Cornell Glen packed a full 90 minutes of running on the Columbus Crew's left flank Friday into 65 minutes of actual playing time without the personal reward of scoring a goal. But the Crew's 1-0 victory against the Kansas City Wizards at Arrowhead Stadium was reward enough for Glen.
"It was a bit frustrating but we came out with a win so we are happy right now," Glen said. "The coaches told me to take the ball and go at the defenders. They are a bit slow at the back so I used my pace to get at them." On Friday, Glen made his 10th start for Columbus and his 15th appearance since he was acquired from FC Dallas on April 26. He has scored three goals for the Crew, tied for the second most on the team that is the lowest scoring in Major League Soccer.
And he would have scored another one in the 63rd minute if not for a good save by Wizards goalkeeper Bo Oshoniyi. Glen shot from about 15 yards away as he ran with the ball toward the goal from the left. Rookie forward Marcus Storey came in for Glen two minutes later.
"I really thought that was in," Glen said. "I made a great shot. He made a great save. Some days are like that, you play well but just don't score."
Glen consistently created chances for himself and teammates down the left flank. Glen had three shots in the game, two on goal. Crew coach Robert Warzycha seemed less concerned about Glen being too tired to go forward than being too tired to help defend the lead.
"Cornell was a little bit tired," Warzycha said. "I felt like (Wizards defender Nick) Garcia was having too much space (in which to go forward). Even if he did good things offensively, I was worried about Garcia coming forward. That's why I made that sub."
Crew midfielder Chris Henderson scored the game's only goal in the 34th minute. It was Henderson's third goal of the season and second for the Crew since coming from Colorado in a trade on May 25.
"Kyle (Martino) did a great job slipping it in," Henderson said. "I just tried to time it and stay onside. I had enough time to turn and I tried to shoot to the far post. Bo got a hand on it, but not enough and it hit the post and went in."
In the second half, the Wizards were more effective pushing forward because they kept the ball better than in the first half.
"I think we possessed the ball a lot better tonight and we made the most of our possession, especially in the first half," Crew midfielder Simon Elliott said. "I thought our first half performance was very good. In the second half, we made the mistake and sitting back and they tried to stay up and be more positive. We can't let the pendulum swing back their way."
But the pendulum never swung back enough toward the Wizards that they scored the tying goal before the final whistle.
"Some of the boys looked a little tired," Elliott said. "We managed to hang on. The first half was great. The second half, we could have done better. But having said that we stepped up and tried to win the game."
The Crew won their first game on the road in 10 tries this season.
"I think the guys have worked hard," Henderson said. "I give credit to everybody everyday. We're working on the right things and everyone gave a full effort tonight."