At 7:25 p.m. Saturday, 17 minutes 23 seconds into D.C. United’s fourth match of the MLS season, Jose Guillermo Ortiz’s deflected shot took flight in the south end of RFK Stadium and, to the relief of an exasperated team and its impatient supporters, floated over the Philadelphia goalkeeper and settled into the net.
For the first time since last fall, United had scored a goal – a drought of 287-plus minutes since launching a campaign full of hope and wonder.
Luciano Acosta added a penalty kick before the half expired, and United endured extreme pressure in the last 25 minutes to secure a 2-1 victory over the Union before an announced crowd of 14,560.
“It weighs on your mind a lot,” midfielder Patrick Nyarko said. “We just wanted to get through it because of our struggles early in the year.”
United (1-2-1) had been generating opportunities but not finishing them this spring. So with striker Patrick Mullins sidelined with a hamstring injury, Ben Olsen turned to Ortiz in his first MLS start and Acosta, in his second game since returning from an ankle injury, to end the rut.
Ortiz’s early goal broke the tension.
“They’re coming,” captain Steve Birnbaum said of the goals. “We know we can score. I don’t think was a big deal, but obviously little weight off our defense and we saw it out.”
United also received a defensive lift from Bobby Boswell, the former captain who had lost his starting job to Sean Franklin in preseason. In his first match of the year, Boswell paired with Birnbaum to repel the Union (0-2-2), whose winless streak dating from last year reached 12 games.
Philadelphia was in charge for most of the second half, claiming 62 percent of possession and a 12-1 advantage on shots.
Hamid made a splendid save on Keegan Rosenberry’s low bid. In the 71st minute, he prevented Alejandro Bedoya’s bid but left the rebound for substitute C.J. Sapong to bash into the net — the third goal of the year for the former Forest Park High and James Madison University star.
United’s defense was at the point of breaking. Hamid preserved the lead by slapping down Sapong’s wicked bid from seven yards and, stationed at the left post on a corner kick, Sarvas cleared Onyewu’s header.
“Today was a gutsy performance,” Olsen said. “The field’s not good, a lot of second balls and we found a way. And that shows we still have the character we thought we had.”
Notes: United will host New York City FC (2-1-1) next Saturday afternoon. … Maxim Tissot and Chris Durkin, 17, played 90 minutes apiece on loan to the second-division Richmond Kickers in a 1-0 defeat at New York Red Bulls II. … Onyewu, a D.C. native and two-time World Cup defender, made his first appearance at RFK since a knee injury in October 2009 while playing for the national team in the 2010 World Cup qualifying finale against Costa Rica.
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