The Kansas City Wizards fell to 3-3-1 on the season Saturday in a 2-1 loss on the road against the Columbus Crew. Kansas City went down a man due to ejection in the 36th minute, but outshot Columbus 12-8 after that point. Argentine forward Claudio Lopez converted a second-half penalty kick for the Wizards to record his second MLS goal.
Columbus took an early lead off a free kick in the 4th minute. Midfielder Guillermo Barros Schelotto played a bending ball toward the back post that defender Chad Marshall headed back across the goal area. Midfielder Adam Moffatt rose above a crowd of players to head the ball into the upper-right corner of the goal from two yards out.
The Crew extended their lead in the 34th minute and two minutes later, Kansas City went down a man. Forward Alejandro Moreno flipped acrobatically to play a bicycle-kick pass behind the Kansas City defense for on-rushing midfielder Robbie Rogers. Rogers was first to the ball and touched it past on-rushing goalkeeper Kevin Hartman at the top of the penalty area for a 2-0 lead. In the 36th minute, midfielder Roger Espinoza was ejected for series foul play.
Though down to 10 men, Kansas City created more chances than Columbus in the second half, outshooting the Crew 11-7 after the break. All five of Kansas City's shots on goal came in the second stanza.
Lopez nearly opened the scoring for the Wizards in the 49th minute off a feed from halftime substitute Scott Sealy. Sealy received a pass from midfielder Kurt Morsink inside the penalty area and slid a ball behind the defense to Lopez, who was completing a long diagonal run. Goalkeeper William Hesmer was quick to react, however, and stopped Lopez's shot from close range and smothered the rebound.
In the 78th minute, Sealy suffered a foul inside the penalty area that led to Lopez's 79th minute goal. Lopez stood over the ball and struck a low-left footed shot down the middle after sending Hesmer to his right for his second MLS goal. Lopez is now tied for the team lead with two goals on the season and was a driving force for the Wizards after Espinoza's ejection, when Lopez shifted into midfield.
Kansas City continued to push numbers forward for the remaining 10 minutes, generating four shots after Lopez brought them back within one goal. The Wizards best opportunity came in the first minute of added time when Lopez was fouled 25 yards from goal. Midfielder Carlos Marinelli took the ensuing free kick, curling a left-footed pass behind the Columbus defense for rookie defender Chance Myers at the back post. Myers put a shot on goal, but Hesmer made the save to end the Wizards final chance.
Kansas City is off next week before continuing their two-month road swing Saturday, May 17 at New York at 6:30 p.m. CT on Metro Sports. Kansas City's next home match at CommunityAmerica Ballpark comes Saturday, June 14 at 7 p.m. CT, also against Columbus. The Wizards will train this week, as usual, Tuesday through Friday at the team's Swope Park Training Center.
Notables:
• Following the match, Kansas City sits 3-3-1 tied for 3rd place in the Eastern Conference with New England and Toronto FC.
• The Wizards are now 16-15-4 all-time against Columbus, including a 7-10-2 mark on the road.
• Designated Player Claudio Lopez recorded his second goal of the season.
• Lopez trails only midfielder Jack Jewsbury in points with two goals and one assist through seven games.
•Kansas City has now converted two penalty kicks this year. Jewsbury and Lopez have each scored from one spot kick.
• Goalkeeper Kevin Hartman and defender Jimmy Conrad are the only Wizards to play all 630 minutes so far this season.
• Forward Claudio Lopez sits just behind Conrad and Hartman with 626 minutes and has played the entire 90 in five matches.
• At the start of Saturday's match, Kansas City's five attacking players were all born in a Latin American country. The Wizards began the game with Roger Espinoza (Honduras) and Eloy Colombano (Argentina) wide in midfield, Kurt Morsink (Costa Rica) at attacking mid, Claudio Lopez (Argentina) and Ivan Trujillo (Colombia) on the field. A sixth South American, midfielder Carlos Marinelli (Argentina) later entered for Morsink.
• Midfielder Ryan Pore returned to action after missing two weeks with a broken nose.
• Pore, a native of Mansfield, Ohio, had over 500 friends and family in attendance.
• Midfielder Roger Espinoza and goalkeeper Kevin Hartman also had homecomings of sorts. Espinoza attended Ohio State University in Columbus last fall and Hartman was born in Athens, Ohio.
• Wizards players Jimmy Conrad, Kevin Hartman and Sasha Victorine all played for Columbus Head Coach Sigi Schmid at UCLA.
• The KCW Reserves play Sunday morning at 9 a.m. CT against Columbus at the Crew Training Center at Obetz.
• Kansas City's reserve squad leads the MLS Reserve Division with a 2-0-1 record.
