There was no separating the two Central American sides as Olimpia and Herediano battled to a 1-1 draw in the first leg of their Scotiabank Champions League quarterfinal in Tegucigalpa, Honduras.
Olimpia, the home side, were visibly the better team on the evening and took the lead right on the 45-minute mark thanks to a powerful effort by Javier Estupinan from just outside the area.
The Hondurans continued to press the advantage in the second half, seeing more of the ball throughout the period and doing more with it, but Herediano managed to level things on the counterattack through veteran striker Cristian Lagos in the 58th minute.
The game came to a frantic end as away goalkeeper Daniel Cambronero was forced into an impressive double save after a lofted ball into the area opened up the Costa Rican team's busy backline with just a few minutes remaining. Soon after, in the third minute of stoppage time, Herediano substitute Jonatan Hansen saw red for leaving his feet to challenge an Olimpia player, meaning he will miss the return leg of the tie in Costa Rica.
The two teams meet to decide the series in Heredia, Costa Rica on March 5. The winner of the tie will advance to the semifinals to face the winner of the Club America-Saprissa series, which starts Thursday in Costa Rica.
