Galaxy Kicks It Up a Notch
Call it the Cobi and Carlos Show.
And, for the Galaxy and its fans, the extravaganza’s engagement will last at least another round of Major League Soccer’s playoffs.
Cobi Jones, the Galaxy’s most venerable and accomplished player, and Carlos Ruiz, the wildly popular first-year scoring sensation from Guatemala, both made sure of it Wednesday night at the Rose Bowl. Both players had two goals and an assist in the Galaxy’s 5-2 win over the Kansas City Wizards in the deciding Game 3 of their first-round series.
With the win, the Galaxy advances to the semifinals against Colorado--which scored in the first minute of a sudden-death series tiebreaker to defeat Dallas--beginning Saturday at the Rose Bowl at 7 p.m.
But before preparing for the Rapids, who went 2-2-0 against the Galaxy this year, Jones wanted to soak in the moment. So he laid at midfield for about 10 minutes after the final whistle blew and caught his breath.
“This was really important, especially for our self-worth as a team,” Jones said, reflecting on the Galaxy’s blowout win four days after being blown out, 4-1, at Kansas City, a postseason loss that equaled a franchise-worst.
“They took it to us there and we took it to them here.”
It wouldn’t have been possible without his running mate Ruiz, though.
“We’re the guys the team needs to lean on offensively and in the playoffs, it’s time to show your worth. It’s very sweet and this is what we need heading into the next series.”
The Western Conference champion and No. 1-seeded Galaxy, which has been in the playoffs every year since the league’s inception in 1996, also avoided the dubious distinction of becoming the first team to finish the regular season with the best record, yet get knocked out in the first round of the playoffs.
The Galaxy had been tight and tentative in the first two games of the series, in which Kansas City scored first in each.
In front of 14,713 at the Rose Bowl, things were different.
The Galaxy broke through in the 34th minute when Ruiz scored off a free kick from about 20 yards out.
The kicks was set up after Alejandro Moreno was fouled on a breakaway attempt by Wizard defender Carey Talley.
Ruiz lightly tapped the ball on the free kick to Sasha Victorine, who fed the ball back to Ruiz on his right.
The quick give-and-go opened up just enough space in the Wizard defensive wall for Ruiz to lace his powerful shot through it and past a diving Tony Meola.
The Galaxy made it 2-0 in the second minute of extra time to close out the first half.
With Kansas City midfielder Diego Gutierrez trying to juggle the ball in the penalty box in an apparent, and unwise, attempt to clear it out with a bicycle kick, an onrushing Jones stole the ball from him. After one dribble off his chest, Jones’ shot blew by Meola.
“Getting that first goal does a lot of things [for momentum],” Galaxy Coach Sigi Schmid said. “And getting the second goal right before the half is an adrenaline giver.”
Kansas City’s Chris Klein got the Wizards within one in the 47th minute, but Jones scored 15 minutes later when he followed Ruiz’s shot off the post and deposited the ball into the net for his third goal of the series.
The Galaxy went up, 4-1, in the 66th minute when Ruiz, after taking a long pass from Jones, juked defender Nick Garcia on the right side and beat Meola again.
“I connect pretty well with Cobi because we both have offensive minds,” said Ruiz, who has four goals and two assists in the postseason. “He has more experience than I do, but we both play with a goal in mind all the time.”
