Davis’ late goal gives Dynamo a leg up

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Photos from the Dynamo win at BBVA

Santos Laguna coach Pedro Caixinha took his seat on the bench and loved what he saw in the stands Tuesday night. From one end of BBVA Compass Stadium to the other, there was more Santos green than Dynamo orange.

On the pitch, though, the Dynamo treated Santos Laguna like they've treated every other visitor at BBVA Compass Stadium.

Brad Davis came through with a nifty finish in the 89th minute to beat Santos 1-0 in the CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal, extending the Dynamo's home unbeaten streak to 32 games dating to June 18, 2011.

"When I sat on the bench and I looked around the stadium, I saw many fans for us," Caixinha said. "Not only that, but they were here to support us."

Just three days after the front office failed to sell out the Eastern Conference champions' regular-season opener, the Dynamo didn't have quite the home pitch advantage in the first leg of the home-and-away quarterfinal.

It's not unusual for MLS teams to lose the home-field advantage when they play host to Mexican clubs, but the Dynamo fans were rewarded with a quality victory over a team that was a finalist in the 2011-12 Champions League.

"These guys and the teams that I've worked with, including the Dynamo, they're kind of used to it," said Dynamo goalkeepers coach Tim Hanley, who led the team while Dominic Kinnear served a suspension. "I don't think it affects our team at all.

Will Bruin helped the Dynamo take the first leg of a home-and-home series with Mexico's Santos Laguna. (AP Photo/Houston Chronicle, James Nielsen) Will Bruin helped the Dynamo take the first leg of a home-and-home series with Mexico's Santos Laguna. (AP Photo/Houston Chronicle, James Nielsen) Photo: James Nielsen, Associated Press Photo: James Nielsen, Associated Press Image 1 of / 3 Caption Close Davis’ late goal gives Dynamo a leg up 1 / 3 Back to Gallery

"It's one of those things that you look out and you go, 'Yeah, I wish it was like a Saturday night here and it was all orange.' But that's just not the case."

Santos had the edge in possession 54 percent to 46, but the Dynamo had more shots (16-10), shots on goal (4-3) and corner kicks (9-6).

The Dynamo took the lead in the 89th minute when Davis fed the ball wide to Corey Ashe, who dribbled up the left wing and then passed it back. Davis took care of the rest by placing the ball in the back of the net near the far post.

Goalkeeper Tally Hall finished with three saves while Kofi Sarkodie, Bobby Boswell, Jermaine Taylor and Corey Ashe helped collect an impressive shutout against a team that featured Mexican national team star forward Oribe Peralta and U.S. national team forward Herculez Gomez.

"They have excellent players, and for our team to keep a clean sheet, excellent," Hanley said. "Did they have chances? Yes, they had chances. Our chances look a little bit different than theirs. But like I said before, it was a great, entertaining game."

Now the Dynamo must prepare to play the second leg against Los Guerreros next Wednesday in Torreon, Mexico.

"The goals feel a little bit bigger in Mexico," Hall said. "That team is very good home and away. They're especially good at home. We're probably going to expect a better team when we go to their place. I think that is not a surprise to anybody."

Santos outscored its opponents 13-1 during the group stage to reach the quarterfinals against the Dynamo.

"I think 0-0 would have been fair, but soccer's not that way," Gomez said. "Hat's off to the Dynamo for getting that goal. But for us, it's business as usual. We're not in panic mode."

"In the locker room, I didn't see guys freaking out or thinking that this wasn't still in our control. So it's not the desired result, but we're very calm and we're very aware that there's still 90 minutes to play and it happens to be in our backyard."