Earthquakes and New York Red Bulls Thrill Huge Crowd with 2-2 Tie at Stanford Stadium
STANFORD, California. – A record crowd of 41,028 was on hand for a thrilling 2-2 draw between the San Jose Earthquakes and New York Red Bulls Saturday night at Stanford Stadium. The attendance was the largest for a non-doubleheader match in San Jose history and the third-largest crowd in team history.
Trailing 1-0, Khari Stephenson brought the Earthquakes back with a 37th-minute strike. Stephenson hammered home a loose ball after a corner kick by teammate Simon Dawkins for his third goal of the season.
Steven Beitashour linked up with Steven Lenhart in the 68th minute to give the Earthquakes a 2-1 lead. Beitashour sent a perfect cross into the area that Lenhart dove and headed past the outstretched hands of Red Bulls keeper Bouna Coundoul for his fifth goal of 2011.
The Earthquakes will hit the road for their next match against Chivas USA on Wednesday, July 6 at 7:30 p.m. PT. The game will be televised live on Comcast SportsNet California and will be available on the radio at 1220 KDOW (English) and 1370 KZSF (Spanish).
San Jose's next home match is Saturday, July 9 against the Philadelphia Union at Buck Shaw Stadium. The match kicks off at 7:30 p.m. PT and will feature Root Beer Float Night presented by A&W. In addition, 5,000 fans will receive an A&W Root Beer mug.
For a full recap, visit www.sjearthquakes.com.
San Jose Earthquakes (5-5-6) vs. New York Red Bulls (5-3-10)
July 2, 2011 – Stanford Stadium
Attendance: 41,028
Scoring Summary: NY - Joel Lindpere (Roy Miller, Dax McCarty) 7; SJ - Khari Stephenson (unassisted) 37; SJ -- Steven Lenhart (Steven Beitashour) 68; NY - Joel Lindpere (Mehdi Ballouchy) 85.
Misconduct Summary: SJ - Jason Hernandez (caution) 32; SJ -- Ryan Johnson (caution) 40; NY - Roy Miller (caution) 60; SJ - Jon Busch (caution) 64; SJ - Bobby Burling (caution) 80; SJ - Bobby Burling (caution) 91+; SJ - Bobby Burling (ejection) 91+.
San Jose Earthquakes -- Jon Busch, Steven Beitashour, Bobby Burling, Jason Hernandez, Ramiro Corrales, Chris Wondolowski, Brad Ring, Khari Stephenson, Ryan Johnson, Simon Dawkins (Sam Cronin 89), Steven Lenhart.
Statistics: Shots: 12; Shots on Goal: 6; Saves: 3; Fouls: 16; Offsides: 0; Corners: 6.
New York Red Bulls -- Bouna Coundoul, Jan Gunnar Solli (Stephen Keel 71), Carlos Mendes, Tim Ream, Roy Miller, Dane Richards, Dax McCarty, Teemu Tainio, Joel Lindpere, Juan Agudelo, Mehdi Ballouchy.
Statistics: Shots: 18; Shots on Goal: 5; Saves: 4; Fouls: 11; Offsides: 4; Corners: 10.
QUOTES
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES HEAD COACH FRANK YALLOP
On game:
“Overall, we were very disappointed not to get the three points at home but getting at least one point is still a plus. We were disappointed to concede a late goal, but the nature of a deflected shot is always hard to track. We played well in the second half, but I think in the first half we were not at our best, but still in the game.”
On return of Wondolowksi:
“Chris (Wondolowksi) probably played better when he was up front. I thought he did well; he had a great chance to score, obviously when he hit the post, which surprised me when he didn’t score. He usually buries those. I was happy with his play.”
On Steven Lenhart’s play:
“I thought (Steven) Lenhart played very well today. He held the ball up, he was dangerous. That was a great finish on his goal and an excellent ball by Steven Beitashour. He is in great form right now and he has been finding ways to score.”
EARTHQUAKES MIDFIELDER KHARI STEPHENSON
Thoughts on the game:
“Well the first half we had some problems in the midfield; we couldn’t organize our pressure. We gave them too much space in the midfield and that’s what led to their first goal. We then ended the first half playing harder and we tied it up. We went into halftime knowing it was a different game. We took control of the midfield and created turnovers to start our counter attack. It was working for us.”
On Playing at Stanford Stadium:
“It was great. I think once we get our stadium, we will have nights like this every match. It was a great atmosphere and the fans really got behind us and pushed us on. It speaks volumes about how faithful our fans are. We all looked forward to tonight. Unfortunately we didn’t get the result we wanted, but it was a great night.”
EARTHQUAKES FORWARD STEVEN LENHART
On Quake’s play in second half:
“I thought the second half was a lot better than the first half. It’s always tough to come back when you’re a goal down. For us to then score two unanswered goals was a huge positive. It shows the character of our team; we’re not going to give up and we’re pretty scrappy. We played well in front of a great crowd. I wish we could have won.”
On scoring fifth goal of the season:
“I love playing with Beita (Steven Beitashour). It was a good ball he fed me, and it wasn’t even one of his best crosses. He really helps our team. He plays hard and he is a great defender. He is a hard worker. As he gets forward, he gets more comfortable; he served me a great ball on that play. I just tried to get after it and stay in the box and finish off his cross.”
