Moments of stomach wrenching anguish dot Minnesota United’s history, and Michael Boxall has lived through every major sorrow over the past decade.

The Loons’ longest-tenured player endured the pain of losing the U.S. Open Cup final to Atlanta United in 2019, and the MLS Western Conference final to Seattle Sounders in 2020. Now, MNUFC’s 2-1 loss Wednesday to Austin FC in the U.S. Open Cup semifinal makes for a trio of top-tier traumas.

Minnesota United defender Michael Boxall (15) controls the ball as Austin FC midfielder Owen Wolff (33) defends in the first half of a U.S. Open Cup semifinal match at Allianz Field in St. Paul on Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

“Been here far too long,” Boxall, a nine-year veteran, said from the podium at Allianz Field. “… And we’ve been in that position, what, three times? Doesn’t come around too often, so it sucks.”

With emotions still raw, Boxall was asked how this letdown might compare to falling short of the mountain top in 2019 and 2020.

“I feel like the other two, we were a little bit closer,” Boxall said about potentially winning a trophy. “(But) I think to host the final at Allianz would have been pretty damn special.”

That’s where the knife twists. Because of hosting priority established earlier in national tournament, had Minnesota beaten Austin, they would have been host to Nashville SC in the Cup final on Oct. 1.

Everyone with MNUFC knew how fortunate that format set up was.

“The possibility of playing a final in your own stadium … that’s not something that you don’t necessarily get across a 10-, 12-year career at this level,” second-year head coach Eric Ramsay said Tuesday. “It’s a really unique opportunity, and one that we’ve got to take advantage of.”

The Loons were left with a feeling that both goals conceded were the result of defensive mistakes. They allowed Osman Bukari to sprint past defender Nico Romero, and Dayne St. Clair let the shot go underneath him for a 1-0 deficit during the final seconds of first-half stoppage time. But Loons midfielder Joaquin Pereyra dazzled with a 25-yard goal on a free kick to make it 1-1 and send the game to 30 minutes of extra time.

Still tied, Minnesota and Austin were roughly 10 seconds away from going to penalty kicks when Joseph Rosales was beat to a ball down the right flank. Owen Gene was beat to an initial header by Myrto Uzuni, which St. Clair stopped. But CJ Fodrey’s rebound shot bounced into the net and killed Minnesota’s dream.

As Fodrey stuck out his tongue out in celebration in the north end of the stadium, Loons fans buried heads in hands.

“There’s possibly an element of us looking at the clock and it being 120 (minutes) and us switching off in a really unforgivable way,” Ramsay said. “It’s really frustrating, and we’ve only got ourselves to look at in that sense.”

United will need to quickly turn the page to MLS play with Chicago Fire coming to St. Paul on Saturday. But the path to win a league trophy won’t be nearly as streamlined.

The Loons are fourth in the MLS Supporters Shield race — read: best regular-season record — but winning that piece of silverware will need MNUFC to jump over three other clubs with only four matches to go.

With a club-record 54 points through 30 matches, United already has clinched a spot in the MLS Cup Playoffs, a gauntlet that will start with a first-round, best-of-three series in late October. If they advance, the Loons will have one-off conference semifinal and conference final matches before reaching MLS Cup in early December.

“We’re going to have to find a way (to regroup),” Boxall said late Wednesday. “I think typically, on the back of tough results, we find ways to get wins. So, obviously, (MLS) is our only focus. By the time our heads hit the pillow, we need to find a way to move on and recover and get ready for Saturday. We’ve got to keep pace with the teams at the top and take our business on our end, and (then) you never know what happens.”

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