Major League Soccer

Columbus opens in new stadium with 2-0 victory over New England.

An overflow crowd of 24,741, the fourth-largest in Crew history, was on hand for the opening of the first Major League Soccer stadium built specifically for soccer. Columbus, which played its first three seasons at Ohio Stadium, had searched for a permanent home since the club's inception in 1996. After the failure of one public vote in Franklin County and one city referendum in nearby Dublin, Crew investor-operator Lamar Hunt took matters into his own hands and privately financed the facility. Construction began last August 14.

"I didn't touch the floor from the time I left the locker room and sat on the bench," Columbus coach Tom Fitzgerald said. "I'm sure the players would tell you the same thing. It was an absolutely incredible night for soccer. Not only in Columbus, but across the world."

Cunningham needed just 10 minutes to score the first goal in the stadium, taking a pass from John and finding the left side of the net.

In the 59th minute, Cunningham provided the cross as John scored with a powerful header. Matt Kmosko also assisted on the play.

Goalkeeper Mark Dougherty made five saves for the Crew (6-2, 14 points), which triumphed despite being dominated for large portions of the match. New England fell to 3-5 with seven points.

"This is the kind of show we're looking for in the future," MLS commissioner Doug Logan said. "This is the direction we want to go. I think we have the making of a success story for many years to come."

Columbus Crew 2, New England Revolution 0

Referee: Brian Hall. Referee's assistants: Nathan Clement, Brian Darling. Attendance: 24,741 at Columbus (Ohio) Crew Stadium. Weather: Clear, 75 degrees.

D.C. United 3, Kansas City Wizards 3 (United wins shootout 3-0)

Presthus, who now holds a 5-2 lifetime record in shootouts, stopped three straight Wizards shots, while Jaime Moreno, A.J. Wood and Carlos Llamosa scored for United in the tiebreaker.

With Kansas City holding a 3-1 lead in the second half, United (5-3, 11 points) began its rally in the 62nd minute as midfielder Ben Olsen sent a sharp cross that went off the foot of a defender to forward Roy Lassiter, who netted his league-leading eighth goal of the season.

After two acrobatic saves by Presthus prevented Kansas City from pulling away with the game, Talley, a second-half substitute, sent a rocket past Wizards goalkeeper Chris Snitko with five minutes remaining to even the match the count at 3.

"I was pretty surprised that no one stepped up to me," Talley said. "It opened up and I just let it go."

Kansas City (1-8, 3 points) lost its first game under Gansler since the former U.S. National Team coach took over for the Wizards on April 28. The Wizards have scored five times in two games under Gansler. The club had scored just twice in seven games prior to his coming to Kansas City.

"It was a winnable game," Wizards Head Coach Bob Gansler said. "We played well enough to win in spots but obviously made mistakes on both ends of the field."

Chris Henderson, Chris Klein and Preki netted goals for Kansas City in the first half Saturday night.

"Giving up three goals is inexcusable" United Head Coach Thomas Rongen said. "We can't live on the edge and expect to get results. Kansas City has a lot of momentum, and they're a very good team."

A.J. Wood, who was playing in place of the injured Marco Etcheverry, started the scoring for D.C. United in the 19th minute, sending a pass from Moreno into the net for a 1-1 tie.

D.C. United 3, Kansas City Wizards 3 (United wins shootout 3-0)

Referee: Reggie Rutty. Referee's assistants: Robbie Mann, Tarek Khan. Attendance: 11,186 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. Weather: Breezy, clear, 69 degrees.