Sporting KC draw 0-0 with DC United

Sporting Kansas City put in a strong performance on the road against Eastern Conference leaders DC United. The visitors were able to break DC United's win streak at home when they earned a 0-0 draw. It was the first point earned against DC United this season after two earlier losses. Goalkeeper Andy Gruenebaum tallied his second MLS shutout with SKC and equaled his career-high with seven saves.

Manager Peter Vermes shifted the lineup again when he rested Benny Feilhaber and started Gruenebaum over Eric Kronberg. "Right now, he's healthy and he's played quite a few games up to this point," Vermes explained when asked about the move at keeper. "I just thought it was the right decision. I thought he made a very big save in the first half on Espindola, and that's the kind of save that we need to keep us in the game."

DC United out shot Sporting KC 12-9 (7-3 on goal) despite the visitors dominating possession 59-41. Most of United's chances came on counters to SKC's pressure with Fabian Espindola leading the home side with six shots.

Toni Dovale led Sporting in attempts with four shots in his 78 minutes before subbing out for Feilhaber.

One of the best chances for SKC came when Seth Sinovic's cross to the back post found Dom Dwyer who headed back across the box to a diving C.J. Sapong. DC's keeper Bill Hamid reacted well and dropped to smother the opportunity in the 76^th minute.

With the draw, D.C. United became the first team in the Eastern Conference to clinch a playoff spot.