Ousseni Bouda Strikes Early as San Jose Earthquakes Edge Real Salt Lake and Climb to Third in the West

The first scare of Halloween at PayPal Park arrived before the clock hit two minutes. Dominik Marczuk clipped Jamar Ricketts near the left edge of the Real Salt Lake box in the opening minute, Ousseni Bouda stood over the free kick from a tight angle, and a minute later the ball was nestled in the bottom left corner behind Rafael Cabral.

That early jump-scare set the tone, and the San Jose Earthquakes hung on to beat Real Salt Lake 2-1 in their final regular-season home game on Saturday afternoon. Per the club, the result lifted San Jose to third in the Western Conference by the end of the afternoon. RSL, meanwhile, saw a three-game win streak end and slid to 10th in the West, below the playoff line, according to Real Salt Lake.

Two Punches Before Salt Lake Could Blink

RSL did not panic after the opener. The visitors pinned San Jose back for a stretch, winning three corners between the 11th and 13th minutes. Marczuk had a shot blocked, Sergi Solans dragged an effort wide from the right side of the box, and Justen Glad had a close-range attempt blocked from the left side of the six-yard box.

Then San Jose punished the push. In the 17th minute the Quakes broke the other way, Ricketts delivered from the left, and Benji Kikanovic arrived at full stretch to steer it into the bottom left corner from point-blank range. San Jose had taken two shots. Both were in the net.

Salt Lake answered fast. Six minutes later, Samuel Junqua whipped in a cross from the left and Juan Manuel Sanabria rose in the middle of the box to head it into the bottom right corner. With Morgan Guilavogui suspended, RSL coach Pablo Mastroeni had brought Junqua into the lineup and moved Sanabria into the No. 10 spot, according to the club. Both moves showed up on the scoresheet.

Cabral had already stopped Nick Fernandez in the 21st minute, and he denied Bouda in the 27th to keep it a one-goal game. At the other end, Earl Edwards Jr. turned away Marczuk in the 31st and Saba Lobjanidze in the 37th. It was 2-1 at the break.

Salt Lake Push, San Jose Survive

Mastroeni went to his bench at halftime, bringing on Zach Booth and Aiden Hezarkhani for Marczuk and Junqua, while San Jose sent on Jack Jasinski for Kikanovic. RSL came out flying. Stijn Spierings had a shot blocked and Glad forced Edwards into a save in the 47th minute. In the 52nd, Lobjanidze met a Sanabria cross in the middle of the box, and Edwards stood tall again.

San Jose's answer was a triple change in the 60th minute, with Ronaldo Vieira, Beau Leroux and Eduard Löwen replacing Ian Harkes, Niko Tsakiris and Fernandez. Tsakiris had just been booked. RSL's afternoon got harder in the 70th minute when Booth, a halftime substitute, came off because of an injury and Alexandros Katranis replaced him.

The chances kept coming in waves. Noel Caliskan fired over in the 76th minute, Cabral denied Bouda in the 80th, and Sanabria pulled a shot wide moments later. Ariath Piol headed a Lobjanidze corner delivery wide in the 89th minute, which was RSL's best late look at a leveler. Seven minutes of stoppage time produced a Luka Jovanovic miss for San Jose and a Katranis yellow card, but no equalizer.

The Stars

Ousseni Bouda was the most dangerous player on the field. One goal, five shots, three on target, and three fouls drawn. Cabral had to stop him twice more.

Earl Edwards Jr. made four saves, all of them on shots from inside the box, and two of them came in the opening minutes of the second half when RSL looked like it was about to take over.

Jamar Ricketts drew four fouls, including the one that produced the first goal, and set up the second. A busy, productive afternoon on the left.

Juan Manuel Sanabria scored his second goal of the season, per RSL, and set up four Salt Lake attempts according to ESPN's play-by-play.

The Turning Point

The 17th minute. RSL had spent the previous several minutes camped in San Jose's half, piling up corners and shots, and looked ready to erase the early deficit. One quick transition later, they were down two. Sanabria's header six minutes later cut the gap, but RSL spent the rest of the afternoon hunting an equalizer that never came. Without that counter, this is a very different game.

Stats That Matter

• Possession: RSL had 56.6 percent of the ball.
• Shots: Nearly even at 16 for RSL and 15 for San Jose, with five on target apiece.
• Saves: Edwards made four. Cabral made three.
• Clearances: San Jose cleared the ball 32 times, double RSL's 16.
• Crosses: RSL attempted 21 and completed six. San Jose completed one of 13.

What It Means

San Jose are now 14-10-9 with 52 points. The club said that total surpasses its highest since 2013, and third place matters because the top four finishers in each conference get home-field advantage in Round One of the playoffs. The win also ended a five-match winless run (four draws and a loss) that dated back to a Sept. 26 victory over Portland. San Jose took four points from the two meetings with RSL this season after a 1-1 draw in Sandy on Oct. 14. The Quakes finish the regular season at Minnesota United FC on Nov. 7.

Real Salt Lake drop to 12-6-15 with 42 points. The club said the loss cost it a perfect nine-point week, something it has not managed in MLS since April 2012, and dropped its road record to three wins, 11 losses and three draws. Now it gets simple. RSL host the LA Galaxy at America First Field on Nov. 7 in what the club calls a must-win Decision Day showdown. The Galaxy sit on 44 points after beating Austin FC 4-1 on Saturday. There is a subplot, too: according to RSL, rookie Sergi Solans needs a hat trick against the Galaxy to match the MLS rookie scoring record of 17 goals, set by Cyle Larin with Orlando in 2015.

The Closing Take

San Jose's Halloween party delivered the treat early and never gave it back. For Real Salt Lake, next Saturday in Sandy has the energy of a Survivor tribal council, and the club has already said nothing less than a win will do. The Galaxy, fresh off a four-goal afternoon, are not going to hand over the torch quietly.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Additional match details as reported by the San Jose Earthquakes and Real Salt Lake.