The Loons hosted the Chicago Fire tonight in a riveting weeknight quarterfinal fixture of the U.S. Open Cup, battling for a spot in the September semifinals on the path to their first piece of silverware as an MLS side.

A rotated lineup featured Joseph Rosales freshly returned from international duty, Wil Trapp captaining from the midfield, and Owen Gene showing off his strength on the ball. The Black and Blue found chances early on, with Rosales, Sang Bin Jeong, and Julian Gressel’s smart movements feeding into the attacking third. The Fire’s Brian Gutiérrez and All-Star Philip Zinckernagel popped up all over the field, however, planting obstacles left and right for the home team to navigate.

The Fire got a little too hot in the 25th minute, with Omar González picking up a red card for downing Gressel in the box after video review. Shortly after losing a player, acting captain Wil Trapp fouled midfielder Brian Gutiérrez in the penalty box and picked up a yellow. Gutiérrez’s ensuing 28th-minute PK goal gave the Fire the lead.

Down a man but up a goal, Chicago hung back, and the Loons saw plenty of action in the attacking third. A number of chances came out of solid wingback play, plus some top-level defensive work by Díaz and Harvey. Duggan knocked the ball out of the defensive third on several occasions with a well-placed, powerful touch, and Rosales was everywhere at once. But Minnesota still couldn’t break down the low block, falling into the same predictable patterns and failing to create consistent dangerous attempts.

Coach Ramsay switched things up for the second half, putting Anthony Markanich, Robin Lod, and Joaquín Pereyra in for Gressel, Trapp, and Sang Bin. The change paid off almost immediately. Tani Oluwaseyi played the ball up to a speedy Markanich, who swept it right to Lod for a shot in close quarters. The club’s all-time leading scorer leveled the score in the 47th minute, igniting a momentum that overshadowed Gregg Berhalter’s halftime substitution of high-scoring Hugo Cuypers.

Kelvin Yeboah joined the ranks in the 63rd minute, logging an immediate shot that couldn’t quite beat Chicago’s Chris Brady. Harvey logged an attempt four minutes later with an attempt that went ever so slightly right of the post. Chicago made a trio of substitutions, but the fresh red jerseys weren’t enough to shift the momentum of the stalemate.

With 15 minutes left on the clock, Ramsay put #15 on the pitch — Michael Boxall’s entrance marked the third captain of the night for the Loons, and St. Clair passed over the armband. A 77th-minute shot from Robin Lod bounced off the crossbar. St. Clair saved a shot coming off a Leonardo Barroso throw-in in the 83rd minute, and not even one minute later, Duggan blocked Cuypers in the box and once again shifted the momentum to the Loons’ attack.

By the end of 90 minutes, Minnesota had racked up a whopping 17 shots to Chicago’s five, but still hadn’t found the tie-breaker. Hlongwane’s shot was kept out by a fantastic Brady save at the end of three minutes of stoppage time, closing out regulation and beginning two 15-minute halves of extra time. Minnesota’s extra substitution came in at the start of extra time, with Duggan leaving the pitch for Nicolás Romero.

Playing up a man actually threw off Minnesota’s typically low-possession strategy, forcing them to take ownership of the ball for more significant stretches of time. The Black and Blue adapted to this approach throughout the match, especially with Pereyra, Lod, and Yeboah on the pitch, finally finding ways to break down the low block in extra time.

In the 95th minute, Harvey headed the ball down to Yeboah, who managed to get around Jack Elliot to slam the ball into the lower right of Brady’s net. With the Loons leading, Berhalter made his extra substitution — Dje D’Avilla out, Jonathan Bamba in. The first half of extra time ended with the Loons leading.

Yeboah’s phenomenal run in the 118th minute ended in a shove from behind and a yellow card for Barroso, lining up a penalty kick with fewer than two minutes remaining in extra time. The Wonderwall wanted an insurance goal, and Yeboah delivered with a fake-out and a smooth shot that rolled right by Brady.

After a rollercoaster of a Tuesday night, the Loons’ victory was cemented with Yeboah’s brace. The big win both took the Loons a step closer to a trophy and proved their ability to adapt to different attacking approaches in real time. It was a result worthy of the fireworks lighting up the sky after the match.

Minnesota United will host a semifinal matchup this September at Allianz Field, where they will take on the winner of tonight’s matchup between San Jose and Austin. Way to put out the Fire, boys.