Nashville SC Rout Austin FC 4-1 for MLS Points Record Through 28 Matches

Nashville SC took 24 shots at Q2 Stadium on Saturday night, rattled the woodwork three times and still found the net four times. If that sounds greedy, take a look at the standings. Greedy is working.

Nashville beat Austin FC 4-1 behind goals from four different players, and according to the club, the win made Nashville the first team in MLS history to collect 63 points through 28 regular-season matches. Austin had gone eight league games without a loss. That streak lasted until the Boys in Gold showed up.

Pinball in the First Half

The opening half hour was Nashville knocking on every door in the building. Sam Surridge blazed over in the third minute, Andy Nájar forced Brad Stuver into a save in the 14th, Jeisson Palacios headed wide off a corner a minute later, and between the 25th and 29th minutes Austin blocked three shots in the middle of their own box. It felt like a matter of when, not if.

When arrived in the 30th minute. Off a Nashville corner, Surridge had a header blocked, Patrick Yazbek's close-range shot from the left side of the six-yard box bounced off the left post, and Reed Baker-Whiting was there to bundle the rebound in from point-blank range. Three minutes later Surridge smashed one off the crossbar from the middle of the box, just in case anyone in green had started to relax.

Austin did have a pulse. Myrto Uzuni drew an early save from Brian Schwake, and in the closing minutes of the half the hosts strung together their best spell: Brandon Vázquez headed wide from a corner in the 40th minute, Jon Gallagher forced Schwake into a save toward the top right corner in the 42nd, and Ervin Torres sent one over a minute later. It was 1-0 at the half, and honestly, it could have been a lot worse for the home side.

Stuver Holds, Then Everything Breaks

Austin sent on Brendan Hines-Ike for Jon Bell at halftime, and Stuver spent the next 20 minutes doing his best impression of a man trying to hold back the tide with a beach towel. He stopped Hany Mukhtar from the left side of the six-yard box in the 52nd minute, stopped him again from distance in the 58th, denied Elias Saad in the 65th and Mukhtar once more in the 66th.

The dam finally gave in the 67th. Stuver saved Cristian Espinoza's shot from the right side of the box, but Saad was waiting to turn the loose ball in from close range. Nashville says it was the first MLS goal of his career, and he was subbed off for Shak Mohammed two minutes later.

Austin answered with real quality. Vázquez had a shot saved in the 73rd minute, and two minutes after Mohammed rattled the right post at the other end, Vázquez met a Facundo Torres cross and finished from the center of the box into the bottom right corner in the 76th. Austin's report called it an acrobatic finish and noted it was his second goal in the team's last two games. Suddenly it was 2-1, and Q2 Stadium was awake.

The hosts pushed. Besard Sabovic had a shot blocked in the 86th minute, Ervin Torres sent one from distance just wide to the left, and Vázquez headed over from a set piece in the 87th. Then Nashville did what elite teams do with an opponent stretched out: it punished them. Mohammed fired a right-footed shot from the left side of the box into the bottom right corner in the 88th minute, and in the first minute of stoppage time he headed the ball to Mukhtar, who finished from the center of the box. VAR took a look and confirmed it. Game over, record secured.

The Headliners

Hany Mukhtar took five shots and put four on target, and Stuver stopped three of them before the captain finally got his goal. Nashville says it was his 14th MLS goal of the season and his fourth in his last three games.

Shak Mohammed played about 25 minutes and managed a post, a goal, an assist and a yellow card. That is a full night's work compressed into a sitcom episode. The club says it was his fourth MLS goal of the season.

Reed Baker-Whiting opened the scoring and was Nashville's Man of the Match, per the club. It was his second MLS goal of the season.

Elias Saad finally got his goal after four shots, two of them on target, and it turned out to be the one that kept Nashville comfortable when Austin scored.

Brad Stuver made seven saves and deserves better than a 4-1 scoreline next to his name. Brandon Vázquez led Austin with five shots, three on target, and the goal.

The Turning Point

Saad's goal in the 67th minute. Nashville had been hammering Stuver for 20 minutes without a reward, and Vázquez scored nine minutes later. Without Saad's finish, that strike levels the match and Austin get the last 15 minutes plus stoppage time with the crowd behind them. Instead it was a one-goal game, and Nashville's late punch turned it into a rout.

Stats That Matter

• Shots: Nashville outshot Austin 24-11.
• Shots on target: Nashville 11, Austin five.
• Saves: Stuver made seven. Schwake, back in the lineup after international duty with the U.S. men's national team, made four.
• Possession: Nashville had 56.6 percent of the ball.
• Passing: Nashville completed 440 of 505 passes. Austin completed 303 of 367.

What It Means

Nashville improve to 19-6-3 with 63 points and, per the club, opened up a 12-point lead atop the league. It was their third straight win, and they are unbeaten in 20 of their last 22 MLS matches, according to Nashville. The club also says the win set franchise records for wins in a season across all competitions (23) and regular-season goals (59), and that head coach B.J. Callaghan set an MLS record with his 38th win through 71 regular-season matches coached. Next up: Sporting Kansas City at GEODIS Park on Wednesday.

Austin fall to 7-10-11 with 31 points, and the loss ended their eight-match unbeaten run in league play. They head to LAFC on Wednesday.

The Closing Take

Nashville's season has turned into a stadium tour where every stop sets a new attendance record and the setlist keeps getting longer. Austin had a couple of good songs of their own on Saturday. Nashville just had more hits, a deeper bench and a defender who knows exactly where rebounds land.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Additional match details as reported by Nashville SC and Austin FC.