FOXBORO, Mass., Oct. 2 (UPI) -- The New England Revolution advanced to the semifinal round of the MLS playoffs for the first time Wednesday night with a commanding 2-0 victory over the Chicago Fire.
Using goals from midfielder Brian Kamler and forward Taylor Twellman, the Revolution eliminated the Fire, six points to three, and advanced to face the Columbus Crew for the right to play in MLS Cup 2002.
New England got on the board early on a goal from Kamler in the 12th minute. After receiving a pass from Leo Cullen, Kamler outdueled midfielder Dema Kovalenko along the left flank.
The former MetroStar then broke in on goal and beat defender C.J. Brown before slipping a left-footed shot past goalkeeper Zach Thornton and off the right goalpost for his second goal of the playoffs.
The goal seemed to calm Steve Nicol's squad. After a shaky start, the Revolution settled into a possession game that kept the Fire's scoring opportunities to a minimum throughout the rest of the first half.
New England hardly missed a beat, despite the absence of suspended defender Carlos Llamosa.
Llamosa's replacement, Rusty Pierce, played effectively in the first half, and second-half substitute Braedan Cloutier also helped neutralize forward Ante Razov, who had scored seven goals in six previous meetings with the Revolution.
Revolution forward Wolde Harris nearly doubled the lead in the 57th minute. Harris teamed with Twellman on a give-and-go near midfield and brone in alone on goal. With defender Carlos Bocanegra in pursuit, Harris blasted a 25-foot shot from the right side of the penalty area past Thornton and just wide left of the far post.
Twellman gave New England a 2-0 lead in the 65th minute with his second goal of the postseason. Midfielder Daniel Hernandez split the Chicago pair of midfielder DaMarcus Beasley and defender Jim Curtin down the right sideline before sending a cross to the penalty spot. Twellman, who muscled free of Brown in the penalty area, calmly half-volleyed a blast past Thornton for the insurance goal.
The game was nearly a carbon copy of the Revolution's 2-0 victory in Game 1, when New England scored an early goal and added an insurance tally roughly 15 minutes into the second half on a rainy night at Gillette Stadium.
Including its regular season results, Steve Nicol's squad is 13-4-1 when scoring first. The Revolution has lost just once in their last nine outings, behind a defense that has posted five shutouts in that span.
The Revolution will have home-field advantage in the semifinals, which will begin Sunday.
