Dayne St. Clair screamed and stomped in the first half against FC Cincinnati on Wednesday.
The goalkeeper’s fits were warranted as defenders in front of him let the Loons down in a 2-1 loss at Allianz Field.
MNUFC (11-12-6, 39 points) had a two-game winning streak end, while Cincinnati (17-8-4, 52 points) became the first MLS team to have 10 road wins this season.
The Loons’ problems started midway through the first half.
MNUFC center back Michael Boxall allowed Yuya Kubo to go around him, but St. Clair made a diving fingertip save in the 29th minute. But five minutes later, Kubo outraced Micky Tapias and slotted a shot past St. Clair for a 1-0 lead.
St. Clair shot an arm up in frustration.
Then Bongi Hlongwane, who was playing wingback, jogged back and allowed MLS MVP Luciano Acosta to get a shot on goal.
St. Clair yelled in frustration.
That was followed by Boxall and Tapias allowing Luca Orellano to cut across the field and score a stunning goal in first-half stoppage time to make it 2-0 at the break.
After falling into a two-goal hole, head coach Eric Ramsay pulled out Hlongwane, Joaquin Pereyra and Carlos Harvey at the half, bringing in Tani Oluwaseyi, Wil Trapp and Sang Bin Jeong. It was a big statement from the Loons’ leader.
The Loons got back in the game when Orellano was called for a penalty with a kick to Jeong’s head in the 18-yard box. Kelvin Yeboah converted from the penalty spot to make it 2-1 in the 55th minute. It was the new Italian forward’s third goal in three PKs this season.
Substitute forward Teemu Pukki nearly scored an equalizer in the 88th minute, but the Finn’s curling shot hit the corner of the goalposts. Pukki had another attempt but Roman Celentano made a save late in stoppage time.
Jefferson Diaz also had a quality chance in stoppage time, but his shot was deflected and went over the crossbar.
The Loons made two changes to the starting lineup coming out of Saturday’s 3-1 win at St. Louis: Harvey replaced Trapp in central midfield and Joseph Rosales stepped in for Devin Padelford.
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