Crew SC earns second straight point on the road with draw in Dallas

Columbus Crew SC snapped FC Dallas’s seven-game winning streak at Toyota Stadium and earned its second straight point on the road Saturday night. The Black & Gold played to a 1-1 tie in Frisco, Texas after missing several opportunities to put away the match in the first half.

Crew SC came out determined, creating several noteworthy opportunities in the first 45. Midfielder Justin Meram converted on the very first one when he rose up to meet a Federico Higuain corner with a powerful header to put Columbus ahead in the ninth minute.

• Watch Meram’s goal here

Meram had the big opportunity to double Crew SC’s lead in the 28^th. J9 found himself wide open inside the box when Ethan Finlay slotted the ball back to him from the touchline. But Meram’s shot went straight at Chris Seitz. The Dallas goalkeeper made five saves on the night as Crew SC took eight shots, six of which went on frame.

Twice before the break, Finlay had the opportunity to extend the Columbus lead. In the 36^th, Mohammed Saeid found the wide-open midfielder inside the box, but Maynor Figueroa tackled the ball away before Finlay could fire off a shot. Seven minutes later Finlay made another run into the box to chest down the ball only to be blocked by Seitz.

On the other end of the pitch, Michael Barrios with a strike from distance (26^th), Ryan Hollingshead with a header onto the post (30^th) and Fabian Castillo with low-driven shot blocked by Steve Clark (34^th) possessed Dallas’s biggest opportunities to equalize.

Things slowed down a little bit after the break. Kei Kamara with two efforts (50^th and 90^th) and Meram with a first-time strike (62^nd) were both denied by Seitz.

FC Dallas now pushed harder for the equalizer and was rewarded in the 77^th. Forward Maxi Urruti struck a shot from distance that hit the post and bounced off Clark’s back into the feet of Tesho Akindele who tapped it in for an easy finish.

After earning its second straight point on the road, Crew SC concludes in three-game away swing in Montreal next Saturday. The Black & Gold will look to claim their first three points of the season in a rematch of last year’s Eastern Conference Semifinals. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. ET.