United’s results since his arrival, however, have been equally respectable but still uninspiring, especially at home despite fighting their way back into the muddled Eastern Conference playoff picture.

And just like those stars, he has quickly become the focal point of an attack and a team that is showing some promise at perhaps just the right time. But for that promise to be actualized, some of the other key players have to step up do their part.

United’s 4-0 pasting of Vancouver last Saturday was their first home win since a 2-1 performance against Seattle on May 4 and the mood in the locker room was certainly happy with the subtle tones of relief.

United is now over .500 this late in the season since 2009 and have drawn their goal differential back to level terms (33 goals for and against), despite giving up four goals on four different occasions and three goals once.

“We’d all be lying if we didn’t say that the home record wasn’t wearing on us and this gives us a little bit of an exhale when we come home,” said United coach Ben Olsen.

United have scored 12 goals while conceding just six in the seven games with DeRosario in the lineup. He did not score but had two assists Saturday night and after scoring a dramatic goal to beat New York in his second start, United’s attack has run exclusively through the Canadian International.

“The guy has worked very hard to be an option up there and the players trust him. When you make real plays time after time, it’s pretty natural that you start to try and find that guy. We do preach get the ball to Dwayne as much as possible but that is what you want to do with all of your good players,” said Olsen.

“Your go-to players need to touch ball, that’s what they are there for. He’s always getting one, two and sometimes three guys at times so we are going to have to get some guys to step up.”

Every time DeRosario touched the ball or made a penetrating run in the attacking third of the park, Vancouver double and triple-teamed him, running defenders at him from seemingly all directions. That sort of attention makes decisive and timely runs off the ball by his mates extremely critical.

“With DeRo now we want to possess the ball and keep it and so we actually get a few more numbers in advance of the ball. He’s a guy (with the ball) at his feet, he can make things happen, he can score goals, he can slip guys.

“He’s been fantastic since he’s come to us. We have got to find other ways to get it done but he is obviously the guy we want to shape our attacks around,” said forward Josh Wolff, who did not play last weekend still nursing a hamstring strain.

Despite all of the attention from opposition on which his teammates now heavily rely, the championships with San Jose and Houston, the multiple MLS Cup MVP awards and All Star games, DeRosario is quiet and humble and quick with standard clichés.

“I am happy about that (the goals) but I am looking for the results,” he said. “Credit goes to the guys around me; they are the one’s giving me good service and putting in the work and finding me in good positions. I am definitely happy with that position but I would like to see us get some points at home.”

United visits Chicago, Wolff’s original team, this Thursday night for the first of three games in ten days. They will then travel to scorching hot Kansas City, Wolff’s next stop during his lengthy career, for a Sunday tilt before returning home Saturday for their first ever match against Portland.

Charlie Davies, who has also been hampered by a recent knee injury, was routinely threatening and played the full 90-minutes against Vancouver. As all of their critical players are now basically healthy, United have also caught the most unlikely of breaks as the temperatures in Washington have been, and will continue to be, unseasonably cool, hovering in the low to mid 80’s.

“It’s been a good week as far as weather for us so we’ll be able to push the guys a little more than usual but we are deep; we are as deep as we’ve been all year right now,” said Olsen. “A lot of healthy bodies; and I expect to use more than eleven guys in the starting rotation over the next week.”

Dejan Jakovic returned to full training and is likely to start against the Earthquakes. Four other players have returned to training coming off concussions. Santino Quaranta, Devin McTavish, Brandon Barklage, and Blake Brettschneider all participated in some capacity or another during the week.

The former two are still out for this weekend, but Brettschneider and Barklage have been upgraded to probable.

On the flip side, Josh Wolff (left hamstring strain) and Charlie Davies (left knee inflammation) are both questionable while Joseph Ngwenya is probable after taking a knock in the 3-1 exhibition loss to Everton last Saturday. This makes the potential return of Brettschneider, who trained the most of three concussion returnees, even more imperative.

“It’s not ideal but the good thing is that Blake got through training today but we’ll be able to put something together. We need bodies right now and everyone who is training today is in the mix,” said United coach Ben Olsen about his roster options after Tuesday’s training session.

Injuries or not, Olsen has not been too happy with the effort and mentality of some of his regulars in recent matches, though he who he would not disclose any specific names.

“It’s summer so you are always going to need fresh bodies and it does push guys that maybe lately have been too comfortable in their role,” said Olsen. “I think you saw that a little bit in New England and I think you definitely saw it against Everton. I spoke my peace with them and let them know how I feel about that and hopefully I won’t have to address that again.”

Jakovic and Brandon McDonald played alongside each other in the first half during the loss to Everton and are the likely long term combination for United in the center of defense.

“He’s a smart player. He’s very technical, he’s good on the ball,” said McDonald about Jakovic. “Whoever the coaches decide to put back there we have to come along quickly because half the season is already gone. We have to come together and mesh well and get some results.”

Rookie Ethan White has been steady as Jakovic’s fill-in but is likely to step back in favor of the Canadian international. “I can’t really do anything but play my game and make it hard on the coaches so it’s really on them at the end of the day,” said White.

United were punched in the mouth by the Earthquakes on June 11, conceding a hat trick to Steven Lenhart in a 4-2 loss at RFK Stadium.

United have won only twice in San Jose and whether at Spartan Stadium or the current Buck Shaw Stadium, the field is small and not conducive to possession and quick ball movement, which is how United have historically built their teams.

“It’s on a smaller field and just like every other away game we have to be sharp defensively and ready for a real battle and that mentality has seemed to be good for us in our away games and hopefully that will continue,” Olsen said.

“We never really build our teams to be a Route 1, smash mouth team that can always go into those places and always succeed but saying that, we’ve been able to adapt a little bit better this year,” Olsen continued. “They are very opportunistic at home, their energy level is always high and it’s just a grind and they do it better than most of the league and it’s tough to go against.”

The burly Lenhart proved too much for the intelligent but slighter and naïve United defenders to handle in the earlier loss. McDonald, who came from San Jose shortly thereafter, has shared a few secrets with his new teammates on how to handle Lenhart and the Earthquakes in general.

We got stretched offensively and defensively where they were just knocking it in between us and playing long balls into Lenhart. We have to make sure we keep closed lines and go out and get a goal early.

“He’s given us some insight but I am not going to share them with you guys,” White said with a smile.

“He does his job very well. I think he’s a bruiser,” McDonald said about Lenhart. “His job is to get on defender’s nerves and he does a good job at it. You’ve got to keep your head. He’s one of those guys that can get under your skin a little bit but that is part of soccer and you have to be mentally strong for 90-minutes.”

“You gotta fight through the whole game and finish games off. There is no excuse to lose a game in the last 10-minutes. Well, tie, but it feels like a loss,” said United defender Ethan White.

United newcomers Dwayne DeRosario and Brandon McDonald both started and played the full 90-minutes and both were immediately influential. DeRosario had just one solid training session leading up to the match but was impactful from the onset, garnering the main assist on Josh Wolff’s goal to give United a 1-0 lead in the 44th minute..

United are now winless in their last five matches, including four draws and have only won once at home (2-2-5) since beating Columbus in their opening match of the season.

“It is obviously disappointing to tie again, and it hurts a little bit more because it was the second one (in a row at home),” said United coach Ben Olsen. “But putting that aside, we brought two new guys to fit into the team this week, and I thought it was a pretty good game overall.

“It was a pretty entertaining game; it was a little too open I thought because that is what they do well, they counter attack very well.”

The result spoiled a cracker of a goal from Andy Najar that gave United the lead in the 58th minute and an exceptional performance from goalkeeper Bill Hamid. The young goalkeeper extended hard to his left to deny Danny Mwanga from 17-yards out in the 19th minute and stoned a Ruiz header with a reflex save shortly after United took the lead on Najar’s goal in the second half.

Each team generated some half chances in the first quarter hour of the match before the game opened up, perhaps far more than both coaches would have liked, in an evenly played first half.

Union goalkeeper Faryd Mondragon countered Hamid a minute later with a great save on a Wolff volley from inside the box, banging his head on the post in the process.

Despite the evenness of the half, United took the lead a minute before the break. Najar played the ball into DeRosario’s timely run near the top left corner of the box with former United standout Brian Carroll in pursuit.

DeRosario surged to the goal line, playing a ball around Carroll to a wide open Wolff, who simply redirected the ball with his right foot passed Mondragon from inside the 6-yard box.

“To have an immediate impact like that is good, to get my team ahead. Wolffy is a great poacher, he has a nose for the net. He positioned himself in a great position where he could just tap it in,” said DeRosario. “When you play around the 6-yard box the keeper has to make a decision and he (Wolff) made the run from the back post to the front post and it was a great run.”

Two unfortunate decisions led to the Union’s equalizer in the in the 49th minute. Chris Pontius’s attempted chest pass to a nearby teammate some 25-yards from goal was the first. Veljko Paunovic easily picked up the errant pass and chipped a fairly innocuous ball to the far post where Perry Kitchen’s clumsy clearing attempt deflected off his knee and perfectly into the upper right corner of the net was the second.

In last week’s 2-2 draw with Houston, Brian Ching’s game tying goal skimmed off the head of Kitchen, altering the direction just enough to get by Hamid.

Pontius responded admirably to his miscue two minutes later however, slipping behind the Union backline and getting off a shot that got through Mondragon despite his getting a good piece of it, only to trickle off the far post.

United took the lead back on a tremendous strike from Andy Najar in the 58th minute. Najar picked up the ball near midfield, pushed the ball recklessly through Mwanga’s legs, drifted into the open space in the right channel before cutting loose a right footed shot from 32-yards out that Mondragon got a piece of again, but not enough to keep it from going into the far corner.

“Yeah those are two of them,” said Olsen when asked if he thought maturity and concentration were the reasons for the continuous late game breakdowns. “We gave them more chances than we like at a home game, or any game for that matter.

“We were kind of living on the edge there for stretches; for 20-minutes here we were good and then they would come at us for 15 or 20-minutes. I am pleased with the performance, not pleased with the result.”

Sheanon Williams and Sebastien Le Toux combined beautifully to set up Ruiz’s equalizer. After receiving the ball from midfield, Le Toux played the ball behind Pontius to Williams in stride, who angled quickly into the penalty area, leading the hard charging Ruiz, who beat White to the spot and flicked the ball into the far side netting from a step inside the 6-yard box.

“They catch us back door and I thought over the 90 minutes there were many times when they were right behind us,” said Olsen.

“We have to be savvier on their running off the ball but give them credit – their running off the ball is very good and what they do best. When Ruiz or Le Toux or (Justin) Mapp, when they get the ball, they have other guys flying to try and get in behind (the defense) and they are committed.”

Lenhart had another shot inside a chaotic United penalty area less than a minute later and scored the first of his three goals on his third shot in the 15th minute as the San Jose Earthquakes raced away to a well deserved 4-2 road victory. Lenhart also assisted on the Earthquakes’ other goal, the game winner, by Simon Dawkins just four minutes into the second half.

“He is a hat trick player if we play the way our defenders did today; so are a lot of players. He’s a handful, make no mistake, he’s a big boy but there are ways to deal with that and we didn’t do it,” said Olsen about Lenhart. “But I give him credit; we got manhandled by a guy who fought every play and we had guys kind of fight but over the ninety minutes he just wore those guys down.”

This marked the fourth time this season that United have given up at least four goals in a match and also the fifth time they have given up a goal within three minutes of scoring one themselves. A bad start to a match has been the precursor to a bad result this year for DC United and though the slow start was short lived; the end result was still the same.

“I think tonight was us thinking that we were a little bit better than we were and maybe it’s a good thing we got punched in the face and knocked down. You got to match the fight and we didn’t early,” said Olsen. “It was very disappointing in the way we went about the game; we looked like young kids. This is going to happen, we have always said that we are going to have games when young kids make mistakes -that I can live with.

“But the lack of commitment and energy that we didn’t show at times was unacceptable. I think we started reading our own press a little bit, everybody thought we were on a roll, so now we don’t have to do what got us a little success – and it’s a little success.”

United used very little width and were sloppy with the ball in the early going but that changed in the 13th minute with an opportunistic and perhaps fortuitous goal by Andy Najar on a ball that wasn’t even intended to come his way.

Josh Wolff played a ball into the penalty area from the right flank that was just out of the reach of Chris Pontius. However, the ball incredibly skittered through three San Jose defenders to the back side where Najar pounced, beating a surprised Jon Busch inside the near post.

United’s good fortune was momentary however as Lenhart collected a Khari Stephenson ball cleanly beating an offside trap, easily dribbled around Hamid, and just as easily knocked a left footed shot into the open goal to bring terms level again just two minutes later.

Those two switched roles in the 22nd minute as Lenhart gobbled up a juicy rebound off a Stephenson shot from the top of the box and knocked it home to give the Earthquakes their first lead. Lenhart instinctively went to goal after laying the ball off to Stephenson, whose shot was saved nicely by Hamid who did not control his rebound effectively however, leaving the sitter just five yards from goal.

“He was good at holding the ball up and making himself dangerous and we didn’t adjust. He’s got a good work rate and we never really figured it out. This league is all about working hard and we got outworked tonight,” added United rookie defender Perry Kitchen.

But not to be outdone on their home park for at least a few moments during the action packed half, Blake Brettschneider drew United even in the 34th minute. He collected a Chris Korb ball with his back to goal at the top of the right side of the penalty, turned Bobby Burling, and slotted a low, left footed shot just inside the near post.

Lenhart was the distributor on the next goal as Dawkins quickly gave the Earthquakes the lead in the second half, beating a helpless Hamid from close range for his fourth goal of the season. Lenhart played a crafty short ball in traffic inside the penalty area that caught Perry Kitchen flat footed and pleading for offides.

“I don’t think we were aggressive enough. We let the guy turn, he plays a 1-2 in our box and we are not covering for each other, all the little things that got us a little bit of success here we didn’t do tonight. It’s pretty simple,” said Olsen.

“We didn’t fix the problems from the first half. There was definitely too much space to work off of each other. Defensively the success for us is not an individual thing but a collective group thing,” said Wolff.

“Tonight it was more of a one v. one match up sometimes and they won too many of those battles throughout the course of the game. We need to get pressure on the ball and move our lines a bit more to make the spaces tighter for their frontrunners. They took advantage of a weak spot for us tonight and they punished us for it.”

United could have equalized six minutes later after a nice sequence of several passes on the right side finally sprung Wolff behind the San Jose back line but his low cross was just out the reach of the sliding Brettschneider inside the six yard box.

Lenhart completed the hat trick in the 59th minute nodding a ball over the late charging Hamid for his fourth goal of the season. A badly mishit ball by Steven Beitashour from the center of the park popped straight into the air but in the vicinity of Lenhart near the top of the box. The burly striker simply flicked a fairly innocuous header backward over Hamid, who had carelessly and inexplicably come off his line.

“You have to realize the importance of each game in this league. San Jose got the message-they came in here and did exactly what we did to LA and Portland,” said United coach Ben Olsen. “They got the message and we didn’t get it and that’s unacceptable and that will change next week.”

Scoring Summary:
DC — Andy Najar 1 (Josh Wolff 2, Clyde Simms 1) 13
SJ — Steven Lenhart 2 (Khari Stephenson 2, Sam Cronin 2) 15
SJ — Steven Lenhart 3 (unassisted) 22
DC — Blake Brettschneider 1 (Chris Korb 2) 34
SJ — Simon Dawkins 4 (Steven Lenhart 2) 49
SJ — Steven Lenhart 4 (Steven Beitashour 2) 60

San Jose Earthquakes — Jon Busch, Steven Beitashour, Bobby Burling, Jason Hernandez, Bobby Convey, Anthony Ampaipitakwong (Brandon McDonald 89), Sam Cronin, Khari Stephenson (Simon Dawkins 48), Brad Ring, Ramiro Corrales, Steven Lenhart.
Substitutes Not Used: Joey Gjertsen, Chris Leitch, Matt Luzunaris, Ellis McLoughlin, Andrew Weber.

D.C. United — Bill Hamid, Chris Korb (Brandon Barklage 68), Ethan White, Perry Kitchen, Daniel Woolard (Dax McCarty 78), Andy Najar, Fred, Clyde Simms, Chris Pontius, Blake Brettschneider (Charlie Davies 63), Josh Wolff.
Substitutes Not Used: Stephen King, Joseph Ngwenya, Jed Zayner, Steve Cronin.

Misconduct Summary:
SJ — Brad Ring (caution; Reckless Foul) 87

Referee: Andrew Chapin
Referee’s Assistants: Greg Barkey; Corey Parker
4th Official: Alex Prus
Attendance: 14,105
Time of Game: 1:50
Weather: Partly Cloudy-and-80-degrees

In their last two matches however, a 2-1 win over Seattle and scoreless draw with FC Dallas both at home, an unlikely combination across the back line coupled with a commitment to defending have produced two dramatically different performances and better results.

“Coming off the bad losses we had, the team came out with a different attitude. We came out knowing we had to play stingier defense and that is what we have done the last two weeks,” said Daniel Woolard, who played left back in these last two results.

“We have played defensively well as a team; we’ve battled for each other and covered for each other in the mistakes that we’ve made and we’ve been fortunate enough to keep some goals off the board.”

In their previous three matches, United gave up a total of 11 goals including three to a marginal bunch of New England reserves in a U.S. Open Cup match that was sandwiched between two four goal leaks to New York and Houston.

The Red Bulls moved the ball freely and consistently forced United into odd man situations, forcing them to make decisions for which they were severely exploited. So regardless, something had to change.

“Focus,” said center back Dejan Jakovic abruptly about the primary change. “Defensively we are a lot sharper. We aren’t making any mistakes in the back and we are concentrating for 90-minutes, not just the back four, we are just playing well defensively.”

United coach Ben Olsen responded with an odd combination in the back that so far has been effective. Along with Woolard, rookie Perry Kitchen was shifted to outside right with another rookie, Ethan White, playing alongside Jakovic in the middle.

“Both of them think like backs a little bit more than the other guys we’ve had in there and neither one attacked a lot and maybe we can get a little more involved in the attack and getting them higher up the field,” United assistant coach Chad Ashton said about Woolard and Kitchen.

“But we said we wanted to be better defensively and not give up goals and you could see that’s what those two brought to the game. They are not giving up chances. They are doing the little things of when you are a weak side back of tucking in and organizing from the weak side. If we can add a little attack to it from those guys now, we’ll start to get them on both sides of the ball,” Ashton continued.

Kitchen last played right back in 2009 with the U.S. Under-17 National Team but seemed fairly comfortable with his movement and decision making.

“I wasn’t trying to do too much,” said the engaging rookie from Akron. “I was just worrying about defense first and trying to get forward when I could. We know the work that it took to give up the one goal so we have to keep that same mentality. It wasn’t just the backs and the goalie, we kept a tight shape and everybody was defending.”

Despite the better results, their inability effectively and consistently to defend set pieces is a clear issue. In response, Olsen and his staff resorted to their version of the “Herbie” during a training session the previous week.

“The set pieces are a problem. It was like from the movie Miracle where you are saying ‘again’ and ‘again’ and ‘again’ and we just kept going until guys won their battles,” said Ashton, referring to a tactic used by 1980 U..S Olympic Hockey Coach Herb Brooks, after a listless tie 4-4 tie with Norway in a tune up game leading up to the Olympics.

Brooks lined his team up on the goal line and they skated; line-to-line and back multiple times, with a whistle and the chilling sound of “again” as the only sounds other than their skate blades cutting the ice. They skated so many times that the rink workers turned the lights off and left.

“It’s a pride thing; it’s a mentality and I think we are getting better at it but we need to do better not only on defensive set pieces but offensive set pieces as well as just saying that we are going to win our individual battles,” said Ashton.

Jakovic corroborated the incident. “We were giving up a lot of chances on set pieces. Defensively and offensively obviously it wasn’t good enough. One training session where we might have worked on set pieces and Benny was just yelling at everybody until we got it right. It has to do with concentration and we are man marking so everyone has to stay with their man.”

Watch VH-1 for example.  They love that type of stuff.  They’ve made a network built upon the shoulders of “stars” who have been forgotten.  Spike has done it too.  But even worse than some producer calling you out of the blue and asking if he and a couple of cameras can follow you around for a few hours is you saying, “Sure, I’d love that.”  Because now you’ve become an accomplice to your own joke.  You’ve swallowed your pride; your dignity has lost its way.  Friends & family won’t tell you, but after they watch your segment, they’ll agree amongst one another that you looked kind of foolish.  They won’t tell you, because you’ll know you looked a little bit more than “kind of” foolish and they’ll know you know (it’s an old joke, the I know you know that I know, but it always works).  Part of the game of a Where Are They Now is to pretend none of the attention bothers you.  But it always does.

Back to the VH-1 example.  Remember the song “Walking On Sunshine” by Katrina & The Waves?  I was their only hit, back from the mid-80s.  Now they might make sense for a Where Are They Now? feature because they only had the one hit song.  But the star of the band and the star of the segment was Katrina, now in her early-50s, still trying to make it back.  She’s heavier, maybe more talented but with zero chance of anybody caring about anything other than “Walking On Sunshine.”  If I were here, even though there’s little to lose career-wise, I’d still be embarrassed I was even asked.  And my fear is that I wouldn’t say no.

The film “Spinal Tap” showed what happened when the “famous” don’t realize they aren’t really famous anymore.  In one telling scene, the band Spinal Tap is in the U.S. for a tour.  They hear one of their early songs on the radio.  It’s great fun for the boys in the band…. Until the DJ comes on and says, “File them in the ‘Where Are They Now?’ category.”  Rarely do you get to watch five faces fall more quickly than a jumper off of the G.W. Bridge at rush hour.

The cousin of Where Are They Now? is the feature, “30 Seconds With (insert name here).”  This can be in the printed word or on video.  It can be audio-only as well.  The positive about this is it’s about you on the way up.  You could also be the focus of one of these as you sustain whatever level of fame you’ve got.  But 15, 20 years after you’ve “hit the scene?”  Unless you’re still making hits, headlines or noise with your alleged talent, you no longer qualify for “30 Seconds With…”  You’ve graduated to Where Are They Now?

None of this is easy.  First, it’s certainly not easy to get to the level of fame where you’ve generated enough press to warrant being the subject of a “30 Seconds…” type of profile.  To be the subject of a Where Are They Now?, you need to have made some sort of impact.  Making an impact publicly is the dream of millions and the accomplishment of the very few, so there is accomplishment built into either feature.  But every accolade carries its own risk.  If someone praises you, it’s up to you to live up to that praise.  That’s one reason the rich & famous burn out so quickly and never really get to the Rich part of the equation.  They get the quick (even if it was 10 years in the making) fame, do all they can to stay in the spotlight, but lose perspective, focus, inspiration…whatever.  They can’t keep it up.  It’s gone before they can really cash in.  Or they cash in a bit, but the Where Are They Now? feature 20 years later includes a line like this: “Coming off tax problems with the I.R.S., (insert name here) has learned (insert embarrassing public sentiment here)…”

The goal, once you’re reached Mt. Everest, is to enjoy it.  But ask any climber who makes it to the top and they’ll warn you not to stay too long.  You can always come back if you’re careful, and skilled enough.  Lose your head at the zenith though and you may never get the chance again.

Cal Ripken Jr. is a good example of someone who’s kept the dignity of reaching the top and keeping his name and accomplishments away from the veiled insult of Where Are They Now?  He was a great baseball player, a good man off the field and since retirement has made good choices, like running his baseball academy and allowing himself to be elected to the Hall of Fame.  His name is still out there enough to remind those who might care that he’s still around.

Mark McGwire is a good example of someone who was on the Cal path.  He was a lock for the Hall of Fame.  He was perceived as a good man.  Then the steroid thing got in the way.  His poor performance in front of Congress in 2005 also got in his way.  Then, humiliated, he disappeared from public view.  500 career home runs doesn’t generally qualify somebody for a Where Are They Now, but in McGwire’s case it does.

The worst is when you’re still active but become a Where Are They Now? club member.  For example, where are the Montreal Expos now?  Go to ESPN.com and you’ll see.  They’re now called the Washington Nationals.  If Nats fans are lucky, the team might move again soon.  That way, in 20 years, we can read or watch a Where Are They Now: The Washington Nationals and agree they deserve the little piece of infamy we’re watching at that moment.  Insulting?  You bet.  But that’s the risk you take when you strap on a guitar or a catcher’s mask.  Just like praise, failure comes with the territory.

Jimmy Scott is probably the greatest pitcher you’ve never heard of.  Visit Jimmy Scott’s High & Tight to read more from Jimmy and guests Desi Relaford, Eric Valent & Cassidy Dover.  You’ll also hear a new interview every Monday morning with former MLB players, agents, wives and others; giving new outlooks on this great game we call Baseball.  Go there now to hear Jimmy’s latest interviews with Nelson & Alisa Figueroa, Desi Relaford, Wayne Gomes and MLB Umpire Hunter Wendelstedt.  You can follow Jimmy on Twitter or Facebook.

United will stay out West instead of coming back to Washington as they prepare for Saturday’s match at Colorado.

With a relatively youthful side on the park, the loud and passionate crowd combined with the unfamiliar environment seemed to unnerve United in the early moments.

“I think we let the environment takes its toll on us,” said United head coach Tom Soehn. “We still have a few inexperienced guys and it is the first time they have been into a place like this. The energy Seattle brought, we backed down quite a bit.

“When you’re playing on the road you need all 11 guys to play well and we were way below that tonight. But there were certain guys that I would give credit to who fought and competed.”

United seized the momentum, albeit not for long, in the 34th minute when Chris Pontius snuck behind the Seattle back line to finish a perfect diagonal ball from Santino Quaranta from the right flank.

However, in what also has been all too typical this season, United squandered that lead minutes later on a splendid strike from distance by Osvaldo Alonso four minutes later.

“Yeah, especially after their first goal, the momentum changed.” Said Pontius. “It allowed their fans to get into it and it is a loud stadium. I don’t think many of us have played in anything like that, I know I haven’t. It was definitely something we had to adjust to. In the second half we calmed down a little bit.”

United then gave up an own goal as Marc Burch deflected a harmless, spinning Nate Jaqua shot past a helpless Josh Wicks just moments before halftime to spot Seattle a 2-1 advantage going into the break.

United themselves were the beneficiary of a Sounder’s own goal however as Tyrone Marshall inadvertently headed a Pontius cross into the upper-90 of his own goal past a flatfooted Kasey Kelller the in the 87th minute.

That goal was preceded by two brilliant goals by two of the best players on the park in the second half, brilliant strikes from inside the penalty, first from Seattle’s Fredy Montero to extend the lead to 3-1 in the 57th minute, and then from Christian Gomez in the 63rd to draw a goal back for United.

Montero’s goal highlighted some very passive defending by United as neither Burch, nor any other defender, decided to close down the crafty Columbian inside the penalty area allowing him time and space to bend a left footer from 17-yards out around an extended Wicks inside the far post.

“Overall I was a little disappointed in some of the performances on our side,” said Soehn. “We gave them a lot of opportunities and in an environment like this you can’t afford to do that. Again the group was resilient and the guys who came in impacted in a big way. We fought back to get a point on the road.”

The three goals aside, Wicks solidified his claim as first choice goalkeeper with multiple saves and good command of his penalty area throughout the night.

“For Josh’s sake I don’t think he is at fault for any of the goals. We broke down defensively and a lot of the chances they had came from the breakdown defensively. That is a little discouraging,” said Soehn.

Gomez came on at the start of the second half to add another attacking threat after United fell behind. Soehn has used Gomez, 35, and Jaime Moreno, 34, both as a starters and super-subs in recent weeks both to manage their minutes due to nagging injuries or utilize their still classy attack prowess to change or settle a game when necessary. Moreno did not travel to Seattle.

Gomez paid immediate dividends against New York two weeks ago as a second half substitute generating two scoring chances just seconds after coming onto the field. Moreno also came on and scored a penalty kick, that Gomez created, to put that game away 2-0.

They both started in DC’s critical match at home against Chicago last Saturday, a controversial 2-1 win that vaulted United ahead of the Fire into first place in the Eastern Conference.

“I think some of it is the guys we are bringing in off the bench. Bringing in them late in the game they have the ability to break teams down and it happens a lot…We have used them in so many different ways and it’s not just them, it’s everybody,” said Soehn about Gomez and Moreno specifically.

“Sometimes they are called on to start and sometimes they are called on to change the flow of the game and they do a pretty good job of injecting energy and keeping the ball. Every team brings you different challenges and I factor that into who plays and who you think can come in and change the game late.”

United moves on to Denver to take on the Colorado Rapids on Saturday, providing Gomez a chance to remind the Rapids why they wanted him for about half a year. The game will be broadcast on CSN at 9:30 PM.

Match Facts

DC United at Seattle Sounders FC, June 17, 2009

Scoring Summary:
DC — Chris Pontius 4 (Santino Quaranta 6) 34
SEA — Osvaldo Alonso 1 (James Riley 2, Brad Evans 1) 38
SEA — Own Goal (Marc Burch) 45
SEA — Fredy Montero 6 (unassisted) 57
DC — Christian Gomez 3 (unassisted) 63
DC — Own Goal (Tyrone Marshall) 87

D.C. United — Josh Wicks, Bryan Namoff, Dejan Jakovic, Marc Burch, Andrew Jacobson (Christian Gomez 46), Clyde Simms, Rodney Wallace, Fred (Ange N’Silu 21), Chris Pontius, Santino Quaranta, Luciano Emilio (Thabiso Khumalo 73),

Substitutes Not Used: Greg Janicki, Avery John, Milos Kocic, Ben Olsen

Seattle Sounders FC — Kasey Keller, James Riley, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Tyrone Marshall, Tyson Wahl, Freddie Ljungberg (Stephen King 77), Osvaldo Alonso, Brad Evans, Sebastien Le Toux, Nate Jaqua (Patrick Ianni 85), Fredy Montero (Steve Zakuani 66).

Substitutes Not Used: Ben Dragavon, Sanna Nyassi, Nathan Sturgis, Peter Vagenas

Seattle Sounders FC D.C. United
Total shots: 17 (Fredy Montero 6) 10 (Chris Pontius 3)
Shots on goal: 10 (Fredy Montero 3) 4 (Chris Pontius 2)
Fouls: 6 (Nate Jaqua 2) 17 (3 tied with 3)
Offsides: 3 (Nate Jaqua 2) 0
Corner kicks: 5 (Freddie Ljungberg 3) 4 (Santino Quaranta 4)
Saves: 1 (Kasey Keller 1) 7 (Josh Wicks 7)

Misconduct Summary:
DC — Dejan Jakovic (caution; Reckless Tackle) 84
DC — Bryan Namoff (caution; Delaying a Restart) 92+

Referee: Ricardo Salazar
Referee’s Assistants: Fabio Tovar; Darren Clark
4th official: Jasen Anno
Time of game: 1:52
Attendance: 29,104
Weather: Partly Cloudy -and- 69 degrees

Both teams have a proud history and strong tradition. DC poster child (and now grizzled veteran) Ben Olsen described the essence of this particular game, “They did a good job of clogging us up in the middle; Clyde (Simms) and I didn’t have as much time on the ball, so we kinda had to go other avenues. Then in the second half, we went after them.

“We turned the page and put some pressure on them, put some balls in the box. Luci was great, Ange was great. The way Luci held the ball up for us tonight is a big part of why we were OK.”

Olsen plays with a lot of emotion, but displayed an interesting wisdom by noting that, “I’m kinda glad Jaime got a red card. Obviously it put us in a bad spot. I didn’t think it was the greatest call in the world.

“It’s good to be tested early like that and come out with three points. It shows that we‘ve got some men out there and we stepped up in a difficult situation against a good team.”

He elaborated, “They’re still Houston. They still have a lot of weapons. To fight like that as a team and get out with three points is a great first win for us. There are still things we can work on. The soccer is still at times not the greatest.”

Olsen did single out goalkeeper Louis Crayton’s performance as a positive, “There’s a certain confidence that he gives us, ‘cause he’s such a knucklehead back there. It’s nice to have a guy that’s been around the block a little bit and hopefully he can continue in that type of form.”

As his defensive midfield play combined with that of Simms, it inspired the youthful back line, “All the backs today had a little bit of bite, a little bit of fire.”

He then complimented Houston, “And they came with it too. You know, they needed a win. You could see that right off the bat. They came with some good energy. I was pleased that we matched that.”

Asked about whether Houston had focused on marking him especially tight, Olsen averred that, “I think they put me to the test. They were putting us all to the test. They came after all of us and I think we responded.”

His exceptional anticipation of Dynamo passes brought his teammates into the mix, “We’re working on our defensive shape, the movement of Clyde and me. It’s important to get out and clog up holes and make it a little bit easier on your three backs, ‘cause you only have three.

“Today the game was easier for Clyde and me because there were a lot less mistakes individually in the back and the pressure up top was better. It was a good day and we’ll move on.”

Another by now old hand, Bryan Namoff, echoed Olsen’s view of things, “We had a lot of pressure on us the whole game. It was a battle that went back and forth and I think we corrected a little bit of it in the second half with Chris’ (Pontius) dropping back a little bit too far (in the first half), but sometimes we have to do that.

“But, in the second half he did a lot better job of staying higher and then coming back. He was in a higher position to get the ball and started to face up their left back.” Pontius’ higher position drove the possession game slightly further back into the Houston end and opened up more overlaps for Namoff.

“There were times when he would try to pinch in, which allowed me a lot more space to try to get on that right side.”

As the Dynamo chose to concentrate their attack down their left side in the first half, Pontius had been driven into a right defender role as Namoff was forced inside by the flow. The youngster displayed his flexibility by adapting. He explained, “You go into every game knowing it’s not going to be the same in every game. You’ve got to expect change and deal with it.”

Pontius contrasted the game with that of the previous week, “At Chicago, I was attacking a little bit more and Rodney was sitting. You’ve got to see the game, read the game and play off of it.”

The need for adjustment did not faze him, “I’m fine with it. I’ve done it throughout college. I played right back in college for two years.”

On the left side, United spent the first half often neglecting Wallace who maintained width fairly well, only to see it rarely rewarded with the ball. Houston used more of both sides of the field in the first half and transitioned the ball laterally more effectively.

Still, they had difficulty breaking DC down. Left back Marc Burch pointed out the reason, “Last year we found a lot of times that Clyde was getting isolated 2 on 1, 3 on 1. This year (with Olsen pairing with Simms) we keep them in front of us and a lot of teams are playing kickball against us right now. If they’re not playing through us, then at least we can win the ball from the back.”

While Coach Tom Soehn has been dealt a difficult hand with injuries to several starters, he has turned adversity into opportunity by relying early on two very young wide midfielders and one critical older central midfielder.

Twice in three games, DC United has been stressed by late misfortune. In Los Angeles, they responded barely adequately, in DC, they showed the mettle that Olsen hopes will carry them through what promises to be a season of growth.

Scoring Summary:
DC — Luciano Emilio 2 (Bryan Namoff 1) 47

Houston Dynamo — Pat Onstad, Richard Mulrooney, Bobby Boswell, Geoff Cameron, Wade Barrett (Julius James 72), Brian Mullan, Ricardo Clark, Stuart Holden, Brad Davis, Brian Ching (Corey Ashe 67), Chris Wondolowski (Kei Kamara 46),

Substitutes Not Used: Mike Chabala, Tally Hall, John Michael Hayden, Craig Waibel

D.C. United — Louis Crayton, Bryan Namoff, Dejan Jakovic, Marc Burch, Chris Pontius, Christian Gomez (Fred 57), Ben Olsen (Greg Janicki 79), Clyde Simms, Rodney Wallace, Luciano Emilio, Ange N’Silu (Jaime Moreno 65),

Substitutes Not Used: Brandon Barklage, John DiRaimondo, Thabiso Khumalo, Milos Kocic

D.C. United Houston Dynamo
Total shots: 7 (Chris Pontius 4) 13 (Brad Davis 3)
Shots on goal: 3 (Luciano Emilio 2) 4 (Brad Davis 2)
Fouls: 13 (Ben Olsen 3) 19 (5 tied with 2)
Offsides: 3 (Ange N’Silu 2) 2 (Brian Mullan 1,
Kei Kamara 1)
Corner kicks: 2 (Christian Gomez 2) 7 (Brad Davis 6)
Saves: 4 (Louis Crayton 4) 2 (Pat Onstad 2)

Misconduct Summary:
HOU — Wade Barrett (caution; Reckless Foul) 49
DC — Jaime Moreno (ejection; Violent Conduct) 71
HOU — Julius James (caution; Tactical Foul) 86

Referee: Baldomero Toledo
Referee’s Assistants: Nate Clement; James Conlee
4th official: Mark Kadlecik
Time of game: 1:50
Attendance: 12,594
Weather: Clear -and- 61 degrees

“I ate so much candy and I still do. It’s horrible that they have a little candy box in there and I’m just pickin’ at it all day,” said Pontius. “I used to eat ice cream in college but thank god I haven’t bought any ice cream since I have been here.”

“Oh man he’s got a sweet tooth,” verifies Wallace about his roommate. “He has drawers full of candy. Every second you see him eating something.”

Pontius scored 14 goals as a senior at UC-Santa Barbara last year but realized quickly some of those guilty habits would have to change if he was going to be a successful professional.

“You have got take care of your body because every little bit counts here…getting the treatment that you need. In college you are forced to go day-in and day-out because it’s such a short season. Here it’s a long season and you need to do whatever to prepare your body for the next week and for the next month ahead,” said Pontius. You have got to eat right. I didn’t do that in college-you eat whatever you want in college.”

Pontius played up front next to Luciano Emilio in their first match at Los Angeles and scored a fantastic goal giving United a 2-0 lead which they ended up losing in the final minutes. He shifted to the flank in a 1-1 draw in their home opener last weekend.

Wallace has played the full 90-minutes on the flank in the absences of wingers Fred and Santino Quaranta, who are both out with hamstring injuries.

“It’s definitely different but both have adjusted real well and now you are starting to see consistency and we don’t just judge by games but how they train every week,” said United coach Tom Soehn.

“There is no guessing their role really. They did it in training; they did it when we drafted them.”
Soehn is including Brandon Barklage, who came on late against Chicago for his first professional minutes.

“We saw a lot of positives in what they bring and they had six weeks to understand along with our guys to understand how we like to do it. It’s not a trial and error, when you see it week-in and week-out, you feel comfortable putting them into those environments,” added the United boss.

Along with Quaranta and Fred, Jaime Moreno is still not to full fitness after multiple off-season surgeries, playing the first 65-minutes against Chicago. With Ben Olsen’s unpredictable day-to-day status, the younger players are going to make an early and significant contribution all over the field.

“It’s only out of necessity that we’ve moved him around a little bit but I think his best spot is up top. It depends on the person and the position,” said Soehn about Pontius. “He is doing a good job right now. He gives you what you what you always look for; that 1-2 punch; who fits well with who, how they combine with others. It’s competitive up there which I think is a good thing for us.”

For the first time, United looks to have legitimate depth to challenge veterans and compete at several positions.

“The one thing I have learned is to keep it simple and play yourself into the game; build your confidence, connect your first pass and then as opportunities come, you start taking people on but you still have to do the things that got you here,” said Pontius.

“I am not here because I played simple in college,” he added however. “I took people on, I took risks and I will eventually do that here and I know I will and I’ve even showed a little bit of it this year.”

“As a player you have to be free,” added Wallace, who played at the University of Maryland. “You have to go with your gut instinct but you also have to make sure that at the same time you are connected with the team, you can’t be out there doing your own thing.

“So I feel I have a good balance of doing what I do best but also doing things that are going to bring the team together defensively or offensively.”

Barklage has not had the same opportunities as the other two but remains confident he will get his chance, “I’m pretty happy with the way I have been playing so far. I’m not really expecting too much playing time.”

“Don’t change the way you are playing right now, you are playing great,” he added about the message he has received from the coaching staff. “They like the energy I bring to the table. The offensive side of things have been pretty comfortable and I need to work on a few things tactically, defensively is what I think they are looking for.”

He too was surprised at the difficulty of transitioning to professional soccer. “It takes hard work on and off the field,” frankly said Barklage shaking his head. “The appetite and diet on top of coming and performing every day, working hard and learning from the older guys especially like Ben Olsen and Jaime Moreno, they come in and work their butts off every day and I try take advice from them to learn from them and be a better player.”

The first surprising adjustment for all three of them was the length and intensity of the pre-season. College pre-season’s starts in August with games usually starting a month later running through November. Or December if you happen to advance and win the College Cup like Wallace and his Maryland Terrapins, who won the title last fall.

“You always knew what pre-season was for and even in college it was a pain in the butt,” said Pontius. “This one is a little bit longer and you get burned out at times but getting in that first game, everything was worth it. I’m definitely excited to be in games now because that is what professionals live for. It’s a necessity and something that had to be done.”

The drain and effect of the pre-season were obvious to the Soehn and the coaching staff. “We did see through the spring training, especially for Chris, there were times where he was like, ‘this is a lot harder than I ever expected’ and I think it was the Puerto Rico trip where he really felt that and he worked his way out of that.

California native Pontius has yet to adjust to the weather in Washington, training with a knit cap and long sleeves last Tuesday on a dreamy 55-degree, no wind or humidity day in the nation’s capital.

“I didn’t have the clothes for this weather out here,” said the surprised California native.

United squandered another lead and the Fire came from behind on the road for the second consecutive week, earning four of a possible six points in their first two matches as the guests of two home openers.

United dominated the first half taking the lead in the seventh minute on a fantastic goal by Luciano Emilio, his first of the season. The Fire allowed a sensational 9th minute goal to Kenny Cooper at FC Dallas in their first match before taking over on their way to a dominating 3-1 result.

“We started the game very well. I thought we put a heck of a lot into it and then denied them all over the place,” said D.C. coach Tom Soehn. “I wish we would have come out with a little bit more in the first half because we put so much into it and it showed, because our legs were a little heavy coming out in the second half.

“The tide changed and then we were on the defensive end. And you know any time we play each other that it’s going to be a battle, and they’re going to compete right down to the wire.”

However, after a stern talking to and some tactical adjustments by coach Denis Hamlett, the Fire completely swung the momentum to their side in the second half, equalizing the match in the 53rd minute on a classy finish by Patrick Nyarko that was aided by a poor decision by United goalkeeper Josh Wicks.

“I’m not sure I can tell you,” said a smiling Hamlett, referring to the actual words he said he used during his halftime talk. “We put it out on the table. It was an honest talk as far as ‘look we need to step our game up’ we knew we didn’t play well.

“We didn’t pass the ball well, we didn’t move well but sometimes you are going to have that but the most important thing is that you still have to compete; you still got to want to win and the 50/50’s and the second balls that is what was disturbing about the first half because we talked about it prior to the game. When you play DC that is what is what this game is always about; two teams that are always competing.”

In the first half, United won nearly every 50-50 ball and held most of the possession despite Christian Gomez’ getting few quality attacking touches and needing to be a critical factor. Both coaches concurred that the difference was winning the second balls was the primary difference in the two halves.

“I think it was a lot tougher. The first half we were first to every second ball and 60-30 balls we were winning,” said Soehn. “The second half it went more to their side. I think we put a lot into it. Overall, I don’t think the structure of things changed as much as what we had at the start.”

“The first half was not a particularly good half for us,” agreed Hamlet. “But we talked about a few things at halftime and each guy as a group we needed to step up the intensity and competing and the will to want to win the game.”

“He said 50/50 balls, pick up your energy, they are beating us to every loose ball, just make it hard on them. If they have time and space, they are tough,” said Justin Mapp, giving a synopsis of Hamlet’s pleas at the break. “We were losing all the second balls in the first half and we brought more energy which made it harder on them and that is what got us back in the game.”

“DC came out with a great mentality in the first half. We knew they were going to do that for their home opener and it’s always tough to play here,” added goalkeeper Jon Busch. “We didn’t do good enough with that in the first half and we were fortunate to only be down one. In the second half our mentality was fantastic. We started picking up all of the second balls, started winning tackles and those were things we were missing in the first half.”

A soggy field after two straight days of rain didn’t help either team with good possession but United was definitively the more commanding side through the first stanza. The extra man in the midfield within United’s 3-5-2 formation caused significant marking problems for the Fire.

Emilio collected the ball around 20-yards from goal with open space directly into the Fire penalty area. He let a strong low, left footed shot go from 17-yards before the Fire’s Wilman Conde could close him down, beating an extended Busch just inside the right post to make the score 1-0.

Then matters got worse for the Fire when defender C.J. Brown injured his right quadriceps forcing him to come off in the 14th minute. Dasan Robinson came on for Brown in central defense, himself nursing a hamstring injury.

Brown and Daniel Woolard started on the back line in the absence of both Gonzalo Segares and Bakare Soumare who are away on international duty. Segares suited up for Costa Rica in their World Cup qualifier against rival Mexico at Estadio Azteca while Soumare was with Mali’s side for their qualifier against Sudan.

“We knew missing Bake and Gonzalo, they are two important guys on our team but at the same time we feel with the roster that we have it was an opportunity for other guys to step up and tonight I think Daniel (Woolard) stepped up and held his own and I’m disappointed for C.J. but he is a warrior and he’ll continue to work hard to get himself back up and running again,” Hamlett said. “We have a deep team and guys know that and that is what makes us a team that will compete.”

Chicago briefly got some quality attacking time midway through the half but after Wicks worked his way into traffic to knock away a John Thorrington free kick, the rebound fell directly to Marco Pappa whose shot sailed just over the top in the 24th minute.

United should have extended the lead three minutes later but Chris Pontius’ open attempt from 12-yards sailed harmlessly over the top. The rookie was set up by 40-yards of creative and crisp combination play down the right flank from Jaime Moreno and Bryan Namoff, with Namoff making the final ball off the touch line to Pontius standing alone near the penalty spot.

Gomez made his most significant and direct impact four minutes later floating a perfect diagonal ball from the right flank to Ben Olsen near the 6-yard box but Busch was equal to the task, flicking the header with a sharp reflex save diving to his right.

The subtle tactical adjustment of moving Logan Pause closer to Gomez, further limited the crafty and aggressive Argentine’s time and space. Outside of the Emilio goal and the occasional thrust forward by Moreno, the other two of United’s attacking threesome were also limited.

“That is simply all down to Logan Pause,” said Thorrington. “The way we went out in the second half he was able to be closer to Gomez rather than have multiple responsibilities and I think he showed why he is the best defensive midfielder in our league.”

“In the first half they were able to take advantage of their extra man in midfield,” Thorrington added. “We went out there and positioned ourselves in such a way that they didn’t have as much time to play. In the first half, we worked so hard to get the ball and then we gave it away a bit too easily.”

“I think we should have pumped the ball down the field a little right at the beginning. That’s what we did in the first half, got it into their half and pressured them;” said United defender Marc Burch. “As soon as they started knocking the ball around us on our home field, I felt like we dropped a little bit when we should have got stuck in a couple tackles early in the second to get the crowd back into it. Instead they got a couple shots, a couple breaks, we had some turnovers, and all of a sudden it’s swinging their way.”

“They came out with some intensity,” added rookie midfielder Rodney Wallace. “I don’t know if we were ready to match it. I think we should have been prepared, we knew they were going to come out hard. They had three chances and they capitalized on one of them. We just got to move on and get the next three points we need.”

Pappa’s ball down the right channel set up Nyarko’s superb equalizer with the slick young forward slipping around Dejan Jakovic, gathering the ball and firing past a charging Wicks from 17-yards, who inexplicably came out of his goal and made a poor effort as well against the low shot in the 53rd minute.

Moments earlier, Wicks let a harmlessly slow rolling cross from close in on the right touch line slip between his legs and tantalizingly near the goal line, scooping it up before Brian McBride could get a foot on it.

“The goal that they scored, you know, he should’ve stayed in his goal. But he did a lot of positives for us too, especially that save at the end on Chris [Rolfe],” said Soehn about his young goalkeeper. “Chris has a quick trigger and put it where he wanted to and Josh got across the goal very well. Unfortunately, the one time that he comes out, he gets punished.”

Rolfe had two significant opportunities after coming on for Mapp in the 81st minute. Wicks made his best save of the night fully extending high and hard to his left to get a hand on Rolfe’s blast from the top of the penalty arc. That was preceded by another Wicks bobble before any of the shocked Fire attackers could pounce on the loose ball in the 89th minute

The energetic, University of Dayton graduate nearly stole the full three points for the visitors just seconds before the final whistle but Wicks got down nicely to gather in his left footed shot from 22-yards out.

Scoring Summary:

DC — Luciano Emilio 1 (unassisted) 7
CHI — Patrick Nyarko 1 (Marco Pappa 1) 53

Chicago Fire — Jon Busch, Tim Ward, C.J. Brown (Dasan Robinson 14), Wilman Conde, Daniel Woolard, Marco Pappa (Cuauhtemoc Blanco 70), Logan Pause, John Thorrington, Justin Mapp (Chris Rolfe 80), Brian McBride, Patrick Nyarko,

Substitutes Not Used: Mike Banner, Stefan Dimitrov, Nick Noble, Brandon Prideaux

D.C. United — Josh Wicks, Bryan Namoff, Dejan Jakovic, Marc Burch, Chris Pontius, Christian Gomez (Brandon Barklage 86), Ben Olsen, Clyde Simms, Rodney Wallace, Luciano Emilio, Jaime Moreno (Francis Doe 65),

Substitutes Not Used: Andrew Jacobson, Thabiso Khumalo, Milos Kocic, Ange N’Silu, Anthony Peters

D.C. United Chicago Fire

Total shots: 9 (Ben Olsen 3) 10 (Brian McBride 3)
Shots on goal: 3 (3 tied with 1) 7 (3 tied with 2)
Fouls: 13 (Ben Olsen 5) 6 (Wilman Conde 2,
Logan Pause 2)
Offsides: 4 (Francis Doe 2) 0
Corner kicks: 3 (Christian Gomez 3) 2 (Marco Pappa 1,
Cuauhtemoc Blanco 1)
Saves: 6 (Josh Wicks 6) 2 (Jon Busch 2)

Misconduct Summary:

DC — Ben Olsen (caution; Reckless Foul) 30
DC — Dejan Jakovic (caution; Reckless Tackle) 79
DC — Marc Burch (caution; Dissent) 91+

Referee: Mark Geiger
Referee’s Assistants: Thomas Supple; Bill Dittmar
4th official: Andrew Chapin
Time of game: 1:50
Attendance: 15,895
Weather: Cloudy -and- 51 degrees