Toronto strikes 1st vs. Red Bulls

VICTOR Vazquez and Sebastian Giovinco scored to help Toronto FC beat the Red Bulls, 2-1, on Monday night in the opener of their Eastern Conference semifinal.

Giovinco drew a foul conceded by Felipe Martins just outside the box and then bent the free kick over a four-man wall to make it 2-1 in the 72nd minute.

The second of the two-game aggregate series is Sunday in Toronto. Vazquez opened the scoring when he put away a rebound in the eighth minute. Following a New York turnover, Vazquez fed Jozy Altidore, whose cross from the right flank ricocheted off goalkeeper Luis Robles to Vazquez near the top of the box for the finish.

Daniel Royer, after Bradley Wright-Phillips drew a penalty on Drew Moor, scored from the spot in first-half stoppage time — on New York’s first shot on goal.

Toronto, which this season became the first Canadian club to win the Supporters’ Shield, set the MLS single-season record for points (69). The Los Angeles Galaxy had 68 points in 1998.

Alex Bono made each of his three saves in the second half, including a sliding stop after Wright-Phillips slipped behind the defense in the 61st minute and then batting away a header by Kemar Lawrence in the closing moments.