Nashville blanks Revolution to claim Eastern Conference showdown

Bryan Acosta netted a brace as Nashville SC solidified their early-season hold on the Eastern Conference with a 3-0 win over the New England Revolution on a cool Wednesday night in Foxborough, Mass.

The match marked New England's first home defeat of the season as the Revolution (7-4-1, 22 points) missed their chance to leapfrog Nashville (8-1-3, 27 points) at the top of the East.

Winger Cristian Espinoza assisted on both of Acosta's goals. Nashville goalkeeper Brian Schwake faced just two shots in his sixth MLS clean sheet of the season.

Acosta broke the ice in the 34th minute. Espinoza sent New England's Matt Polster scurrying in the wrong direction and cut it back to Acosta, who slotted it into the left corner of the goal.

Warren Madrigal made it 2-0 in the 41st minute when goalkeeper Matt Turner scuffed a pass out from his box. The Costa Rican pounced on the error and side-footed the ball into an open net. Madrigal was coming into the match fresh off a brace in Nashville's Saturday tilt against D.C. United.

The Revs' Ethan Kohler nearly found the back of the net at both ends of the field. The ball fell to the 20-year-old off a 30th-minute corner kick, but he only managed to head it into the arms of Schwake. Kohler was lucky not to score an own goal when he redirected an Espinoza cross off the woodwork in the 62nd minute.

Acosta sealed the deal in the 74th minute with a perfectly placed long-range effort to extend Nashville's lead to 3-0. Espinoza found the Honduran midfielder lurking at the edge of the box off a corner kick.

Nashville did not escape the encounter totally unscathed. Veteran defender Andy Najar subbed off early in the second half with an apparent lower-body injury.

The result snapped New England's seven-game unbeaten run in league play and Nashville's four-match winless run in all competitions. Two of the Revolution's four MLS defeats this season have come against the Boys in Gold.

--Field Level Media