Beyond the Box Score presented by Compass Minerals: Peter Vermes and Sporting seal first place on historic Decision Day

"Beyond The Box Score" is a weekly series presented by Compass Minerals that takes a statistical dive into every Sporting match, bringing to light the intriguing numbers and factoids that don't appear in the typical box score. To visit the series archive, click here.

It only felt fitting that the final chapter of Sporting Kansas City's wild and unprecedented 2020 MLS regular season campaign would take place on the snow-blanketed pitch of a fierce rival.

After busting out of the gates with two convincing wins before the pandemic, resuming play at the one-of-a-kind MLS is Back Tournament in Walt Disney World and continuing the campaign with a breathless run of autumn matches in home markets, Sporting had their sights set on finishing the regular season at the summit of the Western Conference on MLS Decision Day 2020 presented by AT&T.

The stakes were high for Manager Peter Vermes' men—decidedly higher for them than for an RSL side already eliminated from postseason contention—but the visitors rose to the occasion by securing a 2-0 victory and a No. 1 seed heading into the Audi 2020 MLS Cup Playoffs later this month.

Khiry Shelton provided the breakthrough with a scrappy goal on the brink of halftime, Erik Hurtado doubled the advantage three minutes into his second-half cameo and goalkeeper Tim Melia posted his third straight shutout, helping Sporting punctuate one of the finest bounce-back seasons the league has ever seen.

In 2019, Vermes and Sporting saw their club-record eight-year playoff streak come to an end after an 11th-place finish in the West and a 22nd-place finish in the Supporters' Shield table. One year later, Sporting has pulled off the largest year-over-year improvement in Major League Soccer's 25-year history with a jump from 11th to first in the West and 22nd to third in the Shield race.

SUPPORTERS’ SHIELD STANDINGS: BIGGEST YEAR-OVER-YEAR IMPROVEMENTS

Sporting's momentous achievement was a fitting reward for the adversity and unpredictability that players and coaches faced over the course of the year. The 2020 regular season had the earliest start date on Feb. 29, the latest end date on Nov. 8, and required clubs to start and stop no less than three times in between. When Vermes reflected on the accomplishment after the match, he indicated that a first-place finish in the West and homefield advantage in the playoffs was incredibly deserved.

"Unfortunately, the year didn’t go as planned but we stayed the course and we stayed true to who we are," Vermes said. "We remained loyal and committed to our culture. And we believed. This has been a tough year, but for us to be able to achieve first place in the West based on the circumstances - it was incredibly difficult. And then when things changed to points per game and then we had games cancelled, it’s easy for the guys to have mentally checked out in certain situations. They found a way each time."

For Vermes specifically, Sunday's snowy encounter on the cliffs of the Wasatch Mountains—which gave Sporting their first league win at Rio Tinto Stadium since 2013—offered a prompt reminder of his consistency over the last decade.

Over the last 10 seasons, Vermes has won an MLS Cup, three Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cups and finished first in the conference standings on four occasions. No other MLS coach has more than two first-place conference finishes during that time.

MLS HEAD COACHES: FIRST-PLACE CONFERENCE FINISHES SINCE 2011

Sunday's pressure-packed scenario was hardly new for Vermes and Sporting. In the last decade, Sporting has entered their regular season finale playing for first place five times—in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2018 and 2020. Vermes' men emerged victorious in all five games and took first place in each of those years except for 2013.

SPORTING KC WITH FIRST PLACE UP FOR GRABS
(REGULAR SEASON FINALES UNDER PETER VERMES)

Just over a month ago, Sporting's outlook for finishing first was murky at best. The club was in the midst in a 1-4-2 slump and had suffered back-to-back home losses against FC Dallas and Orlando City SC.

As the calendar turned to October, however, the flip switched emphatically. Sporting went 6-1-1 to end the season, and the only two games in which they dropped points—a 1-0 loss at FC Dallas and a 2-2 draw at Chicago Fire FC—were mired in controversy.

Take a closer look, and it becomes evident that Sporting has been among the best MLS teams during the most important stretch of the season. Their six wins, 19 points, four shutouts and 0.63 goals against average are all the best marks in MLS since the start of October.

SPORTING KC SINCE THE START OF OCTOBER
(2020 MLS REGULAR SEASON)

Another key trait that fed Sporting's regular season success was the club's form away from home. Vermes' side posted a 5-2-2 record in nine true road matches, the best in MLS. Only three other clubs collected as many away wins throughout the regular season.

MOST ROAD WINS DURING THE 2020 MLS REGULAR SEASON

Add it all up, and you get one of Sporting's best regular seasons ever. In fact, Sporting's 1.857 points per game in 2020 is the best clip in Kansas City history

SPORTING KC: MOST POINTS PER GAME IN CLUB HISTORY
(MLS REGULAR SEASON)

"This year’s been about adaptability and this team, we came together from day one and then having to go into quarantine, then coming out of quarantine and playing in Orlando," Shelton said after the game. "We’ve adapted and we’ve adapted really well. Everyone was focused and we remained focused."

Shelton, of course, played a big role in Sunday's win by putting Sporting ahead in the 45th minute. Hurtado doubled the lead three minutes into the second frame, continuing a scoring trend that has come to define Sporting in 2020.

By bagging their fifth goals of the season this weekend, Shelton and Hurtado became the fourth and fifth Sporting players to score at least five times in 2020. This marks the fifth time ever in which Sporting has had five different players tally five goals in a single regular season.

Shelton and Hurtado finished one behind a three-way tie for the team lead, as Alan Pulido, Gadi Kind and Johnny Russell notched six apiece.

SPORTING KC: FIVE PLAYERS WITH FIVE GOALS IN THE SAME SEASON
(MLS REGULAR SEASON)

The late stages of Sunday's battle were largely routine as Sporting comfortably saw out the 2-0 result. In the 76th minute, however, grizzled veteran Roger Espinoza hit a major milestone by eclipsing 20,000 regular season minutes in his MLS career. Espinoza is the fifth Kansas City player to log 20,000 regular season minutes, joining longtime teammates Matt Besler and Graham Zusi as well as current assistant coach Kerry Zavagnin and retired defender Nick Garcia.

20,000 REGULAR SEASON MINUTES FOR SPORTING KC

With an excellent regular season campaign in the books, Sporting has earned homefield advantage in the West going into the highly anticipated Audi 2020 MLS Cup Playoffs. Vermes' men will host the No. 8 seed San Jose Earthquakes in the single-game conference quarterfinals on Nov. 21, 22 or 24 at Children’s Mercy Park. An exact date and kickoff time for the fixture will be announced in the near term.

Sporting KC Season Ticket Members will have exclusive access to a presale for the match starting Tuesday at 10 a.m. CT. Tickets will then go on sale to the general public beginning Thursday at noon CT.