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The Seattle Sounders scored three times in nine minutes in the second half to beat FC Dallas 3-0 and secure a formidable lead in the first leg of their Western Conference semifinal on Sunday. Nelson Valdez got the breakthrough five minutes after halftime, and a Nicolas Lodeiro brace padded the lead to put FC Dallas, the Supporters' Shield winners with the best record in the regular season, in a big hole ahead of the second leg. Dallas was on the back foot immediately with Chris Seitz forced into a goal-line save in the fourth minute, and only a double clearance on the line by defender Matt Hedges kept it goalless at halftime. The Sounders dominated possession possession throughout the match, and their resilience paid off when Seitz misplayed a Joevin Jones cross and Valdez headed home. Five minutes later, Jordan Morris charged to the end line before squeezing in an inch-perfect low cross for Lodeiro to double the lead. Lodeiro then beat the offside trap in the center of the pitch to run in on goal and make it 3-0 in the 58th minute. A Giovani Dos Santos goal provided the LA Galaxy with a slim advantage over the Colorado Rapids in a 1-0 win. Dos Santos scored a 55th-minute header that took a big deflection to give the Galaxy the lead ahead of next week's second leg in Colorado. The Galaxy controlled nearly all of the action in the first half but were frustrated by Tim Howard, but he could do little to prevent LA's goal 10 minutes into the second half. Jelle van Damme got forward to fire in a shot from distance that was blocked in front. The Galaxy defender then tracked down the ball on the edge of the box, outrageously nutmegged Micheal Azira and fired a cross in to Dos Santos. The Mexico international's header looped over Howard after coming off the head of defender Axel Sjoberg, though it appeared to be destined for the goal anyway. Toronto FC scored two late goals to open a 2-0 advantage over New York City FC in a physical first leg. NYCFC held off a furious attack from Jozy Altidore and Sebastian Giovinco until the 84th minute, when the U.S. striker fired home from close range, and Tosaint Ricketts added a second in stoppage time. The visitors were handed five yellow cards throughout the match and rarely threatened to score. They had two chances to clear the ball on the opening goal as it bounced across the box before it fell to Altidore to smash in. The news got worse for the visitors when Ricketts found the net in the 92nd minute, poking home at the second attempt after Eirik Johansen's initial save to double Patrick Vieira's task for the return leg in the first MLS playoff game at Yankee Stadium. Matteo Mancosu scored to give the Montreal Impact a 1-0 edge over the New York Red Bulls after the home leg in the Eastern Conference semifinals. The Impact will defend a slim lead in the second leg after Mancosu ran onto Marco Donadel's long ball over the top and fired home on the half-volley in the 61st minute. Impact keeper Evan Bush came up big in stoppage time, preserving the lead by saving Omer Damari's volley, and Bradley Wright-Phillips' follow-up from point-blank range somehow went wide. The Red Bulls will be without Damari in the second leg and perhaps longer after the substitute was sent off in the closing seconds for a late two-footed challenge on Calum Mallace.
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