmes, 120’+1); M Artur ©, M AgustÃn Bouzat, M Jack McGlynn (Héctor Herrera, 87’); F Mateusz Bogusz, F Lawrence Ennali, F Ezequiel Ponce (Ondrej Lingr, 76’), F Guilherme Augusto
Substitutes not used: GK Blake Gillingham, D Franco Negri, D Erik Sviatchenko, F Aliyu Ibrahim
TOTAL SHOTS:Â 22; SHOTS ON GOAL: 11; FOULS: 18; OFFSIDES: 1; CORNER KICKS: 5; SAVES: 2
Venue:Â Energizer Park
Weather:Â Cloudy, 70 degrees
Head Coach Yoann Damet
What were the keys tonight on getting this result:
You needed to be resilient, I think, like you know, like you could tell the fatigue they played as much as we did, and as well, like with the cup and a midweek game, yeah. Those games, it’s about being resilient, staying focused, taking care of moments. Like, there were some big moments on both sides. We could have made it three two, like in the second half with Simon [Becher]. They had a moment where Dante [Polvara] saved it, like almost on the line, could have made it three two for them. Like, those are the moments that define the game. So I felt like there were moments on both sides that didn’t turn anywhere, and then they end up like going to penalty, and it’s a mental game, so it could go either way. So trade to the guys, like in terms of they felt all night long, you know, like we came back from a trip in DC on the weekend, and yeah, you’re asking the guys to do a lot.
First Semifinals in club history, it’s obviously, you know, big accomplishment to get there. Can you just kind of put into words what that means for both yourself and the guys in the locker room?
I think, like, just seeing the guys in the locker room, like, it means a lot, you know, like, we all have a different story with the cup, or with like competitions like that in general. At the end of the day, you speak at the start of the year about the playoffs, and all those things. Those are playoffs, you know, like you’re playing quarterfinals, playing round of 16, round 32 those are playoff games. So, like, early in the season, you get a feeling of like what you want it to taste like at the end of the year, so it means a lot to the group. This group is a group of competitors, they want to win, they want trophy, they want a variety of stories for the club. And tonight is a good moment for us to enjoy, like I said, like give a lot of credit to the guys for all the work they’ve been putting in so far this season. This is the reward for them, really proud of the group, of the staff, of everybody’s effort, and yeah, I hope it’s only the beginning.
As you approach the end of the first half of the season. What does a win like this do for the identity of your team?
It’s not so much for the identity. I would speak more about, like, the mindset, the belief, and, yeah, like, not setting limits for ourselves, you know? Like, we spoke about that early in the season, like, the limits we set ourselves with, like, are only in our minds. So, at the end of the day, we have to be, like, in those moments, believing in ourselves and believing we can accomplish big things, you know, that belief is easy to speak about. It’s another thing when you have to turn it into action. Tonight is one of those moments, as much as the previous games where like you’re getting some very good results as well, that are creating more and more belief, like within the group. And like I said, I think it’s a, it’s a big accomplishment for the club. It’s a big accomplishment for the group, and it gives me like a lot of pride, like going into the break this summer with, uh, with that ticket for the semi-final.
Midfielder Marcel Hartel
On moments that stand out during the game…..
How we defended in the end. Dante [Polvara] blocked a lot of good shots, won a lot of good duels. The guys who came in had a good effort for today, and of course, Ben [Lundt], after saving two penalties at the penalty shootout, big congrats to him, he deserved it. He’s working everyday a lot, and he helped us a lot today, and today he won the game for us.
On what’s going through his mind during the second half penalty…
My confidence. It was clear that I took the penalty to try and help the team, and just one thing in my head, score the goal, make it 2-2, and go for the next one.
On getting the captain’s armband after Roman [Bürki] exiting the game…
I appreciate that I get the captain band, I’m very proud to. First I’m very sad for Roman that has to go with the injury, but then I was very proud to be captain after Roman gets out. For this team, it’s my motivation to step up in this moment and try to go forward, go in front of the team, and try to lead them to the win.
On having a brace and scoring a penalty during Pk shootout….
I’m very happy for us as a club, for us as a team to win a game today, and yeah, just looking forward to the next two games. We can make big things happen, we can have a trophy in the end. This is what we’ll play for. We want to win trophies, and now we have two games to go. We will see who we are playing against, if we play home or away, and then we go for it.
Goalkeeper Ben Lundt
On his feelings about the penalties and the game:
Yeah, I mean, the script in general was a little bit crazy today. I come, Roman was hurt, the first shot on goal is a goal, that’s not a good feeling. And then I make a save at the beginning of the second half, that you know, then we keep possession, we get a penalty, and then you’re in the game, and penalties, I like penalties, I’ve been good at it them in my career, and yeah, but again, I’m more proud of being the guy to step in when there’s an opportunity, I don’t really try to judge myself on one performance, doesn’t matter how it could have went today, bad game, good game, doesn’t really matter, but I am proud that I show up every single day during training, show everybody that I’m the guy that gets the chance when there’s an opportunity, and that’s really what I’m more proud of.
On the support from the crowd tonight:
It meant a lot. It’s Tuesday evening, a school night, and to still see so many fans, so many people show up, means a lot. Truly, they made a difference today. The stadium was loud throughout the whole game, that made a difference.
On saving the last penalty and celebrating with his teammates:
Yeah, it really shows how tight we’re getting. And again, I haven’t played in a year, it’s so difficult to come in all of a sudden in a knockout game. It’s so hard, but again, it really shows everybody’s happy for each other. I’ve been supporting everybody, I’ve been happy for guys getting opportunities, and you could really see it, you know, coming for me today. The guys were super happy, supportive, and yeah, that’s a sign of a strong team.
