For 26 minutes, Crew SC played as it was waiting for a wakeup call.
It arrived in the form of a thunderstorm that delayed the team’s U.S. Open Cup game against the Tampa Bay Rowdies for almost two hours.
Held without a shot on goal until the storm came, the Crew returned with a spark after the delay. Justin Meram scored 15 minutes after the restart and Columbus then cruised into the Open Cup’s Round of 16 with a 4-0 victory at Ohio State’s Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.
In the early rounds, Major League Soccer teams tend to use the Open Cup to give their reserves a chance for extended playing time or to try players at different positions.