Tai Baribo, Silvan Hefti Rally D.C. United to 2-2 Draw With MLS-Leading Nashville SC

Louis Munteanu was going down under pressure outside the box when he somehow flicked the ball into Tai Baribo's path. Baribo did the rest, finishing left-footed from the left side of the area into the bottom right corner in the 77th minute. mlssoccer.com called the assist "a sort of scorpion kick from a prone position," which is the most polite way to describe something that looked impossible.

That goal completed D.C. United's climb out of a two-goal hole and earned a 2-2 draw with MLS-leading Nashville SC on Saturday night in front of 19,215 at a sold-out Audi Field. Sam Surridge and Shak Mohammed had Nashville cruising at halftime. Silvan Hefti and Baribo made sure nobody in gold left Washington feeling great about it.

Nashville Did a Lot With a Little

D.C. actually started brighter. Munteanu forced Brian Schwake into a save in the 13th minute, the hosts piled up four corners between the 17th and 19th, and Munteanu tested Schwake again in the 27th. None of it went in, and Nashville made them pay for that.

In the 29th minute, Brandon Servania was whistled for a handball in the box, which D.C. United said came on a Hany Mukhtar cross. Surridge stepped up in the 32nd and sent a right-footed penalty into the bottom right corner. Eight minutes later, Mohammed had his first effort blocked from the middle of the box, stayed with the play and buried the second chance with his left foot into the bottom left corner.

Nashville's first half in a sentence: two shots on target, two goals. Baribo and Mohammed were both booked in stoppage time, and the visitors went into the locker room up 2-0.

Hefti Opens the Door

Nashville came out of the break looking for the third goal that would have ended the night. Ahmed Qasem and Mukhtar each had shots blocked, and Daniel Lovitz fired high and wide in the 51st. Instead, D.C. found the opener of its comeback from a set piece.

In the 56th minute, a corner turned into chaos. Kye Rowles had a header blocked from point-blank range, Munteanu headed wide from the right side of the six-yard box, and then Hefti smashed a right-footed shot from the middle of the box into the top right corner. D.C. United said the goal was initially disallowed, but it was awarded after a VAR review, with the decision confirmed in the 60th minute. It was Hefti's first MLS goal, per the club, and it could not have come at a better time.

Both benches got busy from there. Nashville sent on Elias Saad and Warren Madrigal in the 62nd, and D.C. answered two minutes later with Nathan Ordaz and Matti Peltola. Baribo had a header saved in the 69th and a right-footed shot saved in the 70th. Schwake was standing tall. He just could not stand tall forever.

The Scorpion and the Post

Baribo's equalizer arrived in the 77th, and D.C. kept pushing. Munteanu forced another save two minutes later, and in the 89th, João Peglow nearly completed the heist when his right-footed shot from outside the box clanged off the left post. The fourth official put up 10 minutes of stoppage time, and both teams had chances in it. Surridge pulled one just wide in the first minute of added time, Baribo headed high and wide in the fourth, and Josh Bauer headed wide in the seventh. Nobody found the winner.

The Difference Makers

Louis Munteanu was the best player on the field. He took five shots, put three on target, set up the equalizer and, according to D.C. United, created three chances.

Tai Baribo scored for the fourth straight match, according to the club, and the goal was his team-leading 11th of the regular season. He finished with four shots, three on target.

Silvan Hefti picked a big night to score his first MLS goal.

Brian Schwake made five saves and kept Nashville ahead for most of the night.

Sam Surridge reached a milestone with the penalty. Nashville said it was his 50th career MLS goal, counting regular season and playoffs, and Nashville's 300th MLS regular-season goal.

The Turning Point

Hefti's goal, and the review that let it stand. Without it, Nashville is up 2-0 with the hour mark approaching and can manage the game the way it managed the first half. With it, D.C. had belief, momentum and a crowd that smelled blood. Twenty-one minutes later, the game was level.

Stats That Matter

• Shots: D.C. United 16, Nashville 10.
• Shots on target: D.C. United 7, Nashville 2. Both of Nashville's went in.
• Saves: Schwake 5, Sean Johnson 0.
• Possession: Nashville 60.5 percent, D.C. United 39.5 percent.
• Clearances: Nashville 55, D.C. United 18.

What It Means

Nashville, which the club said sits first in MLS, moved to 12-4-2 with 40 points and is unbeaten in 11 of its last 12 MLS matches, per the club. The Boys in Gold also stretched their unbeaten run against D.C. to five straight across MLS and the U.S. Open Cup, according to Nashville. They open their Leagues Cup campaign at home against Club León on Wednesday.

D.C. United moved to 5-8-5 with 23 points. The club said the draw kept it ninth in the Eastern Conference, extended its unbeaten run to five matches and made it 10 of its last 11 with at least a point. D.C. hosts Loudoun United FC on Wednesday before visiting CF Montréal on Aug. 15.

This was also the second 2-2 draw between these teams this season, after the same scoreline at Nashville on May 9.

Same Score, Better Sequel

Most sequels are worse than the original. This one was not. The May meeting ended 2-2; this one ended 2-2 too, but with a VAR twist, a scorpion-kick assist from a man lying on the grass and a shot off the post in the 89th minute. Nashville is still the team everyone is chasing. D.C. just proved the chase is not over until the fourth official stops holding up numbers.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Match details as reported by D.C. United (dcunited.com), Nashville SC (nashvillesc.com), the AP via ESPN and mlssoccer.com.