TUCSON, Ariz. – The San Jose Earthquakes took a 1-0 lead into halftime, but ultimately fell 3-1 against the Houston Dynamo in their Tucson camp finale on Saturday at the Kino Sports Complex.
Chris Wondolowski and Clarence Goodson both made their preseason debuts for San Jose after returning from United States Men’s National Team Duty. The Earthquakes were the aggressors in the first half with a bulk of their 2013 starting lineup on the field. Houston rallied with three goals in the second half after the Earthquakes substituted each of their 10 field players.
Steven Lenhart nearly opened his preseason account in the 11th minute with a header from the middle of the box. German trialist Andreas Gorlitz whipped a cross into the mix where Lenhart powered a header over Houston goalkeeper Tyler Deric and into the crossbar.
Wondolowski put San Jose on the scoreboard in the 22nd minute. Jordan Stewart took the ball up field on a counter attack following a Dynamo corner kick, eating up space before sliding a pass to Shea Salinas on the wing. Salinas took a touch and fired with his left foot, forcing Deric to punch the ball away. Wondolowski was first to the loose ball, tapping it into the open net for his first goal of the preseason.
Mike Fucito had a chance to double the Earthquakes’ lead in the 57th minute after a ball over the top found him one-on-one with the goalkeeper. Fucito dribbled into the box and tried to slot his shot toward the near post, but Deric was able to knock the ball away with his leg.
Houston equalized midway through the second half thanks to a deflected shot. Omar Cummings took the ball to the top of the Dynamo’s box on a counter attack and then blasted a shot that caromed off an Earthquakes defender and past goalkeeper Bryan Meredith.
The Dynamo pulled away with two more goals, the first of which came in the 75th minute by trialist Sito Seoane. Omar Cummings targeted Mark Sherrod at the top of the box before sliding a pass to Seoane on the run toward goal. Seoane tucked his shot past Meredith for the game winner. Tony Cascio capped the scoring 10 minutes later with a half volley after a pinpoint pass to the far post from Euan Holden.
The Earthquakes will return to San Jose on Sunday ahead of an exhibition against the LA Galaxy on Saturday, Feb. 15 at Fresno’s Chukchansi Park. Kickoff is 7 p.m. PT with a livestream available at www.sjearthquakes.com.
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San Jose Earthquakes 1:3 Houston Dynamo
Kino Sports Complex – Tucson, Ariz.
February 8, 2014 – Attendance: N/A
Scoring Summary: SJ – Chris Wondolowski (unassisted) 22; HOU – Omar Cummings (Brad Davis) 66; HOU – Sito Seoane (Mark Sherrod, Omar Cummings) 75; HOU – Tony Cascio (Euan Holden) 85.
Misconduct Summary: HOU – Sito Seoane (caution) 83.
San Jose Earthquakes: David Bingham (Bryan Meredith 61), Andreas Gorlitz (Jon Otsemobor 46), Victor Bernardez (Joe Sofia 46), Clarence Goodson (Ty Harden 46), Jordan Stewart (Shaun Francis 46), Atiba Harris (Cordell Cato 46), JJ Koval (Walter Martinez 46), Jean-Baptiste Pierazzi (Juan Baena 46), Shea Salinas (A.J. Corrado 46), Chris Wondolowski (Mike Fucito 46), Steven Lenhart (Adam Jahn 46).
Houston Dynamo – Tyler Deric, Mike Chabala (Brian Ownby 56), David Horst, Eric Brunner (A.J. Cochran 46), Corey Ashe (Euan Holden 46), Boniek Garcia (Tony Cascio 46), Ricardo Clark (Sito Seoane 46), Alex Lopez (Servando Carrasco 46), Jason Johnson (Brad Davis 46), Will Bruin (Mark Sherrod 46), Giles Barnes (Omar Cummings 46).
