Second-division Montedio Yamagata weathered a second-half brace from Kei Chinen to reach the Emperor's Cup semifinals with a 3-2 upset over visiting Kawasaki Frontale on Wednesday night.
The J2 side opened the scoring in the second minute of the quarterfinal at ND Soft Stadium Yamagata when Seigo Kobayashi found the back of the net, then doubled the lead when Tatsuya Sakai scored nine minutes from the break.
Forward Toyofumi Sakano struck four minutes into the second half to put Montedio up 3-0, delighting the home fans who made up most of the 5,356 in attendance.
Twenty-three-year-old striker Chinen pulled a goal back for Frontale in the 60th minute, then netted his second 10 minutes later.
With the J. League first-division leaders surging forward in search of an equalizer, Montedio's defense held firm for the final 20 minutes plus injury time.
In other quarterfinal action, Urawa Reds advanced with a 2-0 win against visiting Sagan Tosu. Tomoya Ugajin and Tomoaki Makino both struck first-half goals at Kumagaya Athletic Stadium in Saitama.
At Yamaha Stadium, Vegalta Sendai beat Jubilo Iwata 4-3 on penalties after the scores remained deadlocked 1-1 after extra time.
Vegalta forward Ryo Germain struck in the 86th minute to cancel out Koki Ogawa's ninth-minute opener.
Second-division Ventforet Kofu will host Kashima Antlers for a quarterfinal on Nov. 21. The match was scheduled separately to accommodate Antlers' Asian Champions League semifinal.