Columbus Crew SC were feeling good. The Black & Gold earned a 1-0 win over the New York Red Bulls, the best regular season team in Major League Soccer history, at home in the first leg of the Eastern Conference semifinals. New York would need a multi-goal victory at Red Bull Arena. A road goal for the Black & Gold would all but kill off the series.
It was not to be. Alex Muyl scored a goal from a set piece just 17 minutes into the game to tie the series at one a piece.