Carson, Ca. — The Philadelphia Union played to a 1-1 draw on the road Sunday night against Chivas USA, moving the club into second place in the Eastern Conference. A 90th-minute goal by Juan Pablo Angel prevented the Union from coming away with all three points, but Philadelphia nonetheless managed to extend their unbeaten streak to six games.
Union midfielder Justin Mapp scored in the 59th minute for the Union, his third goal of the season, and it looked like it would stand as a game-winner until the dying moments.
With three games to play in the regular season, the Union are tied on points with the Columbus Crew, both a point behind Sporting Kansas City. Columbus and Kansas City each have two games to play.
Both teams took the majority of the first half to begin generating scoring opportunities. The first chance didn’t come until the 36th minute, when Alejandro Moreno released midfielder Laurent Courtois alone on net. The Frenchman shanked the shot wide of the frame to keep the match scoreless.
Philadelphia nearly took the lead before the halftime break. On the counter, Mapp found Michael Farfan with a cross-field pass and the rookie midfielder - who has a goal and two assists in his last two games - missed the net by inches chipping to the far post.
Mapp opened the scoring in the 59th minute. Left unpressured in acres of space, Mapp moved into the final third and unleashed a 23-yard shot into the lower right corner, beating the diving Dan Kennedy.
Minutes later, Chivas nearly erased the deficit when former Union forward Alejandro Moreno directed a cross into the near post with a heel-flick.
Chivas picked up their offensive intensity in the final 20 minutes and it paid off in the 90th minute, when halftime sub Blair Gavin released Michael Lahoud down the right side. Lahoud, also a second half sub, drove a cross to the far post, where Angel finished with his head to level at 1-1. The goal was Angel’s seventh in as many games since joining Chivas USA.
The Union will continue their West Coast swing when they face the Seattle Sounders at CenturyLink Field on Saturday (10:00 p.m. ET, TCN), followed by the club's home finale October 15 against Toronto FC.
Scoring Summary:
PHI -- Justin Mapp 3 (unassisted) 59
CHV -- Juan Pablo Angel 10 (Michael Lahoud 3, Blair Gavin 3) 90
Philadelphia Union -- Zac MacMath, Sheanon Williams, Danny Califf, Carlos Valdes, Gabriel Farfan, Amobi Okugo (Roger Torres 46), Brian Carroll, Justin Mapp (Kyle Nakazawa 74), Michael Farfan, Veljko Paunovic (Freddy Adu 46), Sebastien Le Toux.
Substitutes Not Used: Jack McInerney, Zach Pfeffer, Joe Tait, Chase Harrison.
Chivas USA -- Dan Kennedy, Michael Umana, Andrew Boyens (Michael Lahoud 74), David Junior Lopes, Ante Jazic, Justin Braun, Nick LaBrocca, Simon Elliott (Blair Gavin 46), Laurent Courtois (Marcos Mondaini 58), Alejandro Moreno, Juan Pablo Angel.
Substitutes Not Used: Victor Estupinan, Jorge Flores, Zarek Valentin, Zach Thornton.
Misconduct Summary:
CHV -- David Junior Lopes (caution; Reckless Tackle) 21
PHI -- Gabriel Farfan (caution; Reckless Foul) 28
PHI -- Zac MacMath (caution; Delaying a Restart) 77
Referee: Michael Kennedy
Referee's Assistants: Kermit Quisenberry; Bill Dittmar
4th Official: Ramon Hernandez
Time of Game: 1:52
Weather: Clear-and-79-degrees
Attendance: 16,134
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