Timbers roll against DC

The Portland Timbers wrapped up their road trip on Saturday by extending their unbeaten streak to 11 with a 2-0 victory over DC United at RFK Stadium. The Timbers were without Kalif Alhassan, who is recovering from a hamstring injury, starting exciting striker Frederic Piquionne in his place. DC United made a few significant lineup changes of its own in the hope of reversing its recent fortune, most notably benching team captain Dwayne De Rosario in favor of Carlos Ruiz.

The move nearly paid off as Ruiz tried to take advantage of his first start of the year by producing a quick attack on the Timber box and firing a rocket of a shot on goal in the 12th minute, which was saved by Timbers goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts to avoid an early deficit.

Portland responded by going on the offensive. Darlington Nagbe broke through the defense with a blistering run through the midfield in the 16th minute, losing a defender to send a quick strike on goalie Bill Hamid, but Hamid managed to get a hand on the ball to pop it over the crossbar.

The United front conceded five minutes later, however, as Piquionne delivered a pass to an open Rodney Wallace, who lined up a shot and placed the ball in the back of the net for a 1-0 Timbers lead. Portland cashed in on another attempt in the second half when Nagbe corralled a pass from Ryan Johnson in the face of multiple defenders and sent a shot past Hamid’s feet to put Portland up by two in the 57th minute. The DC United squad put up a solid effort to get back into the game but couldn’t find an answer against Portland, and the Timbers left with the victory.

Portland improved to 5-1-7 in 2013, good for the No. 2 spot in the MLS Western Conference standings, while DC United took its ninth loss of the year and sits in last place in the Eastern Conference.