Sporting Kansas City announced Tuesday that the club has signed forward Kharlton Belmar, midfielder Felipe Hernandez and defender Parker Maher on short-term loans from the Swope Park Rangers ahead of Wednesday’s Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Round of 16 match against the Houston Dynamo.
Belmar, Hernandez and Maher will join Sporting Kansas City for the trip to BBVA Compass Stadium, where the club will square off with Houston at 5:30 p.m. CT. The matchup will stream live on SportingKC.com.
Per league rules, MLS clubs can sign players from their USL affiliate to Short Term Agreements (up to four-day contracts) for U.S. Open Cup, CONCACAF Champions League and exhibition matches. An MLS club can sign a player to a maximum of four short term agreements each season.
Belmar, 24, leads the Swope Park Rangers with four goals in his first season with the club. He spent the previous two seasons at Portland Timbers 2, where he earned USL Rookie of the Year honors in 2015.
Hernandez, who turned 19 earlier this month, signed a professional contract for the Swope Park Rangers in January after starring for the Sporting Kansas City Academy from 2014-2016. A regular member of the United States U-19 Men’s National Team, Hernandez has started six of seven appearances this season with the Rangers while also leading the Sporting KC U-18s to a second-place finish in the Frontier Division of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy.
Maher signed for SPR ahead of the 2017 campaign after spending his first two USL seasons with Saint Louis FC. The left back has featured in 11 matches for the Rangers and is tied for the team lead with two assists. Maher enjoyed a four-year college career at Missouri State University in Springfield.
In addition, Sporting Kansas City’s Cameron Iwasa, Tyler Pasher, Diego Rubio, Daniel Salloi and Adrian Zendejas have joined the Swope Park Rangers for tonight’s USL battle against Tulsa Roughnecks FC at ONEOK Field in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. CT on SportingKC.com.
KHARLTON BELMAR
Position: Forward
Born: 12/1/92 (24 years old)
Height: 5-11
Weight: 160 lbs.
College: Virginia Commonwealth University
Hometown: Virginia Beach, Va.
Birthplace: Virginia Beach, Va.
Citizenship: USA
Twitter: @kharltonbelmar
Instagram: @kharltonbelmar
FELIPE HERNANDEZ (feh-LEE-pay)
Position: Midfielder
Born: 6/8/98 (18 years old)
Height: 5-7
Weight: 135 lbs.
Hometown: Nashville, Tenn.
Birthplace: Ibague, Colombia
Citizenship: USA, Colombia
Twitter: @Fe1ipe98
Instagram: @fe1ip3
PARKER MAHER (marr)
Position: Midfielder
Born: 7/12/93 (23 years old)
Height: 5-11
Weight: 170 lbs.
College: Missouri State University
Hometown: Joplin, Mo.
Birthplace: Fort Smith, Ark.
Citizenship: USA
Twitter: @ParkMaher
Instagram: @parkmaher
