Orange County’s 2026 US Open Cup run got off to a nearly spotless start. It was an OC derby in Irvine, California as the Orange & Black welcomed Laguna United FC of the UPSL. Orange County would get 3 past Laguna and would keep everything off their own net to come away with a 3-0 victory. It was the kind of game that OC fans would like to see just to prove something. This was a team that had not yet won a match in all of 2026 and including preseason. Danny Stone came out with a strong starting lineup and has given OC its first Open Cup victory since 2023.
FIRST HALF
The said strong lineup is something we have seen Coach Stone use in similar games in the past and this one was no different. Alex Rando would remain in goal and would stand behind a back four of Doghman, Brewitt, Tubbs (who’s red card suspension does not carry over to tournament games) and War. Nothing too out of the ordinary there. Benalcazar and Kelly would employ the central midfield with Palomino and Mataeo Bunbury manning the flanks. As predicted, Ethan Zubak would get the start up top alongside Jamir Johnson. In that starting XI alone, only Zubak, Tubbs and Bunbury are the only ones to see their first starts of the season.
Within the first two minutes of the match, OC was able to get two balls into the opponents 6 yard box with a pair of through balls. Going through both the middle and sides of the field was doable against a very young Laguna United team. Mataeo Bunbury would actually get a caution within the first 10 minutes and the only time Laguna had the ball would be on counter-attacks. OC’s first shot on goal would come in the 10’ minute of play with a header that got a nice save from the Launga keeper. For the first 25 minutes of play it was OC’s ball and they had some great opportunities. A quick interception would find Ethan Zubak on the right side and his cross-field pass would find a streaking Stephen Kelly. Kelly would beat one man and would finish nicely low, back-post to give him his first of the season. Then about 4 minutes later some chaos in the Laguna box would find Jamir Johnson whose shot would deflect in off Ryan Doghman and OC would sprint out to a 2-0 lead right at the cusp of halftime. That is Doghman’s first of the season.
Other than that, Ryan Doghman would see a caution in the 44th minute and this was a rare free kick in the offensive half for Laguna. This would be the end of the first half, one that was dominated by Orange County as expected.
SECOND HALF
Orange County in the first half were able to control possession, move all 3 lines up the field and were able to net two goals. One goal came by sheer skill while the other from sheer determination. The offense and midfield from OC was good enough that the defense and Rando were not even tested with a shot of any kind. The thing that I loved to see was OC breaking down Laguna by its passing through any and all available channels. Garrison Tubbs was a force to be reckoned with on the backline that snuffed out any and all Laguna advances. Ethan Zubak would not get a goal tonight but his movement to get into the open spaces has been apparent in 2026 and his first goal will come.
The second half would essentially be the same. We would see our first subs for Orange County come in during the 58’ minute. Hegardt would come on for Palomino and Tyson Espy would sub in for Ryan Doghman. Tyson Espy grew up playing for Laguna United FC and this was a watershed moment for him. Laguna’s best chance of the game would come in the 71’ minute after a Johnson turnover the Laguna midfielder from about 25 yards out would send a screaming shot that just flew past the crossbar.
We would see our next set of subs with Benalcazar and Zubak coming off being replaced by Bazini and Solis. Laguna would start sending some balls into the OC box but they were all defended fairly easily. OC would retain possession and War from the left wing would put in a great cross into the box that Hegardt would control and dribble past the keeper for a tap in. OC now leads 3-0 on the evening and do so with three different goal scorers. A couple of minutes later Oliver Kurnik would come on for goal scorer Kelly.
The rest of the match would be relatively uneventful and would end 3-0. OC would score another goal but would see it get called back for offsides in what was actually a bit of a funky play.
OVERVIEW
A lot of good things to talk about in this match. Orange County were able to comfortably grab victory and did so with no drama to speak of. Of note for OC is that two of the three goals scored came off of Laguna United goal kicks that OC quickly recovered and scored from. Laguna United had all of 2 shot attempts all game and nothing on target for Rando to save. OC ended the game with 70 percent possession and 26 shot attempts. OC have advanced to the second round of the Open Cup where they will face another round 1 winner. The player of the match for me is Stephen Kelly whose goal was quite a thing of quality and midfield play set the tone early.
There is another player that we should give a special recognition to and that is the goalkeeper for Laguna United FC Jacob Estall. Jacob is a young man from England who found his way to Orange County and to Orange County SC. Jacob was a longtime fan of Orange County SC who was a member of the CLC and someone that I enjoyed watching games with. Even though he was playing for the other team he will always have the support of everyone at the Orange & Black SoccerCast and County Line Coalition. We are proud of you Jacob and proud to call you one of our own.