Montero scores as Whitecaps advance

VANCOUVER — Midfielder Alphonso Davies scored an early goal, then new striker Fredy Montero decided the match late in the second half as the Vancouver Whitecaps defeated the New York Red Bulls 2-0 Wednesday night to win their CONCACAF Champions League quarter-final series.

Davies opened the scoring on a pretty goal in the fifth minute. Montero, one of Vancouver’s prized off-season signings playing in his first game as a Whitecap, connected in the 76th minute, much to the delight of a crowd of 14,183 at BC Place Stadium.

Vancouver controlled most of the first half but the Red Bulls found their legs in the second half. That forced the Whitecaps defence to be sharp while goalkeeper David Ousted made a couple big saves.

Vancouver wins the two-game aggregate series 3-1. The Whitecaps now face Tigres UANL of Monterrey, Mexico, in the Champions League semifinal beginning in mid March. Vancouver opens on the road, then returns home for the second game in the first week of April.

At 16, Davis was the youngest player on the pitch but he showed some veteran poise throughout the night. On the opening goal, midfielder Marcel de Jong crossed a ball into the box where Davis fought off a New York defender and tucked it into the corner of the net.

Davis also played a role in Montero’s goal. Davis sent a corner kick into the box. Defender Tim Park flicked the ball into Montero’s path and he drilled a right-footed shot past goalkeeper Luis Robles.

The Red Bulls’ best chance of the first half came in the 41st minute. Midfielder Sacha Kljestan took a free kick from 30 yards out that Daniel Royer headed at the net. Ousted made the save.

Royer had another chance early in the second half. He headed a ball that a leaping Ousted managed to tip over the net.

The teams battled to a 1-1 draw in the opening match last week in Harrison, New Jersey. Midfielder Kekuta Manneh scored in the 39th minute for Vancouver while Bradley Wright-Phillips salvaged the tie for New York in the 62nd minute.

The CONCACAF Champions League features the top teams from North America, Central America, and the Caribbean.

The Whitecaps open their MLS season Sunday at home against the Philadelphia Union.