It's gone from bad to worse for FC Dallas.

FC Dallas dropped a 2-0 decision to the Charlotte Eagles at FC Dallas Stadium in the third round of the 2012 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. The Eagles' Nate Thornton picked up a goal and an assist in the win for the USL-Pro side.

After going winless in nine league matches, FC Dallas hosted a third division side that had only won two games all season and what do you know, they lost to them as well at home.

More injuries, red cards and poor finishing were to blame in this one for FC Dallas. The few that were in attendance to witness this game left feeling empty handed and probably a bit of a feeling that this season is slightly over.

Read on for more thoughts on this game

Emotional Intelligence. Schellas Hyndman preaches this to his players but yet again it does nothing to get through to them. Jackson Goncalves got a red card late to put FCD down a man, Fabian Castillo came in with 30 minutes left and tried to do everything all on his own. James Marcelin yet again found himself coming off the bench to just do whatever he wanted in the midfield.

I could probably point out another guy or two that just didn't do a ton last night but really this team effort wasn't entirely there. The soccer smarts of this club hasn't been present for ages now and seeing how guys don't play with a head on their shoulders for 90 minutes is really wearing this team down.

HGPs. Last night FCD got to play three Home Grown Players thanks to injuries. Jonathan Top looked good early on up top while Bryan Levya once again showed how dangerous he can be with the ball. Moises Hernandez finally got his first big minutes of 2012 and wasn't terrible in the back for Zach Loyd. It was good to see these three get playing time, just a shame that FCD couldn't have run up the score (and stayed off the injury issues) and got Victor Ulloa and Ruben Luna in this one as well.

Top really is starting to show that he could easily be the striker of the future for this club. I know we used to give that honor to Luna but lately we've seen plenty of Top and each time he continues to impress.

Injuries changed game. Yet again the game turned on a dime when Dallas lost not one but two key players. Zach Loyd and George John both walked away on their own power which was positive to see but after each left FCD just didn't battle the same way that they did in the opening 30 minutes. The game was sucked out of them like we've seen in previous games when a player goes down.

Kudos to Charlotte keeper Clinton Irwin. Yes this is a third division side but they came to play, and mostly they owe a ton to their keeper Irwin. He came up huge several times early on in this one, providing that extra bump that keepers sometimes give their clubs when they make big early saves. FCD just never had an answer for him as he made big stop after big stop and really commanded his penalty box. Even late when the Eagles were bunkering he was still strong as ever (but truth be told FCD wasn't putting nearly the same pressure on him as they were in the opening 20 minutes).

Bright side. If you need a silver lining or just something to give you a pick-me-up this morning. FCD was one of seven...yes...SEVEN...MLS sides to go down last night in USOC play. LA lost on the road, Houston lost on the road, even RSL lost at HOME. It was a crazy night in the Cup and I don't think we're done seeing upsets either.

Bright side part two. I hate even going this way but losing in this tournament frees up some calendar space in June and July. More time to get healthy and more time to have the front office get pressured into getting at least some tiny little friendly to get the fans excited here.

Scoring Summary:

CHA - Darryl Roberts (Nate Thornton) 43

CHA - Thornton (Roberts) 94+

FC Dallas - Chris Seitz, Jair Benitez, Matt Hedges, George John (James Marcelin 41), Zach Loyd (Moises Hernandez 24), Bryan Leyva (Fabian Castillo 60), Bruno Guarda, Andrew Jacobson, Jackson, Scott Sealy, Jonathan Top.

Substitutes Not Used: Kevin Hartman, Victor Ulloa, Ruben Luna, Alex Lee.

TOTAL SHOTS: 28 (Scott Sealy 6); SHOTS ON GOAL: 11 (Scott Sealy, James Marcelin 2); FOULS: 7 (Jackson 3); OFFSIDES: 1 (Bruno Guarda 1); CORNER KICKS: 10 (Bryan Leyva 5); SAVES: 0 (Chris Seitz 0)

Charlotte Eagles - Clint Irwin, Devon Grousis (Luke Williams 68), Sean Bateau, Mark Bloom, Josh Rife, Darryl Roberts, Juan Guzman, Darren Toby, Mauricio Salles, Miguel Ferrer (Chris Salvaggione 78), Joseph Kwabe (Nate Thornton 40).

Substitutes Not Used: Eric Reed, Cheyne Roberts, Milton Blanco, Christian Meza.

TOTAL SHOTS: 7 (Nate Thornton, Darryl Roberts 3); SHOTS ON GOAL: 2 (Nate Thornton, Darryl Roberts 1); FOULS: 17 (Miguel Ferrer 4); OFFSIDES: 2 (Nate Thornton, Mauricio Salles 1); CORNER KICKS: 3 (Mauricio Salles 3); SAVES: 10 (Clinton Irwin 10).

Misconduct Summary:

CHA - Juan Guzman (caution; reckless tackle) 30

CHA - Luke Williams (caution; reckless tackle) 72

DAL - Jackson (ejection; violent conduct) 78

CHA - Nate Thornton (caution; reckless tackle) 84

Referee: Jorge Luna Hernandez

Referee's Assistants: Jonathan Johnson, John Dearmond

4th Official: Leszek Stalmach

Attendance: 1,702

Time of Game: 1:59

Weather: Clear, 95 degrees