Carlos Rivas brace fuels New York Red Bulls past Portland Timbers
HARRISON, N.J. -- Carlos Rivas scored two goals and the New York Red Bulls opened their MLS season with a 4-0 win over the Portland Timbers on Saturday night.
Rivas slotted one past goalkeeper Jake Gleeson to make it 3-0 in the 80th minute and finished Connor Lade's cross with a tap-in in the 93rd minute to cap the scoring.
Ben Mines, a 17-year-old Homegrown Player making his MLS debut, opened the scoring in the 18th minute, finishing Alejandro Gamarra's cross.
Bradley Wright-Phillips made it 2-0 in the 77th minute with a header off Sean Davis' redirection of Vincent Bezecourt's corner.
The Red Bulls came into the match on the heels of Wednesday's CONCACAF Champions League win over Club Tijuana.
New York will host the second leg of the quarterfinals on Tuesday, starting with a 2-0 advantage on aggregate.
