Earthquakes Shock D.C. United and end 20 game road losing streak with 2-1 victory

At last. The expression was clear as members of the San Jose Earthquakes left the rain soaked field of R.F.K. Stadium, the Quakes 2-1 victory over playoff contender D.C. United ended a 20 game losing streak on the road which was the 2nd longest in MLS. At last, the team had proved that it could win away from the friendly confines of Estadio Buck Shaw. "It was a long time coming" said Earthquakes head coach Frank Yallop after the match. However, the victory was far from assured at the start of the second half.

The first half was dominated by United as they held the lion share of the possession. This led to D.C. challenging Earthquakes reserve goalkeeper Andrew Weber who took over for an injured Joe Cannon. United broke the stalemate in the 26th minute thanks to a goal by United All time leading goal scorer Jaime Moreno. The United captain received a Chris Pointus cross in the penalty box and a perfect left footed touch was enough for the Bolivian to beat Weber. The Earthquakes had sever goal chances to restore the tie but were unable to break through. The best of those chances was 28 minute shot by Simon Elliot that tested D.C. keeper Josh Wicks but did not beat the United keeper. Disaster nearly struck for San Jose as a Bobby Burling gave away a pass in the penalty area which was nearly pounced on by United midfielder Santino Quaranta but the Earthquakes defender recovered to clear the shot.

The second half began with changes for San Jose as Arturo Alvarez was inserted into attack coming back from injury. This move motivated the Earthquakes who began to push towards net. The game truly seemed to change however in the 50th minute when D.C. United keeper Josh Wicks was pulled from the match due to injury. The United goalkeeper was injured after coming off his line to play a corner kick when hit the ground hard on his right shoulder forcing rookie reserve Milos Kocic to replace him. Before the back up could prepare himself, the Earthquakes equalized in the 58th minute on a Ramon Sanchez free kick from 20 yards out. The Salvadoran captain's kick cleared the wall and curled into the top right corner, a beautiful strike that Kocic had no opportunity to save.

Salvation came for the Earthquakes in the 73rd minute when Ryan Johnson netted his ninth goal of the season which gives him the team lead. The goal began with an shot by Arturo Alvarez which careened off the bar pulling Kocic out of position and giving Ryan Johnson an easy header for the goal. After the match reflecting on the goal Johnson said, “I anticipated that it might hit the cross bar so I got myself in good position. I saw it coming down and I thought that I had a chance for a diving header. I just stayed focused and put as much power behind it as I could.”

However, the drama was not over for the Earthquakes as United began to push forward. Their best chance coming in the 82nd minute when a Anthony Wallace cross careened off a United attacker falling to United attacker Chris Pointus who delivered a beautiful bicycle kick shot but Earthquakes captain Ramiro Corrales was able to clear the shot off the line providing the necessary heroics to give the Earthquakes the victory.

After the match, the Earthquakes captain Corrales had this to say, "We have been a bit unlucky lately. We could have had two wins against Colorado, but we gave up some late goals. We wanted to close this one out correctly and we were able to do that. It was a good performance from everyone."

The win severely damages the playoff hopes for United as it forces them out of a tie for the 8th and final playoff spot as the season winds down. News got worse for DC United as the team learned on Tuesday that goalkeeper Josh Wicks will be out of action for 4 to 6 weeks. For the Quakes however, the win is a huge confidence booster as they prepare for next season. The Earthquakes return home to Buck Shaw Stadium this weekend to take on the New York Red Bulls at 8pm on Saturday night.