FOXBOROUGH, MASS.—Cristian Penilla scored twice in the first seven minutes and the New England Revolution held off Toronto FC 3-2 on Saturday night.
Sebastian Giovinco pulled defending MLS Cup champion Toronto within a goal on a penalty kick in the 89th minute. But before the following kick off, the Italian grabbed Wilfried Zahibo’s face and was sent off for violent conduct.
Penilla opened the scoring for the Revs (5-3-2) in the fourth minute with a run up the middle of the central defence and a straightaway finish after Teal Bunbury’s takeaway and feed from near midfield.
Penilla pounced on an errant pass deep in Toronto’s territory and sent it quickly back at net to catch goalkeeper Alex Bono out of position in the seventh.