Nov. 25, 2008
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Kevin Goldthwaite, a standout on the Notre Dame men’s soccer team from 2001-04, was a key force in the New York Red Bulls run to reach in Major League Soccer Cup. The Red Bulls came up one win shy of capturing the title as they fell to the Columbus Crew, 3-1, on Sunday.
The run to the final match was an improbable one for New York. The Red Bulls were seeded fourth in the Western Conference after a fifth-place finish in the East. In the conference semifinals, they knocked off two-time defending champion and top-seeded Houston. The two squads tied, 1-1, in the first match and the Red Bulls topped the Dynamo, 3-0, in the second leg to advance. That win was considered one of the greatest upsets in the history of the MLS Cup Playoffs and it marked just the second time that the Red Bulls had advanced out of the first round.
New York then claimed a 1-0 triumph over Real Salt Lake in the Western Conference Championship. That set up a date with Columbus in the MLS Cup on Sunday, Nov. 23, in Carson, Calif. The Red Bulls tied the match in the 51st minute before the Crew went on to score two unanswered goals to win the championship.
Goldthwaite, a defender, started 28 matches this season and notched two goals and two assists. He started all four matches in the playoffs.
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