EL PASO -- The El Paso Patriots will square off against the Arizona Sahuaros on Tuesday night in the first round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.

El Paso will host Arizona for the opportunity to advance further in the tournament.

The game is scheduled for 8 p.m. at Patriot Stadium.

"We have always received support from them, and they were an important part of our wins." Patriots coach Hugo Samano said about playing in front of their home crowd.

Patriots player Enrique Cervantes said playing at home does give the Patriots a slight edge over Arizona.

"At home is where we feel most comfortable," Cervantes said. "Our family, friends and our crowd are (there). Hopefully our crowd can come out and support us and give us that extra boost."

One of the keys for victory, Patriots goalkeeper Jorge Muniz said, is for the team to have full concentration.

"Be 100 percent concentrated from the goalie to the forwards," Muniz said.

The Patriots are hoping to advance farther in the tournament than their previous trips.

"As far as we can," Samano said. "The last two years we have passed the second round, and await to improve on that."

The Patriots received some good news Monday. One of the trio of players that recently traveled to Guadalajara for tryouts with the Chivas club got signed.

Cristian Zamora, only 17, accomplished his dream of playing professional soccer.

"I felt nervous, but stayed positive," Zamora said. "It means my life, because soccer is my life."

By Jesus Sanchez / Special to the Times