— The newest banner hanging along the west concourse of WakeMed Soccer Stadium, next to those commemorating the Carolina RailHawks as 2011 and 2013 NASL Regular Season Champions, celebrates last year’s win over the Los Angeles Galaxy in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. It was the RailHawks’ third consecutive win in as many years over the Galaxy in the U.S. Open Cup.

Emblazoned on the large placard is a money quote from Landon Donovan, made prior to last season’s match: “We’re sick of losing to Carolina and we’re sick of going out of the Open Cup early.”

The U.S. Open Cup has become a perennial rite for the RailHawks, one being renewed tomorrow night when Carolina, a member of the North American Soccer League (NASL), hosts the Charlotte Independence of the United Soccer League (USL) in the third round of the 2015 Lamar Hunt Open Cup beginning 7:30 p.m. at WakeMed Soccer Park. The winner travels to Boston to face the New England Revolution of Major League Soccer (MLS) on June 17.

Tomorrow’s match against Charlotte is a rematch of sorts. Last year, the RailHawks ousted the Charlotte Eagles in the Open Cup. The Eagles’ franchise rights in the USL now belong to the newly-formed Independence, which comes to Cary hoping to avenge their predecessor. Moreover, Daniel Jackson, the striker who scored last year’s game-winning goal for Carolina against the Galaxy, now plays for the Independence along with former RailHawks Enzo and Alex Martinez.

Without promotion and relegation, the United States Open Cup is the tie that binds the American soccer pyramid. The single-elimination competition, first held during the 1913–14 soccer season as the National Challenge Cup, is the oldest ongoing national soccer competition in the U.S. and one of the oldest open soccer tournaments in the world. The 2015 U.S. Open Cup is the 102nd edition, initially contested by 91 clubs from the three professional leagues sanctioned by the U.S. Soccer Federation—MLS, the NASL and the USL—as well as amateur clubs in the earlier rounds of the tournament that must qualifying through their respective leagues.

After Carolina and the rest of the newly-formed NASL weren’t permitted entry in the 2011 U.S. Open Cup, the RailHawks have won eight of their 11 Open Cup competitions over the past three years, including five wins over MLS competition (three wins against the Galaxy and two over the erstwhile Chivas USA). Carolina advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2013 and 2014 Open Cups before being eliminated by Real Salt Lake and FC Dallas, respectively.

The RailHawks’ recent on-field Open Cup success has (not coincidentally) mirrored its almost unprecedented fortune hosting Cup ties. Of Carolina’s 11 Open Cup matches since 2012, only one—the 2013 quarterfinals loss at Real Salt Lake—wasn’t played in Cary.

Some of the RailHawks’ most memorable matches were these Open Cup contests. The most transformative was the 2012 victory over the Galaxy in front of a then-record attendance of 7,939 that sold out WakeMed Soccer Park in a matter of days. The enormity of the occasion was only matched by its outcome, as Carolina scored two second-half goals with the considerable contributions of super-sub Ty Shipalane to shock the Galaxy 2-1.

In 2013, before another new record attendance of 8,121, Carolina virtually waltzed to a 2-0 win in a return match against the Galaxy, sans LA manager Bruce Arena, who couldn’t be bothered to even make the trip to Cary.

Two weeks later, the RailHawks defeated Chivas USA 3-1 in extra time to reach the quarterfinals of the 100th U.S. Open Cup, avenging a loss to the MLS side a year earlier.

Last year, the RailHawks faced Chivas USA for the third straight Open Cup, except this time in the tournament’s fourth round. This go around it took a penalty kick shootout and the unlikely heroics of Carolina backup goalkeeper Scott Goodwin for the RailHawks to advance.

Then came the third clash with the Galaxy. The setting was unusual in two respects. This time the Galaxy sent a near full-strength squad featuring Robbie Keane, Juninho, Robbie Rogers, AJ DeLaGarza and Gyasi Zardes. And Landon Donovan, “sick of losing to Carolina,” entered the game in the 64th minute. The match was also moved out of the recently resodded main stadium and onto the adjacent Field 2, with temporary grandstands and lawn seating needed to squeeze in roughly 3,000 partisans.

The result was as improbable as the backdrop.

Will this year’s U.S. Open Cup inspire another RailHawks banner and YouTube compilation? The answer begins tomorrow night.