Shea & Hartman Lead FC Dallas Past Sounders
SEATTLE (AP) - Brek Shea scored in the 18th minute, and Kevin Hartman made four saves for his fifth straight shutout as FC Dallas beat the Seattle Sounders 1-0 on Wednesday night.
Dallas (6-3-3) extended its unbeaten streak to 5-0-2.
"Maybe it's something I've got to do a little bit different," Dallas coach Schellas Hyndman said of his team's surge after a slow 1-3-1 start. "I have a plan (coming into the season), and we work on certain things, and sometimes, other coaches are just a little bit ahead of us."
The game drew an attendance of 36,026.
Andrew Jacobson started the play that led to FC Dallas' goal with a quick, short pass ahead to Shea just over the midfield line. Shea sped downfield toward the penalty area, and with Sounders goalkeeper Kasey Keller coming off his line, he fired from the top of the box into the back right corner for his fourth goal of the season.
"I made a run, and A.J. happened to find me. I saw Keller coming out and tried to put it past him," said Shea, who is now just one goal behind his entire 2010 output of five. "I think we've found ourselves and started playing like we know how to play. It was just a matter of time."
Hartman and Dallas now have kept opponents off the board for 489 consecutive minutes. That is the longest shutout streak in MLS this season, surpassing the 414 minutes Columbus recorded from March 19 to April 23. That also broke the Dallas club record of 416 straight shutout minutes.
The Sounders (4-4-5) had a four-game unbeaten streak snapped. Seattle had a 19-7 advantage in shots for the game, including 15-4 after halftime.
"Guys do need to step up. They need to step up and score goals when we get a chance," Sounders coach Sigi Schmid said. "We can't take extra touches in the box. We've got to get things done the first time."
Hartman, who turned 37 on Wednesday and now has six shutouts for the season, has not allowed a goal since the 51st minute of a 2-1 victory at home against Los Angeles on May 1.
"Honestly, it was one of those games where we really had to concentrate," Hartman said. "We had to work hard for a long period of time because Seattle was throwing a lot of numbers at us and some quality at us. I think there's a real inner fortitude and a real belief in this team that we can get things done and get results in difficult places to play like Seattle."
The Sounders nearly tied it within a minute after Dallas' goal. Alvaro Fernandez took the ball toward the left corner and crossed it into the box. Erik Friberg's header from six yards in front was going toward the back left corner, but was headed away from the goal line and out by Dallas defender Zach Lloyd.
Hartman kept the Sounders off the board with a save of shot by Mauro Rosales from eight yards straight in front midway through the 43rd minute. Midway through the second half, he stopped two point-blank shots by Michael Fucito just two minutes apart.
"Rosales needs to score a goal off Fredy (Montero's) pass. That was a great pass. That's one that's got to be in the back of the net," Schmid said. "How many clean chances did (Dallas) have? Not many, and they scored. It's the difference the game. That's what you get paid to do."
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