Sporting KC hammer Rapids, keep playoff hopes going

Alan Pulido and Erik Thommy each had a brace as Sporting Kansas City earned a 4-1 victory over the Colorado Rapids on Wednesday night in Kansas City, Kan., to keep their slim playoff hopes alive. Pulido scored SKC's first two goals and Thommy scored the last two.

Sporting (8-15-7, 31 points) had a season-best four goals. They sit eight points below the red line in the Western Conference.

Sporting had a 31-6 advantage in shots over Colorado (14-10-5, 47 points).

After putting Sporting up 1-0 with a goal in the eighth minute, Pulido notched his second goal in the 49th minute. Zorhan Bassong intercepted a pass deep in Colorado territory. He fed it to Stephen Afrifa, who found Pulido inside a diamond of Rapids defenders. He danced among the quartet before one-timing it past Colorado keeper Zack Steffen.

Thommy extended the lead to 3-0 in the 69th minute with a shot that snuck inside the lower-right corner of the goal. Thommy received a pass from Willy Agada in the left side of the box and no Colorado defender picked him up.

Colorado got on the board in the 75th minute when Michael Edwards scored his first MLS goal on a back-heel touch in front of the net. But Thommy scored his second goal in the 82nd minute.

SKC took the early lead after Logan Ndenbe raced up the left side and lobbed the ball into the middle of the pitch, where Andreas Maxso deflected the ball but couldn't control it. Pulido gathered the ball and dribbled to his right before firing it past Steffen.

Agada nearly extended the lead to 2-0 in the 40th minute. Agada rose up for a header off a Johnny Russell corner kick but his attempt hit the left post and bounced away from the goal.

Russell and Agada almost connected in the 45th minute, as well. Russell advanced the ball into the box and then attempted a cross to Agada, but the pass was just beyond Agada's reach.

--Field Level Media