Jeong Sang-Bin Strike Sends St. Louis CITY SC Past 10-Man Rapids 1-0

St. Louis CITY SC put exactly one shot on target at Dick's Sporting Goods Park on Saturday night. It was the only one that mattered.

Jeong Sang-Bin's left-footed finish in the 26th minute gave St. Louis a 1-0 win over the Colorado Rapids in front of 16,028 in Commerce City, and a long night of defending did the rest. Colorado played the final 40 minutes of regulation a man down after Rob Holding's 50th-minute red card, then got a numbers break of its own when Chris Durkin was sent off in the 87th. It did not matter. The Rapids had entered with a perfect 5-0-0 record at the stadium this year across all competitions, according to the club. That record is gone.

Becher Heads, Jeong Finishes

Colorado had the early edge, at least on corners. The Rapids won four of them between the 11th and 14th minutes alone, and they finished the night with 11 corners to St. Louis' one. Darren Yapi forced Roman Bürki into a save from outside the box in the 24th minute, and the home crowd could feel something building.

Two minutes later, St. Louis flipped the script. Simon Becher nodded the ball on to Jeong, and the forward hit a left-footed shot from the center of the box into the top left corner. Colorado's own recap said the goal came off a counterattack, which is the cruelest way to concede after a spell of pressure.

Colorado responded with energy, not precision. Yapi had a shot blocked from the left side of the six-yard box in the 27th minute, and Georgi Minoungou pulled one wide from the middle of the box in the 31st. Hamzat Ojediran and Rafael Navarro both picked up yellow cards for bad fouls before halftime, and St. Louis took its 1-0 lead into the locker room.

Red Card, Same Story

St. Louis replaced Jeong with Brendan McSorley at the break, and the second half had barely settled when the match changed shape. In the 50th minute, Holding was shown a straight red card, as Colorado's recap described it. Miguel Navarro was booked five minutes later, and Yapi had to come off injured in the 57th, replaced by Jackson Travis as Connor Ronan also entered.

Down a man, Colorado kept coming. That is to the Rapids' credit, but it also opened the door for St. Louis on the break. In the 66th minute, Daniel Edelman slipped Becher through on a fast break, and Becher fired over. In the 71st, Marcel Hartel sprung McSorley, whose shot from the right side of the six-yard box hit the right post. A second goal there would have ended the suspense.

Colorado's best look came in the 83rd minute, when Paxten Aaronson tested Bürki from outside the box and the St. Louis keeper saved at the top of the goal. Then Durkin picked up two yellow cards in two minutes, the second in the 87th, and it was 10 against 10. Navarro headed just wide off a set piece in the 88th, Minoungou missed a header from very close range off a corner two minutes into stoppage time, and Travis sent a shot high and wide from a tight angle in the eighth added minute. That was the last chance.

Who Delivered

Jeong Sang-Bin played only the first half and scored the winner with his one shot. That is the kind of efficiency that makes analytics departments swoon.

Simon Becher set up the goal with a headed pass and kept St. Louis' counterattacks honest before coming off in the 76th minute.

Roman Bürki made two saves, on Yapi and Aaronson, and held firm in a box that Colorado peppered with 28 crosses. Only seven of them found a teammate.

Marcel Hartel led St. Louis with three shots and created the McSorley chance that hit the post.

For Colorado, Paxten Aaronson had the Rapids' best effort of the second half, and Rafael Navarro, the club's Designated Player, was involved all night: two shots, five fouls drawn and a yellow card.

Why the Red Card Mattered Less Than You Think

Here is the strange part: Colorado's attack did not collapse after Holding's red card. The Rapids still won corners, still crossed, still forced Bürki into a late save. What actually decided this match was the St. Louis back line's work in its own box. The visitors made 29 clearances, 15 interceptions and 11 successful tackles. Colorado got off 10 shots, and only two reached Bürki. When a defense turns a home side's possession advantage into that little, a single goal is enough.

Stats That Mattered

• Shots on target: Colorado 2, St. Louis 1. Both sides took 10 shots.
• Corners: Colorado 11, St. Louis 1.
• Possession: Colorado 55.9 percent, St. Louis 44.1 percent.
• Defending: St. Louis made 29 clearances and 15 interceptions; Colorado made 13 and 8.
• Discipline: one red card and three yellows apiece.

What It Means

St. Louis improves to 2-3-6 with 9 points. Colorado's preview noted St. Louis was searching for its second win of the season and its first in MLS play since March 21, and it found both in Commerce City. It was also St. Louis' first road win of the regular season, after two draws and four losses away from home. Colorado's recap listed St. Louis 14th in the West after the match. Next up for St. Louis is a home date with LAFC on Wednesday.

Colorado falls to 4-1-7 with 13 points, its third straight defeat after road losses at Vancouver and Houston. The Rapids' recap had them 10th in the West after the result. Colorado visits Minnesota United FC on Wednesday.

The Closer

Colorado did most of the things a home team is supposed to do: more of the ball, more corners, more crosses, more pressure. St. Louis did the one thing that counts, and then spent an hour defending it like the last slice of pizza at a team party. There is no style points column in the standings. Three points went back to Missouri, and the Rapids' perfect run at their own stadium went with them.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Match notes from the Colorado Rapids (coloradorapids.com).