SEATTLE (AP) — Houston defender Lucas Halter scored in the first half and Jonathan Bond made it stand up as the Dynamo beat the Seattle Sounders for the first time on the road 1-0 on Wednesday night.

Houston (14-9-9) entered with a 0-13-4 all-time record in Seattle and hadn’t even earned a point there since 2016. The victory vaults the Dynamo into fourth place in the Western Conference with the top four teams earning home-field advantage in the best-of-3 first round.

Houston grabbed the lead in the 26th minute when Halter took a corner kick from Mateusz Bogusz and used his head to score his first goal in his 20th MLS appearance. It was the fifth assist this season for Bogusz.

Bond finished with six saves to earn his 13th clean sheet of the season for Houston — tied for second most in the league.

Andrew Thomas did not have a save for Seattle (11-11-10), which fell to eighth in the West with two matches remaining and a two-point lead over the 10th-place Los Angeles Galaxy. The top nine clubs in each conference advance to the postseason.

The Sounders beat the Dynamo 1-0 in Houston to begin April.

Houston had played to four straight draws this month entering play, while the Sounders were coming off back-to-back ties.

Up next

Houston: At Portland Timbers on Sunday.

Seattle: At Vancouver Whitecaps on Sunday.

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