PORTLAND, Ore.
– A free-kick goal by midfielder Jason Hotchkin guided the Cleveland City Stars to a 1-0 win over the Portland Timbers on Sunday in front of 9,157 at PGE Park. Cleveland handed Portland its second straight loss.
The 9,157 on hand Sunday helped the Timbers set a new modern-franchise record for regular-season attendance. In 14 regular-season home matches, the Timbers have seen 133,438 fans at PGE Park, topping the previous mark of 128,509 set in 2008. Portland has one home match remaining on its regular-season schedule.
For the second straight game, the Timbers doubled their opponents in shot opportunities, but could not pull out a victory. Portland had a 24-9 advantage in shots over the City Stars and out-shot the Austin Aztex, 23-12 on Friday in a 2-1 defeat.
Hotchkin delivered his second goal of the season to lead the City Stars (4-17-7, 19pts) to their second road victory of the season. Goalkeeper Evan Bush recorded eight saves on the night to keep the Timbers off the board.
Forward Mandjou Keita and midfielder Ryan Pore combined for 10 shots, and forward Kevin Forrest contributed three shots off the bench for the Timbers (15-4-10, 55pts), who have lost three of their last four matches.
The Timbers, who captured the 2009 Commissioner’s Cup Saturday, dictated the pace of the first half with an 11-6 advantage in shots, but found themselves down 1-0 to the City Stars entering the break.
Cleveland took the lead in the 25th minute after a late foul on Portland defender Stephen Keel set up a free kick from the fringe of the box. Hotchkin stepped up and bent a shot around a five-man Timbers wall and into the top corner of the goal.
The Timbers had their share of chances in the first half and forced Bush to make five saves. Keita had one of his three first-half attempts bounce off the left post in the 18th minute. Two minutes later, Keita worked the ball in from the right side before finding midfielder Brian Farber near the spot. Farber’s shot was aimed at the left post but not hit hard enough to get around Bush.
In stoppage time of the first half, Bush made a key save on a blistering shot by midfielder Keith Savage from the left side. Bush knocked the ball wide of the far post with a diving effort to maintain Cleveland’s lead.
Portland continued to control the match in the second half, but could not break through. The Timbers backline limited the City Stars to just three shots in the second period.
Keita had a couple of chances midway through the stanza, including a header off a cross by midfielder Johan Claesson sail over the crossbar.
The Timbers pressed hard in the final minutes of the match, peppering the Cleveland goal. In the 90th minute, defender Ivan Becerra headed a long throw in over the woodwork. In second-half stoppage time, Keel knocked a side-winding shot that just cleared the crossbar.
Both sides finished the contest with 10 men. Cleveland’s Anthony Peters was sent off following a violent challenge against Forrest in the 90th minute. A few minutes prior to the ejection, Portland’s Alex Nimo left the match due to injury; he could not be replaced as the Timbers had reached their limit in substitutions.
Portland play host to the City Stars again on Thursday at PGE Park in its regular-season finale; kickoff is set for 7:15 p.m. Thursday is Fan Appreciation Night, featuring the team’s annual Jersey-Off-Our-Back Auction and post-game fireworks. Tickets start at $11 and are available through the PGE Park box office, area Ticketmaster outlets, online at
www.ticketmaster.com
or by phone at (800) 745-3000.
Notes:
Becerra made his Timbers debut Sunday, playing 45 minutes off the bench … Forward Jason McLaughlin made his fourth start of the season for the Timbers … The City Stars have recorded shutouts in both of their matches against Portland this season … Despite Sunday’s defeat, the Timbers have the fewest losses in the USL First Division.
Lineups:
POR: GK Cronin, D Hayes, D Keel, D Thompson, D Danso (Becerra, 45), M Farber (Nimo, 45), M Claesson, M Savage (Higgins, 45)(Lopez, 61), M Pore, F Keita, F McLaughlin (Forrest, 45)
CLE: GK Bush, D Kante (Peters, 7), D Kanu, D Roberts, D Stovall, M Stewart, M Oka (Pierre-Louis, 87), M Hotchkin (Aguilera, 73), M Gueye (Kljestan, 62), F LaCrone (Gibson, 78), F Bangura
Scoring Summary:
CLE: Hotchkin, 25
