Rookie Ian Pilcher scored his first career goal late in the second half as San Diego FC recorded a 1-1 tie with the visiting Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday night to remain in first place in the Western Conference.
Vancouver’s tally came on an own goal off the foot of San Diego FC’s Manu Duah.
The Whitecaps had a chance to win it in the ninth and final minute of second- half stoppage time, but San Diego FC goalkeeper Pablo Sisniega made a leg save on Daniel Rios’ close-range right-footed shot.
San Diego FC (13-7-4, 43 points) holds a one-point lead over the Whitecaps (12-5-6, 42 points) and two over Minnesota United (11-5-8, 41 points).
Sisniega made three saves, while Vancouver counterpart Yohei Takaoka had five stops.
San Diego FC had a 17-9 advantage in shots and placed six on target to Vancouver’s three.
San Diego was shut out at home by Toronto FC on Wednesday and was facing the possibility of being blanked again as the match reached the 79th minute.
Then Luca Bombino mis-hit a shot and the ball went right to Pilcher, who unleashed a left-footed blast that Takaoka had no chance to stop. It landed in the top left corner to knot the score.
Earlier, Vancouver’s Edier Ocampo took a blistering right-footed shot in the 37th minute that was stopped by Sisniega.
The Whitecaps kept the pressure on and Ocampo took a right-footed shot that was knocked away by Sisniega. The ball then deflected off the foot of Duah into the net for an own goal in the 40th minute.
The Whitecaps had a big opportunity in the 76th minute when star Brian White got the ball unmarked and worked his way to the left and around Sisniega. He sent a left-footed roller toward the open net and it went through the goal mouth and just wide of the far post.
Just three minutes later, Pilcher scored the tying goal and San Diego seized the momentum.
In the 88th minute, Jeppe Tverskov’s glancing header was pushed over the net by Takaoka.
–Field Level Media
