The Dynamo earned home-field advantage in the conference final after the Kansas City Wizards upset Chivas USA in the other Western Conference semifinal. Again hosting in front of a record crowd, Houston took a deserved lead against the Wizards when Nate Jaqua rose highest to head in a Richard Mulrooney corner kick in the 35th minute. The Dynamo finally sealed the win in the second half when Craig Waibel stole the ball near midfield, beat a defender, and played a through ball for Dwayne De Rosario on the left side of the box. De Rosario fired a low shot into the left side of the net, sending the orange-clad crowd into a frenzy. With the win, Houston advanced to the MLS Cup title game for the second time in its two years of existence.
Kansas City Wizards vs. Houston Dynamo
November 10, 2007 -- Robertson Stadium, Houston TX
Western Conference Final
Scoring Summary:
HOU -- Nate Jaqua 1 (Richard Mulrooney 1) 35
HOU -- Dwayne De Rosario 1 (Craig Waibel 1) 81
Kansas City Wizards -- Kevin Hartman, Jack Jewsbury (Ryan Pore 75), Jimmy Conrad, Nick Garcia, Michael Harrington, Davy Arnaud, Kurt Morsink, Kerry Zavagnin (Carlos Marinelli 46), Sasha Victorine (Eloy Colombano 66), Scott Sealy, Eddie Johnson.
Substitutes Not Used: Eric Kronberg, Jose Burciaga Jr., Ryan Raybould, Tyson Wahl.
Houston Dynamo -- Pat Onstad, Craig Waibel, Ryan Cochrane, Eddie Robinson, Wade Barrett, Brian Mullan, Richard Mulrooney, Dwayne De Rosario (Stuart Holden 85), Brad Davis, Brian Ching (Joseph Ngwenya 70), Nate Jaqua.
Substitutes Not Used: Zach Wells, Corey Ashe, Mike Chabala, Patrick Ianni, Chris Wondolowski.
Misconduct Summary:
HOU -- Nate Jaqua (caution; Reckless Foul) 41
KC -- Nick Garcia (caution; Pushing) 55
KC -- Carlos Marinelli (caution; Tackle from Behind) 58
KC -- Davy Arnaud (caution; Pushing) 93+
gameSumLabel">Referee: Jair Marrufo
gameSumLabel">Referee's Assistants: Greg Barkey; C.J. Morgante
gameSumLabel">4th official: Abbey Okulaja
gameSumLabel">Attendance: 30,972
Weather: Clear-and-74-degrees
All statistics contained in this boxscore are unofficial
