United, They Fall

I cheered on the home side, D.C. United, at what turned out to be their final game of the season, a 2-2 draw with Chicago in round one of the MLS playoffs. Since they lost the first game of the home-and-home series 0-1, they lost on aggregate and the Fire advance. It was a game that United deserved to lose after what can only be described as lackluster play over the first sixty-plus minutes. The last twenty-five minutes were another story entirely, with United seemingly finding themselves, and playing at a much faster pace and with great urgency. The crowd was delirious when Christian Gomez put one in during added time to make it 3-2, comeback complete! But the goal was waved off because of a marginal handball by Gomez that was pretty clear on replays. D.C. just didn't get it going in time, period. Still, a thrilling and entertaining end to the season for United, even if they didn't get the desired result.