Shea and FCD's stout defense down Seattle, 1-0
- by Ridge Mahoney @ridgemax, May 26, 2011
[MLS] FC Dallas put another dent into Seattle's disappointing season to date by beating the Sounders, 1-0, Wednesday at Qwest Field with a goal in the 18th
minute by Brek Shea.
Shea split the Seattle back line to chase down a through ball from Andrew Jacobson and drive it low past Kasey Keller
for his fourth goal of 2011. The victory ran FC Dallas’ unbeaten streak to seven games and its shutout streak to 489 minutes, the longest such mark in MLS this season.
FCD keeper
Kevin Hartman continued his sharp form of late by recording four saves, including a close-range shot from Mike Fucito the keeper pushed onto the post. Defender
Zach Loyd came up with a big save, too; straight from the kickoff following Shea’s goal, Seattle broke into the attacking third and Alvaro Fernandez crossed the
ball through the goalmouth. Loyd dropped behind Hartman to head away an Erik Friberg shot as it was about to glide under the crossbar.
Seattle launched 19 shots to seven
for Dallas, and held a 65-35 percent edge in possession, but FCD blocked seven of the Sounders’ shots and Hartman took care of those that reached him. Fucito, paired up top with Fredy
Montero, led Seattle in shots with five, three of which he put on frame. Coach Sigi Schmid used three attacking substitutes – Roger Levesque,
Lamar Neagle and Nate Jaqua – in a vain attempt to get a goal.
On the FCD goal, teenage DP Fabian Castillo created space as Shea
knifed through the middle to outrun defender Jeff Parke for Jacobson’s through ball. As the attack developed, Parke drifted right to cover Castillo’s run, and when the
pass slipped between him and Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, his desperate lunge couldn’t quite reach the ball, and Hurtado’s reaction was a step late. Shea’s crisp
left-footed finish did the rest.
Both teams resume league play on the road Saturday. Seattle (4-4-5) travels to play Real Salt Lake (5-1-2) and FC Dallas (6-3-3) visits in-state rival
Houston (3-4-5), which lost to the Galaxy, 1-0, at Home Depot Center Wednesday.
