Sonoma County Sol falls to Sacramento Republic 4-2

The Sonoma County Sol could not overcome two early goals notched by host Sacramento Republic in the second round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Wednesday, falling 4-2.

The Republic, a professional team currently in first place in the Western Conference of the United Soccer League, scored two goals within 12 minutes of the opening whistle.

That lackluster start and the noise of more than 10,300 fans at Sacramento’s Bonney Field proved too much for the Sol, said head coach Vinnie Cortezzo.

“It was intense,” he said of dealing with a fan section located behind the visitors’ goal where fans beat drums, chanted and sang.

The crowd set a second-round attendance record for the single-elimination U.S. Open Cup, the oldest cup competition in U.S. soccer.

“You can’t communicate. I couldn’t say anything to the team and they could barely talk to each other,” he said.

“They got two goals right out of the gate,” he said. “We were probably a little bit nervous, being in a big environment like that against a professional side and the noise made it harder for us to organize.”

But the Sol, a semi-pro team made up primarily of players who played for local high schools, Santa Rosa Junior College and Sonoma State, clawed back behind two goals from forward Omar Nuño who played prep soccer for Healdsburg High and two seasons for SRJC.

Tyler Hurst, who played at Piner and SRJC, headed a winner into the back of the net but was denied the goal after being called for a foul on the Republic goalkeeper. That, coupled with a missed penalty by Analy graduate and SSU alum Taylor Varnador, could have made the outcome different, Cortezzo said.

“To their credit, there is just no quit in this group,” he said. “We battled back.”

The Sol, currently in first place in the Golden Gate Conference of the National Premier Soccer League, returns to league play Saturday against Real San Jose. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. at Rancho Cotate High School.