Galaxy Loses in Overtime
Igor Simutenkov scored a controversial goal in overtime to lead the Kansas City Wizards to a 2-1 victory over the Galaxy on Saturday night in front of 9,360 at Kansas City, Mo.
Chris Klein took a shot off the left post four minutes into the extra period, recovered the rebound and passed to Simutenkov, who easily shot the ball into the open net. The linesperson’s flag went up to signal that Simutenkov was offside. After a long discussion on the sideline, the referee signaled that the goal counted.
The Wizards (10-10-8) have won three consecutive games after being winless in their previous nine games. They also pulled to within two points of Colorado for second place in the Western Division.
Kerry Zavagnin gave the Wizards a 1-0 lead in the 13th minute with his first goal this season.
Carlos Ruiz tied the score in the 67th minute on a penalty kick. It was his 14th goal this season.
Ruiz earned the kick when he drove into the Wizards’ box and was taken down by defender Diego Gutierrez.
New England 1, D.C. United 0 -- Steve Ralston scored on a penalty kick in the first minute of overtime in front of 12,006 at Foxboro, Mass., helping the Revolution (10-9-9) clinch a playoff berth.
Both teams had numerous chances to score during regulation. D.C. United (10-10-8) had 11 corner kicks, six in the first half; New England had eight corner kicks, five in the first half.
New England, 4-0-1 in its last five games, had the best scoring chances in regulation time. Ryan Kamler knocked a header off the right goalpost in the 39th minute and Ralston had point-blank chances in the 48th and 53rd minutes.
Dallas 0, New York/New Jersey 0 -- The game in front of 13,567 at East Rutherford, N.J., featured a league-record three missed penalty kicks.
The tie enabled the MetroStars (11-8-9) to hold on to second place in the Eastern Conference, five points ahead of New England. Dallas (5-18-5) has the worst record in the league.
MetroStar defender Eddie Pope left in the opening minutes of the second half because of a strained rib cage.
