By Simon Fudge/whitecapsfc.com
Austin Aztex and Vancouver Whitecaps lead their respective conferences following the latest round of action in the USSF D-2 Pro League.
It was also a good week for Crystal Palace Baltimore and FC Tampa Bay Rowdies, while Miami FC finally registered their first win as a USSF D-2 club on the weekend.
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The action started with three matches on Wednesday night. In Upstate New York, Crystal Palace Baltimore completed a productive five-match road trip with an impressive
1-0 victory
over Rochester Rhinos. Substitute Randi Patterson's first of the season was the match winner at Marina Auto Stadium. In the Texas state capital, USL Conference leaders Austin played to an entertaining
3-3 draw
with visiting Tampa Bay. The Aztex got two goals from English striker Eddie Johnson and single strike from Yohance Marshall, while the Rowdies got goals from former Whitecaps striker Aaron Wheeler, Joe Donoho, and substitute Gordon Kljestan at Austin's House Park. Meanwhile, in Oregon, Montreal Impact got a first-half strike from former Whitecaps midfielder Tony Donatelli in a
1-0 win
over Portland Timbers at PGE Park.
The latest round of matches concluded on Saturday, with four games taking place. In Maryland, Baltimore made it two wins on the trot with a
2-1 home victory
over struggling Portland. Ryan Pore scored his league-leading seventh goal of the season from the penalty spot for the Timbers before Palace responded with an equalizer from Andrew Marshall and a winning goal from Patterson in time added on at the end of the game. Portland conclude the month of May without recording a victory in USSF D-2. In Missouri, Tampa Bay completed an undefeated three-match road trip with a convincing
3-0 victory
at struggling Athletic Club of St. Louis. Pascal Millien, Kwame Adjeman-Pamboe, and a Long Tan penalty secured all three points for the Florida outfit at Anheuser-Busch Soccer Park.
Saturday also saw Miami FC get in the win column for the first time this season with a
1-0 result
at home to struggling NSC Minnesota Stars. Paulo Araujo Jr.'s second-half strike gave the Blues victory and ended a run of five straight draws to start the season for the South Florida club. The Stars, meanwhile, are winless in their last five league contests. Finally, in Vancouver, the Whitecaps ended a run of three league games without a win after a 2-0 home victory over Rochester at Swangard Stadium. Goals by Cornelius Stewart and Greg Janicki succumbed the Rhinos to a second league defeat in three days.