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MLS Columbus Crew SC

First-place Crew travels to Dallas Saturday

August 26, 2008 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Columbus Crew SC News Release


COLUMBUS, Ohio - After a decisive victory over Real Salt Lake Saturday (Aug. 23) at Crew Stadium, the Crew prepares to travel to Frisco, Texas, to face FC Dallas this Saturday, Aug. 30. The match features a Crew squad (11-6-4, 37 pts.) that now finds itself tied with New England for the top spot in MLS standings, while FC Dallas (6-7-8, 26 pts.) currently sits in third place in the West, just behind Real Salt Lake (27 pts.) and two-time defending champion Houston (32 pts.).

Saturday's match kicks off at 9 p.m. (ET) and will be televised live locally on ONN, with Dwight Burgess and Dante Washington on the call. The game can also be heard in English on News/Talk 610 WTVN with Neil Sika behind the microphone and on-line at TheCrew.com and MLSNet.com, as well as in Spanish on La Que Buena 1550-AM.

FC Dallas enters the match after drawing with the Kansas City Wizards, 1-1, on the road Saturday. The Hoops took the lead just seven minutes in, when Andre Rocha received a long cross from midfielder Dax McCarty, then beat Wizards goalkeeper Kevin Hartman with a stunning long-range blast from 30 yards away for his first career MLS goal. The Wizards answered with a goal deep into stoppage time, when Josh Wolff's low cross from the right side found a sliding Jimmy Conrad, who redirected the service into the back of the net for the late equalizer. With the tie, Dallas is now unbeaten in six of its last seven MLS games, with the lone loss coming courtesy of the Black & Gold at Crew Stadium on Aug. 16.

In that match, Guillermo Barros Schelotto led the Crew to a 2-1 comeback victory in front of a season-high crowd of 17,647 at Crew Stadium. Former Crew forward Jeff Cunningham put the Hoops into the lead in the 35th minute, notching the 100th league tally of his career, and giving FCD a 1-0 advantage at the half. Defensive midfielder Brian Carroll had his first goal of the season and just the third in 141 career games to tie the score for the Crew in the 62nd minute. Then just three minutes later, Schelotto delivered a free kick from the left of goal to the near post where Brad Evans placed a skillful, glancing header past goalkeeper Dario Sala for the game-winner. Carroll's goal was ultimately voted MLS Goal of the Week.

In Saturday's win over RSL, Schelotto was again the difference, as he notched a goal and two assists on his way to earning MLS Player of the Week honors for Week 22. The Crew took a 1-0 lead in the 15th minute thanks to Schelotto when he drew a foul from 25 yards left of goal. The Argentine playmaker placed the ensuing free kick with pinpoint accuracy, finding defender Chad Marshall at the back post for an easy header past Salt Lake goalkeeper Nick Rimando. Then, just 10 minutes later, midfielder Eddie Gaven was taken down by a RSL defender as he tried to cut back on the right side of the box. The referee emphatically pointed for a penalty kick, and Schelotto confidently stepped up and converted his fourth penalty goal in as many tries this season, to double the lead. Schelotto was at it again in the 55th minute, sending a leading pass down the right flank to Gaven. After controlling the service, Gaven struck a seeking cross into the box which found Brad Evans at the penalty spot for a crisp header, giving Schelotto his league-leading 14th assist, which leaves him one shy of the Crew's single-season record of 15 set by John Wilmar Perez in 2001. Defender Danny O'Rourke will miss Saturday's match at Dallas due to a one-game suspension for yellow card accumulation.

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