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SANDY, Utah -- One year after making an early playoff exit while struggling to score as the season wound down, its a much different story for Real Salt Lake this time. Shane Lechler Jersey . Robbie Findley scored the go-ahead goal in the first half and had an assist in the second half, leading Real Salt Lake to a 4-2 victory over the Portland Timbers in the first leg of the Western Conference finals on Sunday night. Chris Schuler, Devon Sandoval and Javier Morales also scored for Salt Lake, which will take a two-goal advantage into the second leg of the series on Nov. 24. Salt Lake scored three goals in a 13-minute stretch starting with Schulers tally in the 35th that tied it 1-1. "Theres a lot of guys on the team willing to work," Findley said. "They put the work in early and it showed tonight. We were able to put some goals in the back of the net." The most impressive part of the scoring flurry for Salt Lake is that it happened without leading scorer Alvaro Saborio, who sat out after sustaining a right hip flexor injury. "It says were a deep team," RSL coach Jason Kreis said. "It says we have a ton of guys who have contributed this year in really meaningful matches and in really meaningful ways. That puts us in a place now where we havent been typically. We can plug and play." Will Johnson put the Timbers on the scoreboard in the 14th minute and Frederic Piquionne closed the scoring in stoppage time. Salt Lake extended its unbeaten streak over Portland to nine games. The Timbers have not beaten RSL since the first meeting in the series on April 30, 2011. The Timbers loss snapped a 10 game unbeaten streak, stretching back to a 4-2 loss to Salt Lake on Aug. 30. "Its not the end of the world," Johnson said. "Well be OK. We got to fix some things. It is what it is. Were two goals down, but were not out of it yet. Well fight for 90 minutes." On Johnsons opening goal, the Timbers midfielder sent a free kick over the defensive wall and threaded the ball inside the far post, denying Salt Lake goalkeeper Nick Rimando any chance to get to it in time. Schuler tied it 21 minutes later as Morales lobbed a corner kick high into the air toward the defender. Schuler outjumped everyone around him to snag the ball and headed it past Portland goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts. A defensive mistake helped Salt Lake take the lead in the 41st. Mamadou Danso made an errant back pass under pressure from Findley and the ball squirted loose. Findley sprinted past Danso to collect the ball and easily flicked it around Ricketts as he came off the line. In the second half, Findley latched onto a through ball and sent a cross into Sandoval, who quickly put it home for his first career playoff goal in the 48th. Morales made it 4-1 in the 82nd. Ricketts made an impressive save moments earlier, leaping in the air and denying a header from Luis Gil at the far post. It led to a corner kick and Joao Plata fed the ball to Morales on a run to the far post. He lunged forward and headed the ball past Ricketts in the middle of the net. We got punished in certain circumstances," Portland defender Jack Jewsbury said. "Theyre a very good team. If youre not on your game, theyre going to punish you." Chris Myers Houston Texans . Greg Chase and Kenton Helgesen also scored for the Hitmen (18-7-4), who extended their win streak to five games, while Brady Brassart chipped in with two assists. Ryan Mallett Houston Texans . The Formula One circus has arrived in town and on this Thursday afternoon the teams crew members are setting up their equipment in the pit lane ahead of the three day race weekend.CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing will field a second IndyCar entry for Oriol Servia this season in at least four races, more if sponsorship can be secured. Servia is currently scheduled to compete at Long Beach, Barber, the inaugural road course race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Indianapolis 500 in a deal announced Wednesday. The Rahal organization last month finished a drawn-out process to secure sponsorship from the National Guard for Graham Rahals car. Team owner Bobby Rahal has insisted he would only field two cars if it would strengthen the organization, and Graham Rahal said he told his dad he didnt want to "rob Peter to pay Paul" just to have a teammate. But in Servia, the organization gets a veteran driver who was briefly teammates with Graham Rahal at Newman-Haas-Lanigan Racing in 2009. Servia also ran the Indy 500 that season for Bobby Rahal. "We have had the pleasure of working with Oriol before and are looking forward to his return," Bobby Rahal said. "I have always respected his ability to develop the race car and be a productive member of the team, so when it came time to consider the possibility of a second entry, he was right at the top of the list. We are happy to have him back and look forward to having him help the team progress toward the front. Ryan Fitzpatrick Jersey. " A native of Pals, Spain, Servia has made 191 starts in CART, Champ Car and the IndyCar Series since 2000. He won at Montreal in 2005, has 19 career podium finishes and was fourth in the 2012 Indianapolis 500. His Panther DRR team shut down after last years Indy 500, and he ran seven of the final 14 races for Panther Racing. "Continuity is a very important part of success in any racing team," said Servia. "By my moving to Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, this happens at many different levels. On the team side, in 2009 we did the 500 together as a one-off race. We were running very strong until we had a fuel pump fail on us, but that one race left us with a sensation that we could do great things together. That same year I did a short stint at Newman/Haas/Lanigan where my teammate was Graham, and that also started a great chemistry between us that translated to results on track." Servia will participate in the IndyCar Series open test at Barber in two weeks. "There are enough synergies within the team that make me feel positive, that even if we may be starting a little late, we will hit the road running," he said. ' ' ' |
