May 22, 2022 – Major League Soccer (MLS) – Sporting Kansas City News Release
Sporting Kansas City (3-7-4, 13 points) picked up a point on the road on Sunday with a 1-1 draw against the San Jose Earthquakes (3-5-5, 14 points) at PayPal Park.
Club captain Johnny Russell scored his team-leading fourth goal of the season and in doing so moved into sole possession of third place on the team’s all-time scoring chart with 44 career regular season goals. Add in his 31 career regular season assists and Russell is now the fifth player in team history to tally 75 goal contributions.
Sporting goalkeeper Tim Melia also put in a strong performance, matching his season high with four saves — all coming in a 15-minute span of the first half to keep the hosts at bay before Russell’s breakthrough. Melia was first called into action in the 29th minute with a sliding stop on Cade Cowell from close range at the edge of the six-yard box.
Ten minutes later, Melia dove low to his left to palm away a header from Francisco Calvo on a corner taken by Cristian Espinoza. Jeremy Ebobisse was next to test Melia a minute later with a dipping strike from 35 yards out that was turned away before San Jose came close to scoring on the ensuing corner only to see Calvo’s header blocked and Oskar Agren’s header directed just beyond the crossbar.
Melia’s fourth and final save of the night came in the 42nd minute as Cowell picked up the ball at midfield and drove forward down the field before unleashing an attempt from 30 yards out that was smothered by Melia.
After the flurry of scoring opportunities for the Earthquakes, it was Sporting that stunned San Jose with the game’s opening goal in the 45th minute. Roger Espinoza lofted a pinpoint pass from the left touchline into the path of Cam Duke, who took the ball out of the air with his first touch, rounded the goalkeeper with his second touch and cut the ball back for Russell with his third touch. Russell did the rest, smashing a left-footed shot past…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at OurSports Central Major League Soccer MLS News…