Pedro Vite scored his second and third goals of the regular season, Sebastian Berhalter added his first and the short-handed Vancouver Whitecaps earned an impressive 3-1 victory against Minnesota United in Saint Paul, Minn., on Sunday.
Vite and Berhalter both came on after halftime for the Whitecaps (7-1-2, 23 points), who halted Minnesota's eight-match unbeaten run and extended their own to eight games in all competitions.
The duo were part of eight players omitted from the starting lineup made by manager Jesper Sorensen less than 72 hours after starting in a 2-0 victory over Lionel Messi and Inter Miami in the first leg of their Concacaf Champions Cup semifinal.
The game was disrupted in second-half stoppage time for several minutes by referee Drew Fischer, who consulted with both managers and both teams' captains, while Vancouver's Emmanuel Sabbi was visibly distraught. The protocol was similar to that used by referees in previous instances of alleged hate speech by a player on the field in MLS games.
Wil Trapp scored a late consolation tally, the Loons' (4-2-4, 16 points) first in 321 minutes after settling for consecutive scoreless draws in their last two fixtures.
Minnesota outshot Vancouver 13-9 overall but finally lost for the first time since opening weekend. The Whitecaps were more efficient with their chances, putting five shots on target.
Berhalter was the first Vancouver substitute at halftime and required only 10 minutes to find his second competitive goal in as many appearances after scoring late on Thursday.
After an attack down the right and a ball pulled back to the top of the arc by Giuseppe Bovalina, Berhalter curled a first-touch strike into the top right corner.
With the buildup initially ruled offside, the goal was allowed by Fischer following video review.
Vite entered in the 64th minute and had two goals by the 70th.
On the first, he played a lovely combination with Daniel Rios and Jean-Claude Ngando before scooping the return ball over the head of charging Minnesota goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair before it dipped beneath the crossbar.
The second was simpler, with Ali Ahmed and Jean Claude Ngando creating an attack down the left before Ahmed rolled a cross back toward the penalty arc. Vite met it in stride for a one-time finish easily past St. Clair as he tried to scramble back from his near post.
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