CCL Roundup: Olimpia chops down Portland in Honduras, Cruz Azul crashes out in Costa Rica

Published Oct. 22, 2014 12:30 a.m. ET

Kyle McCarthy

Olimpia 3 – Portland Timbers 1

Olimpia scored twice in the first four minutes to eventually secure the result required to dump the Timbers out of the Champions League. Romell Quioto opened the scoring with a stunning overhead kick after just two minutes to spark a furious roar from the crowd in Tegucigalpa. Choco Lozano doubled the advantage and handed the initiative to the home side when he poked home two minutes later. Portland settled after that point and sliced the deficit in half through a Ben Zemanski effort after 52 minutes. Lozano ghosted past the Timbers defense two minutes later to restore the two-goal advantage required to send Olimpia through. The home side held out in the late stages to advance on head-to-head away goals (Olimpia scored twice in the 4-2 defeat at Providence Park last month) after both teams finished atop Group 5 on nine points.

Alajuelense 1 – Cruz Azul 1

The defending champions crashed out at the first hurdle after Alajuelense held its nerve to win Group 6 with just six points. All of the scoring occurred in the first 10 minutes. Armando Alonso provided the hosts with the perfect start after just two minutes, but Gerardo Torrado responded with a low drive shortly thereafter to equalize. Cruz Azul needed a second to grab the victory required to go through, but La Maquina could not procure it. Both teams skirmished at the final whistle to conclude the tense affair and send Alajuelense through at the expense of a top Mexican side for the second consecutive tournament.

Tauro FC 0 – D.C. United 1

United completed its unblemished run through Group 4 (4-0-0, 12 pts.) and guaranteed a top-four seed in the quarterfinals with a gritty victory at Estadio Rommel Fernandez. Conor Shanosky provided the difference with his first-half header from a scuffed Tauro clearance, but Joe Willis made the lead stand with his resolute second half display. United held out through the final whistle to secure the victory despite naming just 14 players in its squad for the affair.

Club América 2 – Comunicaciones 0

Oribe Peralta ensured Las Aguilas’ safe passage to the quarterfinals with his double at Estadio Azteca. América entered this match in need of a draw, but Peralta rendered the wiggle room unnecessary by turning home a rebound from a Luis Gabriel Rey shot just after the half hour. Peralta doubled his haul early in the second half to claim top spot in Group 8 (3-0-1, 10 pts., +16 GD) and seal a place in the last eight.