Recap: San Jose Earthquakes 2, Austin FC 2

Phil West

Maxi Urruti got his first goal in Verde (and in style), and Sebastian Driussi scored his fourth goal of the year via a penalty kick, but Jeremy Ebobisse and Cade Cowell put in comeback goals to level the San Jose Earthquakes with Austin FC, 2-2, at PayPal Park on Saturday night.

Urruti got Austin FC on the board first with an AT&T 5G Goal of the Week candidate, taming a ball sent into him by Julio Cascante beyond the 18-yard line, trying his luck on a one-touch shot and going top shelf with authority on the finish.

Just five minutes after play resumed, Jackson Yueill was whistled for a penalty on Dani Pereira, and after Video Review confirmed that the takedown was sufficient, Driussi stepped to the spot and audaciously converted the penalty to double the lead.

But the Earthquakes engineered a comeback reminiscent of last September's wild match between the teams at Q2 Stadium, where the Quakes scored three second-half goals to reverse a 3-1 Verde halftime lead. Saturday's chargeback started with substitute attacker Ousseni Bouda drawing a foul in the box from Nick Lima, resulting in Ebobisse freezing Brad Stuver on the PK. Then, two minutes later on a corner kick, Cowell barreled his way through the Austin defense to equalize.

While momentum tipped to the Quakes from there, Austin put up just enough of a defensive stand for the teams to split points in the end.

Goals

11' – ATX – Maxi Urruti | WATCH
52' – ATX – Sebastian Driussi (PK) | WATCH
70' – SJ – Jeremy Ebobisse (PK) | WATCH
72' – SJ – Cade Cowell | WATCH

Three Things

THE BIG PICTURE: This rivalry is officially on, and so far, it seems that no Austin FC lead is safe from the chaos that San Jose is able to engineer. Austin will rue some of the first-half chances they missed to extend the lead, including an ill-advised Alex Ring attempted chip right before halftime that could have been an easy redirect to extend the lead. Still, it’s a road result for Austin, as they are in Audi MLS Cup Playoff position in the early going. The Quakes wanted more and had opportunities to get all three points that they’ll similarly rue.
MOMENT OF THE MATCH: The Cowell goal was the pivotal final piece of the comeback, but it was a comeback that needed to happen in part because of this Urruti banger that established the early lead.

MAN OF THE MATCH: At the end of the day, it was Cowell who put pressure on an Austin backline that faded down the stretch. He ultimately was the one to will the Quakes to the salvaged point.