COMMERCE CITY, Colo. (AP) — Sam Cronin scored the winning goal in the 52nd minute and the San Jose Earthquakes beat the Colorado Rapids 2-1 on Saturday night to give Mark Watson his first win as interim coach.
Steven Lenhart scored his first goal of the season in the 11th minute to give San Jose a 1-0 lead, ending a two-match scoreless drought. The Earthquakes had scored only 13 goals in their first 15 games this season.
Watson replaced Frank Yallop after San Jose’s 3-0 loss to Real Salt Lake on June 1. The Earthquakes (4-6-6) had only one win in their previous 11 matches and were 0-5-2 on the road under Yallop.
Nathan Sturgis scored in the 67th for Colorado (5-5-5), which snapped a six-match unbeaten streak. The Rapids were 3-0-3 in that span.
