PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Amahl Pellegrino and Anders Dreyer each recorded two goals and an assist as San Diego FC dominated the Portland Timbers 4-0 on Saturday night, clinching the top seed in the Western Conference.
San Diego (19-9-6) finished the regular season with 63 points, the most by an expansion club in MLS history. Meanwhile, Portland (11-12-11) fell to eighth place in the Western Conference and will face ninth-seeded Dallas on Wednesday in the Wild Card game. The winner of that match will advance to play San Diego in the best-of-three first round.
The scoring began in the 26th minute after a Portland giveaway in their defensive half. Pellegrino ran onto a ball played ahead by Dreyer and calmly finished with his first touch from the center of the area to give San Diego a lead they would not relinquish.
Dreyer then extended the lead with two quick goals in the 47th and 49th minutes. Later, following another Portland turnover, Pellegrino knocked down a pass from Jeppe Tverskov and scored from just inside the area in the 63rd minute to put San Diego ahead 4-0.
Goalkeeper CJ dos Santos helped secure the clean sheet with two crucial saves. San Diego controlled the match with 64% possession and outshot the Timbers 16-11, including 7-2 on target.
With this dominant performance, San Diego FC cements their place at the top as they head into the playoffs.
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