Columbus Crew midfielder Emmanuel Ekpo had shown flashes of speed in his six prior MLS matches but the Nigerian midfielder had failed to find the back of the net.
That all changed in the 70th minute Saturday in Crew Stadium when he dribbled down the heart of the Colorado Rapids defense from midfield and unleashed a strike to the lower left corner for the go-ahead goal in the Crew's 2-1 victory.
The Crew have two wins and a tie in the past three games while the Rapids have only a tie to show for the past four outings. Nick LaBrocca had the Rapids' goal after Guillermo Barros Schelotto converted a penalty kick for the Crew.
Colorado had a final opportunity to tie the match in the third minute of stoppage time when Colin Clark sent a bouncer from 15 yards through the box. Goalkeeper Will Hesmer made dive to his left and got his right hand on the ball and pushed into out of play.
Ekpo's goal was part of a hectic final 45 minutes after the teams played a scoreless opening half that featured numerous missed opportunities.
A slip and a trip and the Crew took a 1-0 lead in the 53rd minute. Ekpo sent a through ball to Alejandro Moreno, who gathered it near the end line on the right side then cut back sharply just inside the penalty area. Defender Facundo Erpen tried to make a tackle but slid by. Center back Pablo Mastroeni came to the rescue but got his foot on Moreno and sent the forward down.
Referee Baldomero Toledo pointed to the spot and Barros Schelotto converted his second penalty kick in as many matches. His third score of the season -- and first for the Crew at home in 199 minutes -- left goalkeeper Bouna Coundoul flat-footed.
While Coundoul, who missed the past four matches while on national team call-up with Senegal, had no chance on that play, he kept the Rapids in the match in the 57th minute. He stopped Robbie Rogers as he streaked in from the left flank after a set-up by the fast-dribbling Ekpo.
The save proved to be critical because the Rapids got the equalizer three minutes later on a well-placed strike from the top of the penalty area by midfielder Nick LaBrocca for his second goal. Forward Conor Casey made the play with a service to the arc where LaBrocca settled the ball with his first touch then sent a bullet to the upper left corner.
Casey had a chance to make the score 2-2 in the 76th minute but Hesmer was there for an acrobatic denial. Hesmer had seven saves; Coundoul four.
The Crew was without starting defender Ezra Hendrickson (groin strain) for the third consecutive match. Rookie Ryan Junge moved into the spot for two games but he was replaced Saturday at left back by Danny O'Rourke, who had played in the middle the past two matches with Chad Marshall. Rookie Andy Iro, his second career start, partnered with Marshall for a towering presence that went 6-4 and 6-5, respectively. Frankie Hejduk remained at right back.
The Rapids suffered a blow before the match when its assist leader with five, midfielder Christian Gomez, was scratched because of a shin injury, preventing a matchup with Crew forward and fellow Argentinean Barros Schelotto.
Colorado altered the 3-5-2 formation that was held scoreless against Houston in the previous match and changed personnel, starting in goal where Preston Burpo was out and Bouna was in. Jordan Harvey got the start at left defender while Erpen was in the middle alongside Mastroeni and Ugo Ihemelu patrolled left back.
Opportunities were abundant for both sides from the onset. The Rapids found a hole in the Crew backline and John DiRaimondo sprung Casey into the left side of the box but Hesmer made a lunging stop to his left in the ninth minute. The Rapids quickly followed with another strike by LaBrocca that Hesmer pushed over the crossbar.
The Crew was active, too, and Moreno received a cross from the left end line by Rogers but sent his header wide right in minute 14. Moreno was the recipient of an Ekpo service but his path to the goal was blocked by Coundoul three minutes later.
Columbus kept working the flanks and Moreno on the right side found Rogers eight yards off goal in the 25th minute but his snap header was gobbled up by Coundoul for his first save. Since that didn't work, Rogers moments afterward made a sharp cut and dropped the ball to the foot of midfielder Brad Evans, who made a mess of a 10-yard strike and sent the ball well over the goal.
It took until the 30th minute for the sides to realize a track meet was not in progress but by then Rapids had six of the 11 shots and three of the four on goal. There was little action the remainder of the half and the only threat came in the 44th when Moreno and Coundoul went for a 50-50 ball at the right edge of the goal penalty area. The 'keeper got there first but shanked the clear.
Columbus came home after picking up four road points via a 3-0 victory against Kansas City and 3-3 tie vs. Los Angeles but had not scored in its two previous games in Crew Stadium.
Craig Merz is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
