D.C. United entered last night's match against Red Bull New York with a grim resolve. In contrast to the pregame festivities in the RFK parking lot and the excitement of the 21,455 in attendance, United's starting 11 didn't crack a hint of a smile during the starting lineup announcements. They knew that for all intents and purposes, last week's favorable result was meaningless; the scars from last year's embarrassing playoff defeat attested to the value of resting on one's laurels.

In order to reach the MLS Cup conference finals, United would need to exert themselves for the full 90 minutes. Until the 86th minute, they were outplayed and outscored. It was then that United turned to Christian Gomez. The MVP candidate broke the ominous air with a lethal touch, enabling United to draw even with the Red Bulls and advance on aggregate score, 2-1.

Josh Gros was awarded with an assist for his whipped outswinging cross into the Red Bull box, but United owes as much to Bobby Boswell as they do to their athletic winger. Boswell sensed that he would not be able to handle the cross, and with savvy and awareness he dove backwards, granting the ball a clear path to the feet of Gomez. Gomez quickly settled the ball and fired a shot, beating goalkeeper Jon Conway to the near post.

Photos by Kyle Gustafson. More photos at the match photo gallery.

The goal came at a dramatic juncture, lifting United out of a game-long slump at the zero hour while crushing New York's MLS Cup hopes. After the game, the emotion of the goal was still evident in the hushed tone of United Coach Peter Nowak.

The goal we achieved with fight and effort. This is more important than anything. This group fought until the end today.

For the first half, D.C. was ineffectual in almost all aspects of the game. United's midfield passing, usually technically sound, was sloppy and unorganized as New York doggedly pressured the ball. Longer passes, crosses, and through balls were equally as futile, with United's midfield struggling to find forwards Alecko Eskandarian and Jaime Moreno. United's lone shot came in the 44th minute.

United's back line repeatedly made careless passes, resulting in several scrambles in front of United's goal. In particular, Facundo Erpen turned in an alarming performance. At his best, Erpen is an exciting defender, adept at intercepting passes, dispossessing attacking players, pushing forward, and taking the occasional long-range shot. At his worst, he makes risky attempts at clearances, gets out of position, and overestimates his dribbling skills. Last night, the United faithful endured Erpen at his absolute worst.

The lone bright spot of the first half was the play of goalkeeper Troy Perkins. Perkins intercepted crosses confidently, came off his line when necessary, and handled the ball bobble-free. However, for all his efforts, he was unable to earn a clean sheet. A pair of Erpen errors became United's undoing in the 70th minute, when the defender fell behind forward Josmer Altidore and fouled him at the side edge of United's penalty box. On the resulting free kick, Red Bull playmaker Amado Guevara placed a cross into the middle of the box. Erpen made a wild attempt to clear the ball, but was significantly late. As a result of his negligent marking, the wide-open Altidore unleashed a wicked header into the back of the net.

The following minute, Nowak went to his bench, bringing in rookie Rod Dyachenko to replace Eskandarian. The move paid dividends, as Dyachenko hustled around the field, winning balls and keeping possession. By the time Matias Donnet came on for Freddy Adu in the 81st minute, Dyachenko's energy had become contagious. Ben Olsen roamed the midfield menacingly, attacking loose balls and aggressively pushing forward. The team as a whole finally matched New York's intensity, and it paid off.

This Sunday, United will square off against Clint Dempsey and the New England Revolution for a bid in the MLS Cup finals. United will need to recapture the intensity they found at the end of last night's game, as the Revs proved only three weeks ago that they can win at RFK. Fresh off of one emotional roller coaster ride, United will have to prepare for another.