A Goal and a Draw

Gabriel Pirani scored the equalizing goal in second half stoppage time

Gabriel Pirani hit a beautiful volley in second half stoppage time to break an almost 500-minute goal drought and gain DC United a draw with the New England Revolution, 1-1, last night (May 28) at Audi Field.

It was cool and rainy all day, and there were only a few hardy fans in the stands. DC started

Barraza in goal

Rowles, Bartlett, Herrera in defense

Antley, Enow, Servania, Dodson in midfield

Peglow, Murrell, Kijima in forward

Subs: Schnegg for Dodson (halftime), Leal for Antley (66th), Stroud for Kijima (74th), Fletcher for Murrell (74th), Pirani for Peglow (81st).

DC showed flashes of movement in the first half, especially from Peglow, but as has been the case for much of the year, the final pass was just not there. The game seemed headed for a scoreless halftime when New England's Carlos Gil found Brandon Bye on the left side. Barraza came out but Bye beat him and crossed towards Ignatius Ganago in front of the net. Herrera deflected the cross, but it went straight to Ilay Feingold who scored from about 12 yards out. 1-0 New England at the half.

DC had better pressure in the second half, with Peglow again creating some good opportunities, but the final pass stayed elusive. Murrell put the ball in the net, but it had hit his arm first, so the goal was disallowed. Barraza held the fort on the defensive end, taking a spike to his right knee in defending a shot in the 58th minute and kick-saving a good chance from Luis Diaz in the 68th minute.

DC ramped up the pressure near the end of the second half, but New England blocks and missed shots continued. Then, just as the game moved into stoppage time, Herrera hit a long cross to Schnegg, who headed the ball into the middle. Stroud's shot was blocked, but the rebound fell to an onrushing Pirani, who scorched a volley from just outside the box into the upper left corner to tie the game. It was DC's first goal in league play since May 3 against Colorado (496 minutes).

The rest of the six minutes of stoppage time were quite exciting. DC forced two saves in a few seconds in the 94th minute, and Diaz shot just wide from the right side with the last action of the game for New England, but it ended 1-1.

DC finishes their busy May this Saturday, May 31 at FC Cincinnati at 730pm.