CONCACAF News -- www.concacaf.com

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

TORREON, MEXICO -- Oribe Peralta scored midway through the first half and Andony Hernandez and Agustin Herrera added second-half tallies Wednesday, leading Club Santos Laguna to a 3-0 victory over the Puerto Rico Islanders and ending its two-game losing streak in the CONCACAF Champions League.

The result snapped the Islanders’ five-game unbeaten streak in the tournament, but left it atop Group D with seven points pending the group’s other match. Santos, which ended a four-game winless streak in the Mexican Apertura with Sunday’s 1-0 victory over Morelia, improved to six points.

Puerto Rico finished the match with 10 men after forward Joshua Hansen was ejected in the 61st minute for attempting a bicycle kick but instead striking Walter Jimenez in the head.

The Islanders played without all of its regulars, including USL-1 Goalkeeper of the Year William Gaudette, with them facing the Vancouver Whitecaps on Sunday for the title in the United Soccer Leagues First Division.

Oribe gave Santos the lead in the 29th, taking the ball with his back to the goal 13 yard away, twisting and touching the ball inside with his right foot and, with defender John Krause having fallen, finishing with a left-footed blast.

Hernandez doubled the advantage in the 54th, settling a cross in the penalty area with his left leg, touching it inside and shooting with his right just inside the far post. Playing with a man advantage, Santos added to its lead in the 70th when Herrera finished with an easy header inside the six-yard box.

Santos continued to push forward, testing goalkeeper Justin Myers several times more while Puerto Rico struggled to maintain possession.

Besides snapping the unbeaten string of the Islanders, which hadn’t lost in 17 games overall until a 2-0 defeat to the Rochester Rhinos on Friday in the first leg of its USL semifinal, the result also ended the unbeaten string of USL teams in the Champions League.

Including the Montreal Impact, USL teams had not lost in 10 games in the tournament, including the Preliminary Round.

Puerto Rico next plays in the USL First Division Championship Sunday in Vancouver against the Whitecaps. They then will be solely focus on the CONCACAF Champions League with matches October 23 at home against CSD Municipal and October 29 against Tauro FC in Panama.