Summary
The Dynamo rolled to a 3-1 win over rival FC Dallas behind two goals from Cam Weaver and a long-range blast from Richard Mulrooney. Pat Onstad made key stops in each half to preserve Houston’s fifth straight win and help reclaim El Capitán.
Notes
The Houston Dynamo ran their unbeaten streak to 10 games (8-0-2) and extended their winning streak to five games with a 3-1 win against FC Dallas Saturday night at Pizza Hut Park. The Dynamo now have 27 points and the best winning percentage in the Western Conference. The Dynamo also clinched El Capitan, the 19th-century mountain howitzer awarded to the winner of the season series with FC Dallas, after improving to 2-0 on the year against Dallas. The teams will meet again August 6 in Frisco.
The Dynamo have now won five consecutive games for only the second time in team history. The first came from June 3-June 24, 2007. That streak ended with a 0-0 tie against FC Dallas but was part of a club-record 11-game MLS unbeaten streak.
The Dynamo are now unbeaten in 10 consecutive games (8-0-2), the second longest streak in club history both in MLS play and in all competitions. The club record is 11 consecutive games, set in MLS play from June 3-July 22, 2007 and in all competitions from August 31-October 18, 2008.
The Dynamo began the scoring in the 12th minute, when Andrew Hainault and Brian Mullan combined on the right side, with Mullan driving in a hard cross that Cam Weaver deflected into the net for his first Dynamo goal in only his second game. The assist was the first of the season and the 40th of his MLS career for Mullan.
Richard Mulrooney doubled Houston's lead in the 36th minute with a driven half-volley from outside the penalty area, his first goal since August 30, 2006 when he was playing for FC Dallas.
The Dynamo all but sealed the match in the 63rd minute when Dominic Oduro and Corey Ashe combined to set up a wide-open Cam Weaver at the penalty spot, and he rifled a shot into the right corner of the net, his third goal of the year and second of the game. Weaver became the first Dynamo player this year with a multi-goal game. Weaver also became the seventh Dynamo player to score his first Dynamo goal against rival Dallas.
Despite the 3-1 scoreline, Dynamo goalkeeper Pat Onstad had a busy night. He tied his season high with five saves, including a breakaway stop on David Ferreira in the 32nd minute and some key close-range saves in the second half.
The Dynamo have outscored opponents 16-3 during their 10-game unbeaten streak.
The Dynamo gave up their first goal after three consecutive shutouts, breaking their shutout streak at 373 minutes, their second-longest streak this year (491 minutes) and the fourth-longest streak in Major League Soccer this season.
Houston now leads the all-time series against FC Dallas 9-2-5 in all competitions and evened the series 2-2-3 at Pizza Hut Park.
Defender and captain Wade Barrett made his first start for the Dynamo since May 3, his 130th career start with the Dynamo in all competitions. Midfielder Stuart Holden made his 100th career appearance in all competitions and his 75th in MLS play. Midfielder Brian Mullan made his 135th appearance with the Dynamo in all competitions and the 215th start of his MLS career. Defender Bobby Boswell made the 120th appearance of his MLS career.
For the third straight game, the Dynamo played without midfielder Ricardo Clark (U.S. national team) and forward Brian Ching (hamstring injury).
Houston Dynamo (8-2-3) vs. FC Dallas (2-7-4)
June 13, 2009 -- Pizza Hut Park, Frisco TX
Scoring Summary:
HOU -- Cam Weaver 2 (Brian Mullan 1, Andrew Hainault 2) 12
HOU -- Richard Mulrooney 1 (unassisted) 36
HOU -- Cam Weaver 3 (Corey Ashe 2, Dominic Oduro 1) 63
FCD -- Drew Moor 3 (Eric Avila 2) 66
Houston Dynamo -- Pat Onstad, Andrew Hainault, Bobby Boswell, Geoff Cameron, Wade Barrett, Brian Mullan (Brad Davis 84), Richard Mulrooney, Stuart Holden, Corey Ashe, Cam Weaver (Ade Akinbiyi 81), Kei Kamara (Dominic Oduro 46).
Substitutes Not Used: Tally Hall, Mike Chabala, Danny Cruz, Craig Waibel.
FC Dallas -- Ray Burse, Drew Moor, Kyle Davies, Pablo Ricchetti, Anthony Wallace (Eric Avila 62), Dax McCarty, Andre Rocha, David Ferreira, Dave van den Bergh (Marcelo Saragosa 78), Jeff Cunningham (Brek Shea 46), Kenny Cooper.
Substitutes Not Used: Josh Lambo, Michael Dello-Russo, Peri Marosevic, Blake Wagner.
Misconduct Summary:
FCD -- Andre Rocha (caution; Reckless Tackle) 40
gameSumLabel">Referee: Mark Geiger
gameSumLabel">Referee's Assistants: Anthony Vasoli; Kyle Borne
gameSumLabel">4th official: Chris Penso
gameSumLabel">Attendance: 8,580
Weather: Sunny-and-94-degrees
All statistics contained in this boxscore are unofficial
