COLUMBUS, Ohio, Sept. 14 (UPI) -- Calen Carr came off the bench to score in the 86th minute Wednesday and lift the Houston Dynamo into a 2-2 tie with shorthanded Columbus.
Columbus played almost the entire game a man down after Emmanuel Ekpo was sent off in the 11th minute for pushing Houston's Adam Moffat.
Houston took the lead in the 34th minute on Je-Vaughn Watson's first goal of the season. The Crew jumped to a surprising lead on a pair of penalty kicks by Andres Mendoza, but Columbus surrendered the tying goal when Carr drove a shot into the top of the net off a low cross from Geoff Cameron.
Columbus (11-9-8) broke a first-place tie with Kansas City in the Eastern Conference, moving one point in front.
Houston (8-9-12) jumped into a third-place tie with Philadelphia in the East.
