Sporting Kansas City recorded the team’s fifth shutout in the past six MLS matches with a 1-0 road win over the first place Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Sunday at BC Place.
Defender Kevin Ellis scored the game-winning goal in the 52nd minute on an assist from Krisztian Nemeth and goalkeeper Tim Melia matched his career high with six saves in the clean sheet.
Melia, who lowered his league-leading goals against average to 0.56 and improved to 6-1-2 in 2015, was called into action early by a Whitecaps side that had scored in each of their past six matches and had only been shutout once at home all year.
In the ninth minute, Melia dove low to his left to punch away a header from Octavio Rivero then quickly recovered to turn away Cristian Techera’s follow-up effort with his right foot.
Two minutes later, Melia raced off his line to block away an attempt from Kekuta Manneh at close range then was rescued by Benny Feilhaber’s goalline clearance on a header from Tim Parker shortly thereafter.
Sporting Kansas City continued to weather a series of squandered scoring opportunities from the home side with rookie outside back Amadou Dia playing a large part, first recovering to intervene on a breakaway by Techera in the 16th minute and again denying the Uruguayan with a last-minute clearance off the goalline in the 61st minute.
Sporting Kansas City’s best chance to breakthrough in the first half came via a set piece in the 23rd minute. Feilhaber’s delivery found Dom Dwyer at the backpost, however his header was directed narrowly wide of the post.
No MLS team has scored more headed goals in 2015 than Sporting KC (9) and Ellis added to the team’s aerial prowess with his second career MLS goal in the early stages of the second half. Jacob Peterson did well to win a corner kick through his pressure on Jordan Harvey near the endline and the hustle ultimately set up the decisive goal when Ellis timed his run perfectly and met a pinpoint pass from Nemeth with a glancing header inside the far post.
The lead almost doubled in the 58th minute as Nemeth and Feilhaber combined for a give-and-go before Nemeth struck a first-time shot from 30 yards out that beat Whitecaps goalkeeper David Ousted only to then hit the post.
Peterson was first to the rebound but sent his first-time shot whistling wide before coming close again in the 70th minute. The 10-year MLS veteran nearly capped off a 14-pass sequence with his first goal of the season if not for a sprawling save by Ousted.
The Whitecaps’ search for an equalizer in the final 15 minutes was limited to two shots on target as a result of set pieces. Techera, who led all players with three shots on goal in the game, put a free kick on frame in the 76th minute that was tipped over the crossbar by an alert Melia. Then in the 90th minute, Parker’s header was bound for the back of the net until Melia extended to his right at full extension to preserve the victory.
Sporting Kansas City – which earned the club’s first conference road win of the year on Sunday – now leads all MLS teams with 1.76 points per game at the halfway juncture of the club’s regular season. Sporting KC sits in sixth place in the West, two points back of the conference leaders entering next Saturday’s home match against the Montreal Impact.
A limited number of tickets are available via Ticketmaster.com for the match, which kicks off at 7:30 p.m. at Sporting Park Kansas City, Kan. This match will be shown on KMCI-TV and SKCTV affiliates. The first 10,000 fans inside the gates will receive a commemorative Graham Zusi poster.
– Story from Sporting KC