Fire edges Colorado Rush on late goal from Caban

Pineda scores during 1-1 draw against Real Colorado

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By Curt Herron

There were more exciting moments packed within the final few minutes of Sunday's match between the U-16 Chicago Fire and Colorado Rush AJ Auxerre than you might find in several matches.

After neither squad managed to find the net throughout most of the afternoon, the two teams combined to score three goals during the final moments of stoppage time.

First, the Fire looked like it had pulled out a win and then a short time later looked like it would have to settle for its second straight draw.

But just before the final whistle finally put a halt to the crazy ending, the Fire connected again to claim a 2-1 win at Argo High School in Summit.

David Caban got the game-winner in the final seconds after he flicked in a header from close range following a perfect cross from Keaton Albert.

The victory was a critical one for the Fire (4-1-1), who looked like they might only pick up two points in their pair of weekend home matches.

Instead, the squad collected four points with the win and 1-1 draw against Real Colorado on Saturday at Argo to give them 13 points on the season.

They're currently in fifth place in the Central Conference Frontier Division standings, although they've played at least three fewer matches than everyone in front of them.

It was the second one-goal victory for the Fire over Colorado Rush AJ Auxerre. Chicago claimed a 1-0 win when the two teams met on March 27 in Colorado.

Victor Pineda began the wild ending when he was tripped up in the box, which resulted in a penalty kick that he fired in to give the Fire a 1-0 advantage.

Colorado Rush (5-5-3) responded a short time later, however, when it was awarded a free kick just outside of the box following a questionable foul.

The free kick was deflected but the rebound went to Logan Bailey, who knocked in the loose ball from close range to tie things up again.

It looked like the match might end at 1-1 but the Fire had one more late opportunity and were able to make the most of it.

Peter Beasley started things before Caban headed the ball to Pineda. He passed upfield to Albert, setting the stage for his cross and Caban's first goal.

Click to hear David Caban interview

Approximately six minutes was added to the match in the 66th minute when Fire goalkeeper Sam Euler collided with Colorado Rush player who was trying to get off a shot.

After several minutes, Euler was carted off of the field and Zak Allen replaced him in the net, marking the beginning th start of a new type of match for the Fire.

Mitch Reavis entered the match a short time later and provided plenty of spark up front as the hosts went on the attack during the final minutes.

Shortly after the keeper change, Albert forced a diving stop by the Colorado keeper on a grounder from close range and Drew Conner was just wide on a short attempt.

A few minutes later, Luis Medina fired in a liner that was stopped and then Pineda danced past several defenders before his line-drive shot try was also halted.

Reavis got into the mix by sending one attempt wide of the frame and another to the keeper while Caban sent another liner over the goal.

The extra push paid off a short time later when Reavis went after a loose ball and the keeper sent the ball toward Pineda, who got knocked down en route to the net.

Click to hear Victor Pineda interview

The Fire went with a different look shortly after the break as Jesus Medina and Caban entered an a short time later things began to click for the home team.

Henrik Egly had a short shot try and later a corner kick which were both cleared by defenders, with the latter resulting in a shot that was just wide by Caban.

A few minutes after that, Euler came out of the net to try to shut down a scoring change, but he got injured on the play and had to leave the match.

In the opening half, Elliot Borge lined one try over the net and had another shot stopped while Luis Medina had the other best chance, a deflected attempt.

On Saturday, the Fire tied Real Colorado (7-3-3), which beat them 1-0 when the two teams met on March 28 and leads the standings with 24 points.

Pineda gave the Fire a 1-0 lead when he connected on a free kick in the 15th minute. The goal was his first on the season.

But Real Colorado tied things up about three minutes later on a score from Amadou Dia, who had the only score in the team's earlier meeting.

There was little drama in the second half, with the best chance coming about 30 minutes in when Luis Medina got tackled and was just wide on an attempt.

The U-16 Fire return to action next weekend at home for matches with Colorado Rapids and the Kansas City Wizards.