Brad Davis, Will Bruin and Cam Weaver scored and the Houston Dynamo extended their unbeaten streak to four games with a 3-1 win over the Columbus Crew on Saturday.
Davis put the Dynamo (9-6-6) ahead 1-0 in the 10th minute converting the penalty kick inside the near post.
Houston earned the penalty kick when Giles Barnes had a short breakaway in the box before being taken down from behind by Chad Marshall, who was given a yellow card.
Bruin extended the lead to 2-0 in the 31st minute, taking an Oscar Boniek Garcia pass at the top of the box and sending a right-footed shot inside the near post.
Columbus (6-11-5) cut the lead to 2-1 on an own goal by Houston's Kofi Sarkodie in the 75th minute.
Columbus' Kevan George played the ball into the box for Ryan Finley. But before Finley could get a shot off, Sarkodie played the ball back and inside the near post.
Weaver upped the Dynamo's lead to 3-1 in the 85th minute as Garcia played a ball into the upper box that Bruin laid off to Weaver, who sent a shot inside the near post.
Columbus, which has lost three in a row, nearly tied it at one in the 12th minute on a Jairo Arrieta shot from the upper center box, but Houston goalkeeper Tally Hall came off his line to make a kick save.
Off a corner in the 22nd minute, Arrieta headed one back toward the goal inside the goalkeeper's box, but Hall made the save.
Crew goalkeeper Matt Lampson kept the deficit 1-0 in the 27th minute, reaching across his body to stop a Ricardo Clark header from the right 6-yard box.
