Jefferson Savarino, Rubio Rubin and Bode Hidalgo each scored as RSL earns a playoff spot.
Coach Pablo Mastroeni said that in the week leading up to the game against Portland, one training session lacked the requisite energy it would take to come away with a win. He addressed the team afterward and reminded them that the opportunity RSL had isn’t guaranteed every season.
“This performance wasn’t a surprise,” Mastroeni said. “I think this has been brewing. But putting together a complete performance on offense and defense, given that it was a high-pressure game and the most pressure we’ve had all year long, I think it says a lot about the commitment that everyone has to give to the group.”
Hidalgo killed any chance of a Portland surge, scoring in the 82nd in a gorgeous one-two sequence with Jasper Löffelsend. Portland’s Dairon Asprilla scored the team’s only goal in the 87th. Mastroeni called the first-round matchup “a great opportunity” for his team, adding that the feeling within the locker room is similar to when RSL beat Sporting Kansas City on the road in the final game of last season to sneak into the playoff picture.
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