Adi's brace propels Portland past RSL
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Sandy, UT (SportsNetwork.com) - Fanendo Adi scored a pair of goals in the first half to propel the Portland Timbers to a 3-1 win over Real Salt Lake at Rio Tinto Stadium on Saturday.
Luke Mulholland put Salt Lake in front in the 23rd minute, but Adi scored in the 36th and 45th to put the Timbers up 2-1 at halftime.
The hosts were then reduced to 10 men when Tony Beltran was sent off in the 54th minute, while Will Johnson scored a penalty kick in the 73rd to clinch Portland's third win in four games.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Timbers fell behind midway through the first half when a corner kick fell to Mulholland inside the penalty area, allowing him to fire a shot past goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts.
However, the lead lasted just 13 minutes as Portland capitalized on a corner kick of its own with Diego Valeri delivering the cross and Adi getting up to send a glancing header past goalkeeper Jeff Attinella.
Attinella was able to keep out a shot from Darlington Nagbe just before halftime, but the rebound fell kindly to Adi for a simple tap in.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Salt Lake's task got more difficult in the 54th minute when Beltran committed a hard foul on Nagbe, earning him a second yellow card.
And the result was in little doubt over the final 20 minutes as RSL's Chris Schuler was called for a handball inside his own area, allowing Johnson to fire the penalty kick.