Dynamo get off to ‘fantastic’ start
Two-goal lead going into second leg of eastern semifinal series Wednesday
HOUSTON — Adam Moffat and Will Bruin scored for Houston to give the Dynamo a 2-0 win over Sporting Kansas City in the first leg of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
But both teams recognize that it is only halftime. The second leg is at Wednesday night in Kansas City.
“It’s not over,” said Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear. “We know that. If we go to Kansas City thinking that 2-0 is going to carry us to the top and take care of itself, then we are approaching the game the wrong way and I won’t let them do that.”
Kansas City head coach Peter Vermes said being down 2-0 was not disastrous for them.
“It would be better if it was 0-0 or 2-0 our way, right?” said Vermes. “I wouldn’t use that word (disastrous). There are many teams that have come back from this.”
Moffat put the Dynamo, which is the Eastern Conference’s fifth seed, ahead 1-0 in the 18th minute, one-timing a shot on a bounce off a header from Bruin from 30 yards out.
“Obviously, the result is fantastic,” said Moffat. “To get the two goals, the clean sheet doesn’t matter as much. It’s good for confidence to get that victory. We are delighted, but we know we are halfway there.”
Bruin extended Houston’s lead to 2-0 in the 75th minute, getting a cross from Calen Carr in the middle of the box and one-timing it into upper right corner from 10 yards out.
C.J. Sapong missed a chance to tie it at 1-1 in the 34th minute, having a shot from the left box stopped on a diving save by Houston goalkeeper Tally Hall.
Aurelien Collin had a chance to put Kansas City on the board in the 79th minute, but Collin was ruled offside before his shot from the middle of the box was saved by Hall.
“Them getting the first goal 20 minutes in changed the game a little bit,” said Vermes. “I thought they did a very good job in the first half of every time we got the ball, putting numbers around us and either winning the ball or they fouled us and broke the rhythm of the game very quickly. They got 11 guys behind the ball. It slowed the game down for them. They did a good job on the counter, especially the second goal. It’s halftime. We are getting ready for the second half now.”
Vermes refused to make excuses for Kansas City trailing.
“We don’t have any excuses,” he said. “It is what it is. We just get on with the next game. As far as I am concerned, they played well and got the result at home, and now, we need to go do the same.”
Earthquakes rock
CARSON, Calif. — Victor Bernadez scored on a free kick deep into stoppage time Sunday night to lift the San Jose Earthquakes to a 1-0 triumph over the Los Angeles Galaxy in the opener of their Western Conference semifinal series.
The Honduran defender blistered the ball from 31 yards through the Galaxy wall at the top of the box and off goalkeeper Josh Saunders, who was unable to keep it from crossing the goal line.
The second leg in the aggregate series is Wednesday in Santa Clara, Calif., with the winner in the aggregate series advancing to a home-and-home matchup with the Seattle Sounders or Real Salt Lake for a berth in the Dec. 1 MLS Cup final.