WASHINGTON, D.C. (June 22, 2024) – Houston Dynamo FC earned a 4-1 victory versus D.C. United at Audi Field tonight behind forward Sebastian Ferriera’s first hat trick with Houston. The feat marked the first Dynamo hat trick since Erick Torres in 2017.
Tonight also marked head coach Ben Olsen’s first MLS match in the nation’s capital since departing the club in 2020. Olsen spent more than two decades with D.C. United as a player and head coach.
D.C. United went down to 10 men in the 65th minute after forward Christian Benteke was shown a yellow card for fouling defender Griffin Dorsey in the box and then a red card for showing dissent to referee Tim Ford. The home team then went down to nine men in the 94th minute when Matai Akinmboni was shown his second yellow card of the night.
D.C. opened scoring in the 38th minute after the home team won a penalty when midfielder Artur was deemed to have fouled Benteke in the penalty box. The 33-year-old stepped up an converted the penalty kick to the right side of the goal.
Houston evened the score with a penalty kick of their own in the 51st minute converted by Ferreira for his second goal of the season. The penalty was won after Matai Akinmboni handled the ball in the box.
The Dynamo took the lead in the 54th minute on Ferreira’s second goal of the match and third of the season. The Paraguayan found the back of the net after forward Amine Bassi tapped a loose ball to his teammate near the penalty spot.
Ferreira completed his hat trick in the 86th minute when he controlled a cross from the left side from defender Brad Smith and slotted it into the back of the net. Ferreira made his second start of the season and first since the end of March in which he scored a goal versus San Jose.
Forward Gabe Segal, who was born in Washington D.C., scored his second goal of the season within minutes of coming on the pitch. Smith again assisted on the goal from the left side.
Goalkeeper Steve Clark was called into action in the sixth minute when Theodore Ku-DiPietro took his chances from outside of the box. The veteran goalkeeper played for D.C. United during the 2017 and 2018 seasons.
Artur took a shot from deep in the 27th minute, and the strong attempt forced a diving save from goalkeeper Tyler Miller.
Forward Aliyu Ibrahim forced Miller to tip the ball over the crossbar in the 31st minute after striking a half volley from a corner delivery from captain Héctor Herrera.
Clark was called into action again in the 48th minute, forcing Benteke’s shot from inside the box over the bar with a quick-reaction tip. Clark made two saves on the night.
Houston next hosts Charlotte FC on Saturday, June 29 with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m. CT at Shell Energy Stadium. The Club will celebrate Pride Night throughout matchday, and tickets for the match are available HERE.
