Portland, Atlanta to meet in MLS Cup

H A RRISON, N.J.» Atlanta United advanced to Major League Soccer’s championship match in just its second season, losing to the New York Red Bulls 1-0 on Thursday night on a goal in second-half stoppage time but winning the twomatch Eastern Conference final by a 3-1 aggregate score.

Atlanta will host Portland in the MLS Cup on Dec. 8, a chance for the city’s second professional sports title and first since the Braves won the 1995 World Series

New York, one of the league’s original teams, had the best regular-season record for the third time in six seasons but remains without an MLS title. The Red Bulls have reached the conference final five times but advanced for the only time in 2008, when they lost to Columbus.

Timbers 3, Sporting KC 2.

» Diego Valeri scored a pair of goals, including one in stoppage time, and Portland beat Sporting Kansas City 3-2 on Thursday night to advance to MLS Cup for the second time in four years.

Sebastian Blanco also scored in the second half for Portland, which didn’t even need Valeri’s clinching goal. The teams had played to a scoreless draw Sunday in Portland in the first leg of their aggregate-goal Western Conference final, and with road goals being the tiebreaker, the Timbers were assured of playing for a championship even when the score was 2-2.

Valeri’s stoppage goal merely allowed the Timbers to begin celebrating a few minutes early.