Seventh Heaven

English TV: KSMO-TV
Spanish Radio: La Gran D 1340 AM

BC Place | Vancouver, British Columbia
Attendance: 15,382
Weather: Indoors (dome)
Video: Match Highlights

Sporting Kansas City: Jimmy Nielsen©; Chance Myers, Matt Besler, Aurelien Collin, Seth Sinovic; Paulo Nagamura (Lawrence Olum 77), Roger Espinoza, Graham Zusi; Kei Kamara, C.J. Sapong (Teal Bunbury 62), Bobby Convey (Jacob Peterson 52)

Subs not used: Jon Kempin, Michael Harrington, Soony Saad, Luke Sassano

Vancouver Whitecaps FC: Joe Cannon; Young-Pyo Lee, Martin Bonjour (Long Tan 87), Jay DeMerit, Jordan Harvey; Gershon Koffie, John Thorrington (Camilo 60); Atiba Harris (Omar Salgado 79), Sebastien Le Toux,Davide Chiumiento; Eric Hassli

Subs not used: Brad Knighton, Matt Watson, Carlyle Mitchell, Jun Marques Davidson

Misconduct Summary:

VAN – Eric Hassli (caution; reckless foul) 6
KC – Aurelien Collin (caution; reckless foul) 18
KC – Paulo Nagamura (caution; delaying a restart) 38
VAN – Jay DeMerit (caution; tactical foul) 67
KC – Jimmy Nielsen (caution; dissent) 80

Scoring Summary:
KC – Aurelien Collin 3 (unassisted) 24
KC – Martin Bonjour (own goal) 51
KC – Kei Kamara 4 (Chance Myers 2) 65
VAN – Sebastien Le Toux 3 (unassisted) 79

Sporting Kansas City won their seventh straight match, a new club record, and extended their lead atop the Eastern Conference to 11 points with a 3-1 win at Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Wednesday night. Aurelien Collin scored for the second straight match and Kei Kamara struck for his team-leading fourth goal of the year, while Matt Besler’s throw-in produced an own goal to power Sporting KC past their fifth straight Western Conference opponent.

Vancouver threatened in the 10th minute as Davide Chiumiento fed Sebastien Le Toux with space to run into the penalty area. The Frenchman slipped a pass to the right side for fellow forward Atiba Harris, but he was ruled offside as the Sporting KC defense rushed to thwart the attack.

Five minutes later, Sporting KC goalkeeper Jimmy Nielsen was quick off his line to beat Le Toux to a loose ball and prevent any lasting misfortune when Aurelien Collin slipped on the turf.

It was then Sporting Kansas City who capitalized on the game’s first shot on goal on a goalmouth scramble. Vancouver defender Martin Bonjour headed away Graham Zusi’s initial cross into the penalty area, but it fell to Roger Espinoza for a first-time volley from 15 yards out. The bouncing attempt was met by Whitecaps midfielder Gershon Koffie, whose clearance bounced off the side of C.J. Sapong and into the path of Collin for a sliding finish in front of the goalline.

The goal, Collin’s second in as many games, moves him into a tie for the team lead with three and matches his goal tally from 2011, his first season in MLS. Sporting Kansas City is 6-0-1 in MLS competition when Collin scores and have now scored first in six of the team’s seven matches this season.

The Whitecaps came close to pulling level minutes later as Le Toux’s header was flicked on frame following a cross from Lee Young-Pyo, but Nielsen was well-positioned to hold onto the header.

After absorbing early pressure from Vancouver to start the second half, Sapong’s pressure on Jay DeMerit near the endline earned a throw-in in the 51st minute that saw Sporting Kansas City double their lead. Matt Besler sent one of his trademark tosses into the six-yard box where Bonjour inadvertently turned the ball into his own net while fending off Collin’s aerial challenge at the near post.

Three minutes later, Sporting Kansas City nearly returned the favor if not for an acrobatic save from Nielsen to prevent an own goal on the opposite end. Le Toux’s cross from the left side was misplayed by Sporting KC outside back Seth Sinovic and the errant clearance was turned away with a sprawling stop from Nielsen to push the ball over the crossbar.

In the 60th minute, Sapong sprung Zusi for a spirited run forward. The Sporting playmaker, who leads MLS with six assists in 2012, cut inside but sent his shot over the bar.

Sporting Kansas City added a third in the 65th minute as Kei Kamara and Chance Myers combined on a perfectly executed give-and-go. Kamara pushed the ball out wide to theright side for Myers, who sent in a low cross to the near post where Kamaralifted it over Joe Cannon for his team-leading fourth goal of the season.

Up three goals for the second straight year in Vancouver, Sporting’s defense was put to the test as the Whitecaps pressed forward with hopes of repeating their memorable comeback in 2011.

Camilo sent a free kick wide from 25 yards out in the 69th minute and Hassli fired high three minutes later after settling and turning superbly inside the penalty area.

The home side broke through in the 79th minute when Le Toux pushed a header across the goalline after Camilo’s header crashed off the crossbar and fell in front of Nielsen’s net. The goal was Le Toux’s third of the year and broke a 415-minute shutout streak by Nielsen, the longest in MLS this season.

The goal breathed life into the Vancouver attack and created a frantic final 10 minutes in the back-and-forth match. Nielsen made four of his six saves on the night during the stretch, turning away Camilo’s shot from distance in the 82nd and then denying Hassli on the ensuing corner.

Second-half substitute Long Tan forced a strong save from Nielsen in the first minute of stoppage time and Myers did just enough to disrupt Hassli’s follow-up attempt from close range.

Sporting KC will next travel to Portland to play their third match in eight days when they take on the Timbers at 9:30 p.m. CT on Saturday at Jeld-Wen Field. The match will air live on KSMO-TV, with pre-game coverage beginning at 9 p.m. CT.

FAST FACTS:

• With the win, Sporting Kansas City is 7-0-0 in 2012 and hold an 11-point lead in first place in the Eastern Conference.
• Wednesday marked Sporting Kansas City’s 500th regular season game all-time in team history. Sporting Kansas City becomes the first club in MLS history to play 500 regular season matches.
• With the win, Sporting Kansas City improves their all-time record to 201-199-100 and has a 65-127-57 record on the road in the team’s 17-year history.
• This is the second time in MLS history that a club has won seven consecutive matches in regulation to start the season. The only other team to accomplish this feat was the LA Galaxy in 1996 when they won eight straight matches in regulation to start the season.
• Sporting KC is 3-0-0 on the road in 2012 and 3-0-0 when leading at halftime in 2012.
• Sporting Kansas City is 35-26-11 all-time in the month of April.
• Sporting Kansas City’s all-time record against Vancouver Whitecaps FC improves to 2-0-1 after the win. Sporting Kansas City’s all-time record on the road against Vancouver is 1-0-1.
• Sporting Kansas City wore their dark indigo uniforms for the first time in 2012 on Wednesday.
• Wednesday’s match marks the first time Sporting Kansas City has played on turf during the 2012 season.
• Sporting KC started a different line-up in Wednesday’s match for the first time in five matches. Paulo Nagamura started in place of Julio Cesar at the defensive center midfield position.
• Julio Cesar is out with a right hamstring strain.
• Wednesday’s match marked Nagamura’s first start for Sporting Kansas City. Nagamura earned a yellow card in his second straight match on Wednesday.
• Aurelien Collin scored the first goal in Wednesday’s contest for the second consecutive match. The goal marks Collin’s third this season, tying his total from last season.
• Collin’s goal is the seventh of his MLS career, including one during the 2011 MLS Cup playoffs.
• Sporting Kansas City’s record when Collin scores is 6-0-1. Of Collin’s seven goals, four were game-winners and the other three were game-tying goals.
• Vancouver scored an own goal in the 52nd minute off a Matt Besler throw-in. This is the second time one of Besler’s throw-ins has forced an opponent to score an own goal. The last time was on September 28, 2011 in an SKC 2-1 victory over the Columbus Crew.
• Kei Kamara scored the third goal of the match on a Chance Myers assist. Kamara’s goal marks his fourth in 2012 and 38th of his career during the MLS regular season.
• Kamara leads all MLS players in shots in 2012 with 36 and shots on goal with 16 at the conclusion of Wednesday's match.
• Myers' assist is his second of 2012, a new career high, and the fourth of his career.
• Bobby Convey left the match in the 52nd minute due to a tight left hamstring.
• Sebastian Le Toux scored for Vancouver in the 79th minute. Le Toux’s goal in the 79th minute ended Nielsen’s 415 minute shutout streak, longest in MLS this season.
• Having made just one save in the last three games, Jimmy Nielsen made six saves in tonight’s match.
• Nielsen has the most wins (7) and shutouts (5) of any MLS goalkeeper.
• Sporting Kansas City was outshot for the first time in 2012.
• Sporting Kansas City leads the League in fewest goals allowed, allowing just two goals in seven games.
• Sporting Kansas City is 5-0-0 against Western Conference opponents and Wednesday was the fifth of six straight matches against Western Conference teams for Sporting Kansas City.
• Sporting Kansas City leads the League with 45 corner kicks in 2012.
• Sporting Kansas City Manager Peter Vermes sits atop the team’s all-time coaches chart for best winning percentage (.536, 34-28-21).
• Sporting Kansas City’s win over Vancouver Whitecaps FC set the club’s all-time record for longest regular season winning streak in regulation at nine games, dating back to 2011. The only other time the team had won seven consecutive regular season matches came in 1997 during the MLS shootout era.

QUOTES:
Post-game reaction from Sporting Kansas City and Vancouver Whitecaps FC.