The Houston Dynamo rallied from a two-goal halftime deficit to earn a much-needed road point with a 2-2 draw with Minnesota United at Allianz Field this evening.
Midfielder Memo Rodriguez scored a goal and sparked the attack that led to the second, while forward Darwin Quintero continued his hot form with his ninth assist of the year. Winger Niko Hansen scored his second of the year; and both of his goals have led directly to points for the Dynamo.
Minnesota opened the scoring in the 11th minute when winger Ethan Finlay finished off a counterattack off of a Minnesota throw-in. After the throw-in, Loons forward Kei Kamara flicked the ball down the left flank to winger Robin Lod. Lod carried it into the box, drawing two defenders before laying off to Finlay for the finish.
Finlay made it 2-0 in the 30th minute when he finished off a chance created by midfielder Jacori Hayes. Hayes slipped a pass in behind the Dynamo back line from the middle third, creating space for Finlay to run on to it and slip the ball into the net.
Houston pulled a goal back in the 59th minute through Rodriguez. The Houston Homegrown finished off a four-on-two counterattack with a right-footed blast into the roof of the net from just inside the area. Midfielder Darwin Cerén sparked the counter with a takeaway inside his own half and immediately sprinted upfield before playing wide left to Quintero. The Colombian playmaker drew both defenders before sliding a ball across to Rodriguez for the finish.
The Dynamo leveled things in the 83rd minute through Hansen on an excellent hustle play. Rodriguez played facilitator on this occasion, racing into the attacking third and playing a nice pass to forward Mauro Manotas inside the area. Manotas fired a low centering pass across the face of goal that forced a deflection from Minnesota, and Hansen ran onto it to hammer the rebound into the net.
Houston came agonizingly close to the winner in the 90th minute when Cerén hammered a header on target from a corner kick. The effort from Cerén forced St. Clair to react quickly to push it up into the crossbar at the last possible instant.
After playing five matches in the past 15 days, the Dynamo will have a week off before hosting Columbus Crew SC on Saturday night at BBVA Stadium. Kickoff for that match is set for 7 p.m. CDT, and a limited number of tickets are available. Columbus comes into the match having clinched a spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs with a 10-4-4 mark on the year.
