Jack Jewsbury and Eric Brunner scored in the final six minutes to give Portland a 2-0 win over 10-man Chivas USA in a U.S. Open Cup play-in game Tuesday night.
Jewsbury struck from 35 yards out in the 84th minute to break up a scoreless tie. Three minutes later, Brunner beat Chivas keeper Dan Kennedy with a close-range shot for the Timbers' second goal.
''That's what the team needed. The energy in the stadium was fantastic,'' Portland coach John Spencer said. ''It's important for our confidence. We did some good things tonight and we did some not so good things. But at the end of the day, the best team won.''
The Timbers will play the San Jose Earthquakes in the quarterfinals of qualifying for the U.S. Open Cup, the tournament for clubs from all levels of United States soccer.
Portland's MLS home opener will be April 14 against Chicago.
Jewsbury's goal came on a counterattack when Timbers goalkeeper Jake Gleeson stopped an attempt by Chivas forward Justin Braun outside the penalty box.
Jewsbury, who came off the bench during the 71st minute after starting Portland's first two games, beat Braun to the ball just outside the penalty box and the Timbers were off.
About 35 yards from the goal, Jewsbury launched a shot that skipped past Chivas goalie Dan Kennedy on the wet turf and into the left side of the goal.
''I have a decent shot from distance, so I thought I'd take a chance,'' Jewsbury said.
Three minutes later, Jewbury was at it again on a corner kick, which Timbers defender Eric Brunner corralled and shot past Kennedy to give Portland a 2-0 lead.
Portland dominated most of the first half, but the best scoring chance belonged to Chivas. Gleeson denied Marco Mondaini in a one-on-one situation 10 yards from the goal during the 34th minute.
Gleeson, making his first start for an MLS team, came up with two key stops, one during each half.
''You get lucky in games and I managed to lucky a couple times,'' Gleeson said.
