MLS Sporting Kansas City

Eric Quill's Late Goal Helps Wizards Tie Crew 2-2

Published on May 3, 2003 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Sporting Kansas City News Release


KANSAS CITY, MO - The Kansas City Wizards came from behind late in the game to earn a 2-2 tie with the Columbus Crew on Saturday night. Eric Quill's equalizer in the 89th minute helped the Wizards earn a point at home after giving up a 1-0 lead at halftime. The Wizards took the lead just before the end of the first half when Preki registered his MLS leading 19th career penalty kick goal when Kerry Zavagnin was brought down in the box.

The first half was characterized by strong attacks from both sides, but both defenses held strong. The Crew's Frankie Hejduk was the catalyst for Columbus, keying the attack for the visiting side and unleashing several dangerous chances. Preki was again the cornerstone of the Kansas City effort, proving a dangerous force around the perimeter of goalkeeper Jon Busch's penalty area.

The Wizards broke the deadlock in stoppage time of the first half, as Preki slipped home his 19th career penalty kick goal. In the first minute of stoppage time, Preki slipped the ball into the penalty area for defender Kerry Zavagnin. Crew defender Brian Maisonneuve slid in from behind to dispossess, but was immediately whistled for the foul. Preki took the ensuing penalty kick, luring Busch to cover the lower left corner before blasting it into the center of the net.

The Crew equalized early in the first half as a result of downfield pressure by forward Jeff Cunningham. Cunningham stripped the ball from Kansas City defender Nick Garcia near the end line and immediately dished the ball back to a waiting Brian McBride. McBride gained some space with a fake shot, stepping toward the center of the area before uncorking a shot past Tony Meola to know the score at 1-1 in the 49th minute.

The Crew took the lead five minutes later with a long-range bomb from midfielder Kyle Martino. Cunningham charged down on Meola, with a step on his two defenders. Meola rushed off of his line to take the ball off of Cunningham's feet at the edge of the box, but his clearance deflected straight to the feet of Martino. With Meola stranded at the edge of the area, Martino chipped a shot into the back of the undefended net to give the Crew the 2-1 lead. The goal was Martino's first of the season, and his third career tally.

Kansas City equalized with a lighting strike in the late stages of the game, finding the back of the net in the 89th minute of play. Jimmy Conrad jumped underneath a floating ball at the edge of the Columbus box, nodding the ball towards the top of the arc. Eric Quill took the ball out of the air, blasting a one-time shot past a diving Busch to force the game into overtime. The Wizards tried to win it in overtime with several deep threats into the Columbus end, but were unable to penetrate the Columbus defense.

The Wizards will travel to Texas next weekend to face the Dallas Burn on Saturday, May 10th. The match will take place at Dragon Stadium in Southlake, TX and kicks off at 7:30 p.m. CT. The game will be shown live on HDNet, a new high-definition broadcast available on HDTV.

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Major League Soccer Stories from May 3, 2003


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