Lee's set piece lifts 'Caps past the Crew

Columbus, OH – Vancouver Whitecaps FC's poor run of form looks to be a thing of the past as the club picked up its second consecutive win with a 1-0 defeat of the Columbus Crew on Saturday.

The 'Caps began the new season in impressive fashion, winning their opening two matches. But a leaky defense over the next four games saw the club pick up just two points. After a 1-0 defeat of FC Dallas in its last outing, Vancouver appears to have gotten back to winning ways.

The lone goal of Saturday's contest came against the run of play in the 74th minute off of a well-taken free kick from Young-Pyo Lee. The defense held steady to close out the match and preserve its sixth clean sheet of the season.

Columbus dictated much of the play in the first half and came close on several occasions but failed to break through.

The club was left to rue those misses as Vancouver made the most of its one scoring chance to claim all three points.

Lee's set piece was stationed all the way at the right touchline, but that didn't prevent the South Korean from catching Columbus goalkeeper Andy Gruenebaum off his line. The delivery sailed over everyone in the box but snuck in just below the crossbar in the upper corner. It was Lee's first career MLS goal.

The win lifts Vancouver to 14 points on the season as the club retains third place in the Western Conference. The Whitecaps will return to action with massive clash against the first-place San Jose Earthquakes on May 5.

Columbus is winless in its last four league matches. The Crew have managed a total seven points from their seven games this season, but they have a favorable match-up on deck as they get set to face the struggling Portland Timbers at Jeld-Wen Field on May 5.