SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- The San Jose Earthquakes continued their near-perfect start to the preseason Friday evening, recording a 2-0 exhibition victory against the Colorado Rapids at Buck Shaw Stadium. Goals by Cam Weaver and Jamil Roberts staked San Jose to a 2-0 halftime lead, and the Quakes defense made it stand up for their third consecutive win over an MLS opponent.
The first half was dominated for large stretches by San Jose, although they were aided by some giveaways by the Colorado defense. One such miscue by the Rapids allowed San Jose to jump on top in the eighth minute. Eric Denton's long ball out of the back was misplayed by Rapids defender Ugo Ihemelu, allowing Ryan Johnson to get in the clear. The Jamaican carried the ball to the byline and his inch-perfect cross was nodded home by Weaver.
The Quakes kept the pressure on, with Johnson releasing Huckerby just four minutes later, but a solid tackle by Rapids defender Michael Holody stifled the Englishman's run.
Colorado at last began to make some headway, and in the 18th minute Colin Clark waltzed through the Quakes defense only to see his breakaway attempt thwarted by Quakes 'keeper Joe Cannon.
Another mistake by Ihemelu nearly gifted the Quakes a second in the 27th minute, as his backwards header was intercepted by Johnson, but with the goal at his mercy, Johnson hit a weak shot that was easily saved by Colorado goalkeeper Matt Pickens.
San Jose continued to apply most of the pressure. Johnson just missed the target with a long distance effort in the 29th minute, and then a quick counterattack following a Rapids corner kick saw Corrales release Huckerby behind the Colorado defense. The San Jose midfielder had plenty of time to set himself, but shot hit the post and was then cleared to safety.
Colorado attempted to get back into the match by isolating Omar Cummings on the right wing, and while the Jamaican had some dangerous moments, he was unable to get a clear look at goal.
Johnson had a chance to pounce on another Colorado giveaway in the 41st minute, this time by Holody. But Pickens came to the Rapids' rescue, parrying away the Quakes forward's blast.
San Jose finally scored a much deserved second goal in first half stoppage time. Huckerby won a free kick from Ihemelu on the right wing, and Alvarez's laser-like delivery was headed home by Roberts, leaving Pickens with no chance.
As is the custom with preseason games, and also with an eye on injecting some life into his squad, Colorado head coach Gary Smith brought on Preston Burpo, Mehdi Ballouchy, and Jacob Peterson for Pickens, Nick LaBrocca, and Terry Cooke, respectively. The impact of the moves was limited to some alert plays by Burpo, who twice came off his line to clear passes intended for Johnson with the half just a few minutes old.
Perhaps in a bid to repay the Rapids' generosity in the first half, Quakes defender Kelly Gray gifted a golden opportunity to Clark in the 62nd minute, but his attempted chip over Cannon went wide.
That sparked another flurry of substitutions by both sides, and it was one of the Colorado replacements, Jacob Peterson, who next went close for the Rapids. His attempt from distance handcuffed Cannon, but the Quakes' keeper did enough to deflect the shot wide.
San Jose was quickly back on top, with substitute Pablo Campos setting the table for Huckerby in the 69th minute, only to see him shoot high.
The match looked to be petering out, but then got surprisingly chippy at the end. A scuffle between San Jose's Ramiro Corrales and Colorado's Stephen Keel earned the Rapids defender a yellow card, and then similar set-to between Ballouchy and Simon Elliott saw the Quakes midfielder cautioned.
San Jose substitute Shea Salinas embarked on a twisting run in the 90th minute, but his shot was saved by Burpo, leaving the two-goal margin intact.
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