Jack McInerney goal lifts Union over Fire, 1-0

Jack McInerney scored his Major League Soccer-leading seventh goal of the season, and Zac MacMath made six saves to lead the Union to a 1-0 win over the Chicago Fire at a windy Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Ill., on Saturday.

McInerney took a 35-yard pass from substitute Sebastien Le Toux in the 75th minute, danced around defender Jalil Anibaba, and slipped the ball by diving goalkeeper Sean Johnson.

After the game, McInerney wanted to talk about MacMath. "He definitely kept us in the game in the first half, and that was the goal, to get [to half-time tied] 0-0. . . . I doubt we even come away with a tie if it wasn't for him."

Union manager John Hackworth noted that the blustery conditions didn't make it any easier for the Union - especially in the first half.

"It was a tough game in a lot of ways, and the wind is always something that affects a soccer game more than anything. . . . In that first half, we just felt like we were pinned in, [while in the] second half we didn't play our best soccer - but we found a way to win."

The victory was the first in three matches for the Union (4-3-3) and only the second in their last seven.

This was MacMath's second shutout of the season. He kicked away Dan Paladini's point-blank boot in the 33d minute and made a diving stop on Quincy Amarikwa in the 95th minute to seal the victory.

"Every game, you know you are going to have to make saves to keep your team in it - especially on the road when you are trying to get the shutout," MacMath said. "We have to do the same things going forward that we did today, which was fighting [and] having heart even when things aren't pretty."

Elsewhere in MLS: Montreal's Matteo Ferrari made up for an early own-goal with an injury-time strike to lift the Impact over visiting Real Salt Lake, 3-2. . . . Vancouver got two goals from Russell Teibert in a 3-1 home win for the Whitecaps over the Los Angeles Galaxy. . . . Edson Buddle and Dillon Powers scored to lead the Colorado Rapids to a 2-0 win over the Columbus Crew on the road. . . . New York's Lloyd Sam scored in the 55th minute to salvage a 1-1 tie for the Red Bulls with the host New England Revolution.