There were many events that defined the San Jose Earthquakes run to
the Eastern Conference Championship. Each day we will reveal the
latest in our countdown of the 10 most memorable moments from 2010.
Stay tuned!
If there was a defining moment in Chris Wondolowski's season, it came on October 20 against Chivas USA at Buck Shaw Stadium.
It was supposed to be a night of rest for San Jose's leading scorer. The Wondo-ful One started the night on the bench, but was pressed into action in the 40th minute after teammate Cornell Glen strained his hamstring.
What happened next was shear brilliance. Over a 17-minute span in the second half, Wondo tallied three times to tie LA Galaxy's Edson Buddle atop the MLS scoring chart.
Three days later, San Jose's humble striker capped an improbable comeback, snatching the Golden Boot from Buddle with a late goal against Kansas City. However, it was the hat trick that many will remember.
If not for Wondolowski's 18 goals, nine of which were game winners, the Quakes would not have made the playoffs. It's that simple. Buddle and Ferreira might have finished higher in the MVP vote, but there's no player that meant more to his franchise than Chris Wondolowski.
No. 2 in our countdown: Year of Wondo
10 From 10 Countdown
No. 3: Playoff Bound
No. 4: Beat LA
No. 5: Training Grounds
No. 6: San Jose Samba
No. 7: Spurs in San Jose
No. 8: Defense Dominates
No. 9: We Like Ike
No. 10: Artie's Game Winner
