Pumas UNAM entered the second leg of their CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal series down two goals on aggregate to Marathón. They finished up three goals after winning the match 6-1.
Striker Pablo Barrera hinted at what was to come when he struck Pumas' first goal in just the third minute. Longtime Pumas mainstay Ismael Íñiguez then headed in Barrera's redirected cross after it was misplayed by Marathón 'keeper Orlin Vallecillo. He doubled his tally with a 25-yard shot off the inside of the post in the 20th minute, staking UNAM the aggregate lead they needed.
Five minutes after the break, former Chivas USA striker Paco Palencia lofted an arcing ball over the top to Argentine forward Tin Bravo, who calmly put the ball over Vallecillo.
But Marathón weren't going quietly. Or, more correctly, Pumas helped Marathón stick around. A bizarre 53rd-minute own goal by Jehu Chiapas -- goalkeeper Alejandro Palacios whiffed on Chiapas's 40-yard back-pass -- gave Marathón hope.
That hope disappeared ten minutes later thanks to a goal by Palencia, set up again by Barrera. Palencia then finished off the scoring, the match and the series with an easy 90th-minute goal -- the cherry on the top of a 6-3 aggregate series win.
Pumas now move on to face Mexico City rivals Cruz Azul in the semis. Toluca and Pachuca square off in the other semifinal.
