Columbus Crew SC split points with Sporting Kansas City in a hot early evening match on national television. The Black & Gold are now unbeaten in seven games with five consecutive shutouts.

Crew SC saw the best opportunity on goal in the first half with a penalty kick from Gyasi Zardes. Sporting KC goalkeeper and defending MLS Goalkeeper of the Year Tim Melia fouled Zardes inside the box to bring about the penalty kick. Zardes took the spot kick for Columbus, but it was saved by Melia. 

In first half stoppage time, midlfielder Federico Higuain was shown a straight red card after video review, leaving Columbus with a 10-man squad to close out the match.

The Black & Gold defense stepped up in the second half to help secure the draw. Goalkeeper Zack Steffen finished with three saves and set the Crew SC record for longest consecutive minutes without conceding a goal — silencing opponents for more than 8 hours.

With the draw, Columbus is tied with Atlanta and Sporting KC atop the Supporter’s Shield standings. 

Next up, Crew SC returns to MAPFRE Stadium on Saturday June 2 to host Toronto FC. The final match of the 2018 Trillium Cup kicks off at 7:30 p.m. ET.

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NOTES

• Gaston Sauro made his 2018 MLS regular-season debut for Crew SC in tonight’s match against Sporting Kansas City, entering the match as a substitute for Cristian Martinez in the 75th minute. The Argentine had not made an appearance since October 1, 2016. A knee injury forced him to miss the entire 2017 MLS regular season. Since joining the Black & Gold in 2015, Sauro has made 18 appearances and 16 starts.

• With tonight’s 0-0 draw with Sporting Kansas City, Crew SC extends their regular-season unbeaten streak to seven games, dating back to a 2-2 draw on April 21st against the New England Revolution. Since then, Crew SC has posted a record of 4-0-3, outscoring their opponents by a score of 9-3.

• Goalkeeper Zack Steffen recorded a clean sheet in tonight’s 0-0 draw with Sporting Kansas City. In the draw, Steffen made three saves to register his seventh shutout of the year, and his 16th shutout in MLS regular-season action. This was Steffen’s fifth consecutive clean sheet in the 2018 MLS regular season dating back to a road contest against Seattle Sounders FC on May 5 that ended in a 0-0 draw. Steffen’s 495-minute scoreless streak – which began in the second half of the April 28 match against San Jose -- is a Crew SC club record and ranks number 10 across all-time MLS goalkeeping shutout streaks, just ahead of former Houston Dynamo goalkeeper and current Crew SC assistant coach Pat Onstad.

• With tonight’s 0-0 draw with Sporting Kansas City, Crew SC registered its fifth consecutive shutout on the 2018 MLS regular season, having allowed zero goals in all matches dating back to a road contest against Seattle Sounders FC on May 5 that ended in a 0-0 draw. This is also the Black & Gold’s seventh clean sheet of the season. Additionally, this is Crew SC’s longest shutout streak in club history, surpassing a string of four-straight clean sheets from March 26, 2011 to April 16, 2011. The official scoreless streak began in the second half of the April 28 match against San Jose at MAPFRE Stadium before a complete-match shutout on May 5 in Seattle.

• After tonight’s 0-0 draw with Sporting Kansas City, Crew SC’s record when tied or leading at the half improves to 7-1-4. In addition, the Black & Gold have now drawn both matches in which they were playing down a man for 45 minutes or more, as the club had previously earned a point on the road at Seattle Sounders FC (May 5) when Pedro Santos was given a red card in the 15th minute.

• With tonight’s 0-0 draw against Sporting Kansas City, Crew SC’s record on the season moves to 7-3-4. Next up, Crew SC will take on Toronto FC at MAPFRE Stadium on Saturday, June 2.