A penalty kick by Andy Herron in the 26th minute of extra time gave the Chicago Fire a 3-2 win against the Columbus Crew in a U.S. Open play-in game Tuesday at Bradley University.
A crowd of 3,829, the largest crowd ever to see a soccer game at Shea Stadium on the Bradley campus, 150 miles south of Chicago, saw the game decided after a foul committed by Crew goalkeeper William Hesmer.
On a hard run by Herron into the box, Hesmer came out and made a slide tackle on Herron, but referee Tony Russo ruled Hesmer tripped Herron and awarded the penalty. Herron's sent his shot past Hesmer to his right for the winning goal.
Both teams used a mix of regular starters and reserves to begin the game. The Crew used starting goalkeeper Hesmer along with regular starters Danny O'Rourke, Alejandro Moreno, Eddie Gaven and Brian Carroll along with usual reserves Brad Evans, Andy Iro, Emmanuel Ekpo, Jed Zayner, Ryan Junge and Seven Lenhart.
Similarly, the Fire used starting goalkeeper Jon Busch, starting defenders Bakary Soumare and Brandon Prideaux, starting midfielders Logan Pause and Chris Rolfe, along with reserves Austin Washington on defense, Brian Plotkin, Tomasz Frankowski and Stephen King at the midfield and forwards Calen Carr and Herron.
With a low sun hanging over the field from the west, the Fire scored the game's first goal in the 10th minute on a shot by Stephen King directly in front of Hesmer, as the Crew could not clear the ball. The play started when Herron dropped the ball inside, the Fire got a shot directly on Hesmer, but his clearance dropped directly in front of him for King to send home.
At the 20-minute mark, Crew forward Steven Lenhart dribbled against Prideaux, got a step on him and took a shot that went just outside the left post. The Crew had another scoring chance on a corner kick but midfielder Ekpo could not get his head on the ball.
The Fire had another great scoring chance on a counter, led by Carr, but his shot from the left side was saved by Hesmer.
The second half was much more wide open, and three goals were scored in a matter of five minutes.
Ekpo scored in the 63rd minute at the end of a lengthy Crew possession in which they sent the ball back and forth just outside the penalty area until it ended up on the left side. Ekpo sent a clear shot past Busch for a 1-1 tie.
Less than two minutes later, second-half substitute Justin Mapp had an easy run down the left side and a clear cross in front of the goal where Herron's sharp header bounced into the left corner for a 2-1 Fire lead.
Again, the Crew had their way in the 67th minute, again enjoying unfettered possession in the middle of the Fire half. Eventually the ball ended up on the foot of second-half sub Jason Garey, and he blasted the shot from a tough angle deep on the right side to the far upper corner for a 2-2 tie.
Late in the second half, Eddie Gaven was taken off the field on a stretcher. He was replaced by veteran midfielder Duncan Oughton.
The regulation 90 minutes ended with scores level at 2-2, setting the stage for Herron's deciding spot kick. The Fire will now move to the U.S. Open Cup tournament proper, an event they have won four times. Chicago, along with seven other MLS teams, will enter at the round-of-16, to be played July 1.
Kent McDill is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
