San Jose Earthquakes 1, Sporting Kansas City 0 | 2016 MLS Match Recap

Benjamin Baer

It wasn't the prettiest of wins but the San Jose Earthquakes stayed unbeaten at home in 2016, defeating Sporting Kansas City 1-0 on Sunday.

Chris Wondolowski provided the only goal of the game via a 59th penalty kick. The Quakes earned the penalty after Tim Melia took down Simon Dawkins in the box. The goal was Wondolowski's seventh on the season, making him the league leader so far.

Sporting had the better of opportunities throughout the match, getting five shots on target to the Quakes' two. The loss was Kansas City's third in a row.

Box Score

59' - SJ - Chris Wondolowski
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Three Things

AVAYA, THE FORTRESS: San Jose lost three games at home in 2015, Avaya Stadium's inaugural season. They have continued that strong form at home as they are now unbeaten through four games at Avaya in 2016. Three of those have been wins against teams that took home trophies last year: Portland Timbers (MLS Cup), New York Red Bulls (Supporters' Shield), Sporting Kansas City (US Open Cup)
MISSED PK?: Five minutes before Wondolowski put San Jose on the scoreboard, Sporting could have had a penalty themselves. In the 55th minute it appeared that Andres Imperiale caught Dom Dwyer's legs with an attempted tackle in the box but Jair Marrufo did not point to the spot.
SPORTING SLIDE: After winning four of their first five matches, Kansas City appear to have hit a bit of rough patch. They have now lost their last three games, all coming against Western Conference rivals. They have two chances to right the ship next week with a trip to Vancouver on Wednesday before returning home for a game against the LA Galaxy next Sunday.