Starting XI: Avery Larsson, Ignacio Gonzalez, Deq Jama, Rodolfo Batisti, Ciro Ottado, Austin Gunkel, Easton Hoch, Hugo Perez, Redouane Baarab, Robert Cooper, and Vasco Bernades.
Vlora traveled to Eagan yesterday, May 6, to play Minnesota Blizzard in the first round of the National Amateur Cup, winning 5-1 and booking a ticket to the next round.
The National Amateur Cup is a tournament hosted by the United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA) which pits clubs that enter, all from amateur leagues, against one another in regional brackets. The regional winners then advance to the national stage of the cup. The winner of the grand final earns a place in the US Open Cup the following year, yet another reason the National Amateur Cup has become a premier tournament and opportunity for many lower league soccer clubs.
Vlora has taken part on the cup every year since 2021, reaching as far as the regional semifinals in 2024. Vlora has gotten to face a range of new opponents from Wisconsin to Kansas through the tournament, including Red Star SC, Focus FC, Milwaukee Bavarians, Honduras Majors, Green Bay Glory, and RWB Adria.
It was a busy day for Vlora’s attack on May 6, led by a brace for Ignacio Gonzalez. Easton Hoch continued to impress with one goal and two assists, meaning he now has eight goal involvements from three games. Sohail Ebrahimi got the in the mix and converted a penalty and assisted one goal. Defender Deq Jama also joined in on the fun after making his third-straight start for Vlora, scoring a goal against the Minnesota Blizzard. Austin Gunkel returned as starting goalkeeper and marshaled a strong game, allowing one goal from the hosting Blizzard.
Vlora will return to UPSL Premier Division play this coming weekend, hosting reigning playoff champions 18×26 Academy at Bob Pates Stadium on May 11.
