Galaxy, Crew Battle to 1-1 Tie
Marvin Quijano scored his first Major League Soccer goal Saturday as the Galaxy scrambled to earn a 1-1 tie against the Crew in an untidy and often disappointing game at Columbus, Ohio.
Considering that the Galaxy was playing its third game in eight days and was without three of its starters--Simon Elliott, Luis Hernandez and Cobi Jones--the result can be viewed as positive.
The same cannot be said for the quality of play by both teams on a blustery, overcast afternoon in front of 15,174 at Crew Stadium.
Neither goalkeeper was forced to make a difficult save because both offenses squandered the numerous scoring chances created at either end by sloppy defending.
As it was, Quijano’s goal was an out-and-out gift from Crew midfielder Duncan Oughton.
It came three minutes into the second half, when Oughton sent a back pass into no-man’s land, right between the Columbus defenders and Crew goalkeeper Tom Presthus.
Quijano, 21, making his first start of the season and only the third start of his three-year MLS career, immediately latched onto it, faked Presthus to the ground and then took the ball around him before cutting it back into the open net.
“In the second half I came out and did what I had to do,” Quijano said. “You visualize what the moment will be like when you get that first goal and I was happy that I was able to get it today.”
The Galaxy (5-3-3) managed to hold the lead for barely a minute before the Crew (2-3-4) tied it up.
Brian McBride, the U.S. national team striker, played the ball into the Galaxy penalty area, intending the pass for Brian West. Instead, the ball bounced off West and straight to midfielder John Wilmar Perez, who unleashed a sizzling shot that flashed into the net off the underside of the crossbar.
And that was it as far as goals were concerned. Even 10 minutes of overtime failed to produce another.
The teams combined to take 30 shots (16 by Los Angeles) but the wayward state of their shooting was seen in the goalkeeping statistics.
Presthus had to make only three saves, while Galaxy keeper Matt Reis was forced to make only one. It was enough, however, for him to remain unbeaten with a 5-0-3 record.
“Considering the guys we were missing, I was very pleased with the result today,” Los Angeles Coach Sigi Schmid said.
The Galaxy was without a quarter of its other starters because Elliott is in New Zealand for his country’s World Cup 2002 qualifying tournament, Hernandez was serving a one-game suspension for yellow cards picked up in his first three games, and Jones was sidelined because of a left hamstring and groin strain.
Referee Richard Heron whistled 35 fouls in the game, 20 of them against the Galaxy, and that contributed to the scrappy nature of the contest.
Not helping matters was the fact that Los Angeles defender Paul Caligiuri was booed every time he touched the ball. Fans in Columbus apparently will never forgive him for the lawsuit he won in 1997 that allowed him to leave the Crew and join the Galaxy.
This might be the former U.S. national team player’s final MLS season. Cal Poly Pomona has offered him a position as its men’s and women’s soccer coach, but Caligiuri, 37, has so far declined to discuss his future.
As for the Galaxy, it is unbeaten in its last four games and travels to San Jose for a Saturday game against the Earthquakes that will determine, at least temporarily, who has the Western Division lead.
In other MLS games Saturday:
Chicago 2, D.C. United 1--Two goals in a three-minute span by Eric Wynalda and Dema Kovalenko late in the second half gave Chicago (5-3-2) its first-ever victory at Washington in front of 14,473 at RFK Stadium.
Jaime Moreno scored for D.C. United (3-6-0) off a Bobby Convey pass.
Kansas City 2, Tampa Bay 1--The Mutiny (2-7-1) lost its fourth in a row as the Wizards (5-4-1) got goals from Francisco Gomez and Roy Lassiter to cancel out Steve Trittschuh’s early goal for the Mutiny in front of 9,834 at Tampa. Lassiter became the first MLS player to reach the 200-point plateau.
Miami 6, Dallas 2--The Fusion (9-1-1) rode three goals by Diego Serna and one apiece by Tyrone Marshall, Alex Pineda Chacon and Pablo Mastroeni to victory over the Burn (3-5-1) in front of 10,049 at Dallas. Bobby Rhine and Ariel Graziani scored for the Burn.
San Jose 2, Colorado 1--The Earthquakes (6-2-3) extended their team-record unbeaten streak to eight games as Landon Donovan and Jeff Agoos scored in front of 10,095 at Denver. John Spencer got a goal for the Rapids (2-7-3).
In Women’s United Soccer Assn. (WUSA) games:
Carolina 2, Atlanta 0--Norwegian goalkeeper Bente Norby got the shutout and the Courage (2-4-1) got goals from Beth Sheppard and Danielle Fotopoulos against the Beat (3-1-3) in front of 7,853 at Atlanta.
Bay Area 1, San Diego 0--The Spirit (1-4-2) remained in last place as it lost to the CyberRays (2-4-1) on a late goal by Jacqui Little in front of 5,311 at San Diego.
