FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - Kenny Mansally scored the only goal of the game in the 32nd minute and goalkeeper Matt Reis made six saves to record his first shutout of the competition, as the New England Revolution clinched the top spot in Group B of SuperLiga 2009 with a 1-0 victory over Mexican Primera División club Atlas on Sunday afternoon at Gillette Stadium.
With the win, the Revs (2-0-1, 7 pts.) secured first place in Group B of the competition and will now host a semifinal match at Gillette Stadium on July 15 against their MLS rival, the Chicago Fire (2-1-0, 6 pts.), which finished in second place in Group A. Gillette Stadium will host a doubleheader that evening, as the other semifinal match between Mexican clubs Tigres UANL and Santos Laguna will also be played on the Revolution's home field following the New England - Chicago match. Tigres (2-1-0, 6 pts.) finished on top of Group A, while Santos (1-1-1, 4 pts.) was the second-place team in Group B. Kickoff times for both semifinals are pending. Tickets for the semifinal doubleheader start at $20 and will go on sale beginning Wednesday, July 1, while season ticket holders will use their tickets for Special Event E.
Atlas (0-1-2, 2 pts.), meanwhile, finished at the bottom of Group B without scoring a goal in the competition.
After a quiet opening, the Revs came just inches from taking the lead in the 17th minute when Nico Colaluca's long-range drive hit the left post. Colaluca - making his Revolution debut after being acquired via trade on May 6 - burst through the middle of the field on the counterattack and drove a right-footed blast from 20 yards out across the goalkeeper and off the post.
New England continued to press and again came close to scoring in the 29th minute, this time through a bit of good fortune. Defender Amaechi Igwe overlapped down the left wing and sent a driven cross into the box. His service was wayward and appeared to be bending inside the near post, however, before Atlas goalkeeper Jose Francisco Canales made a diving save to push the ball out for a corner kick.
The hosts finally did make the breakthrough in the 32nd minute, as Mansally scored his second goal of the tournament. From the center of the field and 30 yards from goal, Kheli Dube sprayed the ball to the left side into the path of Mansally, who steadied himself and fired his shot into the net with the help of a slight deflection.
Atlas didn't seriously threaten in the first half, but the club's best chance arrived in the 40th minute. Forward Hebert Alferez almost broke free in the box as the ball bounced towards goal, but a late lunge from Revs defender Emmanuel Osei knocked the ball away before Alferez could get off a shot.
The second half began much like the first, with neither team creating much on the offensive end. Atlas created the first serious scoring chance after the break in the 61st minute, but Edgar Pacheco's volley from the right side of the box flashed across the face of goal and hit the left post before bouncing to safety.
That first look at goal seemed to spur the visitors forward, as they created back-to-back chances in the 63rd minute but were still unable to find the back of the net. First, Reis made a diving save to deny Alferez from inside the box, while Darvin Chavez followed up with a long-range drive which struck the crossbar.
Atlas continued to be the more attack-oriented side in the second half but failed to create any serious chances in the final 25 minutes. The Mexican club's hopes of a comeback were completely dashed in the 85th minute when Gerardo Espinoza was shown a straight red card for striking substitute Wells Thompson in the mid-section with his studs.
The Revs now have just 48 hours to prepare for their next match on Tuesday, June 30, when they will begin play in the third round of the U.S. Open Cup against the Harrisburg City Islanders of USL-2. The match is set to kick off at 7 p.m. and will be hosted by the Revolution at Veterans Stadium in New Britain, Conn.
MLS regular-season action will resume for the Revs on Saturday, July 4, when they travel across the country to visit the LA Galaxy at 11 p.m. ET.
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