Courtesy of the Portland Timbers
Forward Bright Dike scored his fifth goal of the season as the Portland Timbers played the Austin Aztex to a hard-fought, 1-1 draw before 14,985 at PGE Park on Thursday night.
In a physical contest, the Timbers put the Aztex under pressure from the opening whistle and claimed the lead in the fourth minute on Dike’s goal. Featuring the league’s best offense, Austin responded before the break on a strike from midfielder Sullivan Silva to knot the score at 1-1. Aztex defender Kieron Bernard was sent off early in the second half, giving Portland an extra man. The Timbers out-shot the Aztex 13-6, but could not break through despite giving Austin all it could handle through to the end.
Dike scored his third goal in four games, defender Mamadou Danso attempted a pair of shots and midfielders Alex Nimo and Ryan Pore combined for four shots to help the Timbers (9-7-8, 35pts) extend their unbeaten streak to four games. Portland goalkeeper Steve Cronin did not record a save on the six shots he faced.
Notes: Timbers midfielder Rodrigo Lopez was issued a red card for a play away from the ball in the 90th minute. He will miss Sunday’s match due to a one-game, league-imposed suspension … During the Timbers unbeaten streak, all five goals have been scored by either Dike or Pore … The two teams combined for eight cautions and two records in the contest … Thursday was Timbers Heritage Night at PGE Park. As part of the festivities, the Timbers played host to the Jimmy Conway Testimonial match prior to kickoff against Austin. The match, honoring former Timbers player and assistant coach Jimmy Conway, pitted a team of Timbers Alumni against the Oregon Select XI – a team comprised of players Conway coached at the youth and collegiate levels. The two sides played to a 2-2 draw. Highlighting the day, Conway scored the equalizer for the Alumni, converting a penalty kick in the second half; Darren Sawatzky (2001) also scored for the alumni.
Lineups:
POR: GK Cronin, D Smith, D Purdy, D Danso, D Joy, M Marcelin, M Nimo (Lopez, 64), M Savage (Claesson, 50), M Pore, F Dike, F Muhamadu (Suzuki, 72)
AUS: GK Gallardo, D Marshall, D Bernard, D Griffin, L., D Watson, M Sakuda, M Alvarez, M Callahan, M Silva (Watson, 75), F Johnson (Patterson, 89), F Griffin, M. (Brill, 58)
Scoring Summary:
POR: Dike, 4
AUS: Silva (Johnson), 26
