D.C. United 2, Red Bulls 0
It was nearly the kind of late goal that had cost D.C. United victories again and again in May, when the team was mired in a search for a dominant starting goalkeeper.
But just as the calendar has turned to June, so has Josh Wicks emerged as United’s clear number one in the net. As such, his darting dive to the right to deny Juan Pablo Angel’s one-timer from 12 yards in the 86th minute preserved D.C.’s eventual 2-0 victory over New York in front of 12,226 rain-soaked fans at RFK Stadium.
“The ball fell for him,” said Wicks (five saves), who earned his second shutout in three consecutive starts. “You have a split second to decide a decision, and I fortunately just held my ground and waited and made a good reaction save.”
United’s margin to that point had been just one on the back of Santino Quaranta’s 36th-minute goal-crashing run and finish of Fred’s endline pass. Jamie Moreno finished things off with a penalty kick in the 93rd minute after Christian Gomez drew contact in the box from New York goalkeeper Jon Conway on a counterattack.
The victory moved United (4-2-7) back into sole possession of second place in the Eastern Conference and kept them unbeaten at home for the fourth straight season against the floundering Red Bulls (2-8-3), who suffered their sixth defeat in eight matches and third straight in all competitions to D.C.
New York should’ve equalized just before halftime when Danleigh Borman found himself all alone in the box to receive a lofted pass from Seth Stammler. But Borman’s first touch let him down, and Wicks slid in to smother the play.
“My mind was already made up,” said Wicks. “If he takes a touch, I’m coming. Unlucky for him, he had a bad touch and paid the cost.”
Wicks also steered away Dane Richards’ close-range effort in the 63rd minute and pushed Nick Zimmerman’s blast aside in the 79th. Conway also made two strong saves in the half, denying Gomez and Chris Pontius.
“On the day, it wasn’t our best soccer,” said United head coach Tom Soehn. “We didn’t create our normal chances like we did, but at least we were opportunistic with the ones we did.”
Luciano Emilio was the most frustrated member of United’s offense. Despite assisting with a header that led to Quaranta’s goal, he finished the night without a shot. After picking up a yellow card for a reckless tackle in the 60th minute, he was substituted three minutes later. As he came off the field, Emilio kicked a tray of water bottles , and when the mess spilled over onto the field, referee Terry Vaughn pulled out a red card.
Soehn would not say if Emilio’s frustration was directed at the coaching staff.
“Everybody’s emotionally into the game,” said Soehn. “We’ll sit and talk about it tomorrow as a team.”
Notes
United veterans Gomez and Moreno both came off the bench as second-half substitutes while rookie Rodney Wallace made his first start of the year in central midfield. “He’s a guy that has a big engine, and he has a lot of bite,” said Soehn. “He regularly in training wins a lot of balls, and we’re trying to figure out all the pieces and what we can get out of everybody. At the time, that was our best eleven, and we gave him an opportunity there, and he did alright.”
Former D.C. United head coach Peter Nowak, who was recently named head coach of the Philadelphia Union, an expansion team that will start play in MLS in 2010, was in attendance.
