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Moreno has two assists as D.C. United draws with FC Dallas

Jul 15, 2007 - 4:53 AM WASHINGTON (Ticker) -- Jamie Moreno wanted the scoring record but settled for a draw instead.

Moreno had two first-half assists before leaving the game with an injury in the second as D.C. United played to a 3-3 draw with FC Dallas on Saturday.

Luciano Emilio scored twice and Fred also netted a first-half goal for United (7-5-3), which had a 3-0 lead before allowing Dallas to draw even in the second half.

"We took our foot off the gas and stopped playing defensive soccer," United coach Tom Soehn said. "We had a three-goal lead and turned the second half into a track meet. Our game management went out the window in the second half."

Carlos Ruiz got Dallas (9-6-3) on the board early in the second half and Juan Toja scored in the 71st and 81st minutes to knot the contest.

"Not having possession of the ball and committing too many errors was the reason behind our team's second-half meltdown," Emilio said.

Dallas continues to lead the all-time series, 14-11-4. It also was the first time in franchise history the club came back from a three-goal deficit to either win or tie.

After a month of national team duty that forced him to miss his last five MLS matches, Moreno started against FC Dallas with hopes of claiming the league's all-time scoring record. He currently is tied with the recently retired Jason Kreis at 108 goals.

Even though he had two good scoring opportunities in the first half, Moreno used his setup skills to give United the lead. In the eighth minute, Moreno made a cross pass to Emilio in front of the Dallas net, and the Brazilian knocked the ball past goalkeeper Dario Sala with his right foot.

"Anytime you score, there is personal satisfaction, but when things fall apart, it feels more like a loss than a tie," Emilio said.

Moreno then had two chances himself. His back-footed attempt in the 30th minute was stopped by Sala and, two minutes later, his header from 12 feet out off a corner kick went wide right.

"There will be other games and it's only a matter of time," Moreno said.

Fred tallied in the 44th minute, when he received a pass from Moreno within five feet and planted the ball just inside the left post to increase the lead to 2-0.

Emilio scored just before the half, when he weaved his way between two defenders during stoppage time and blasted a right-footed kick past Sala. It was his eighth goal in the last seven games following a six-game drought.

"We just got comfortable with a 3-0 lead," Moreno said. "You've got to give (FC Dallas) credit, they never stopped working, they never stopped believing. This was a disappointing tie. It really feels like a loss."

Ruiz cut Dallas' deficit to 3-1 when he scored from inside the penalty area in the 51st minute.

Toja then used two different methods to tie the game.

The native of Bogota, Columbia right-footed a kick from the penalty area past goalkeeper Troy Perkins to bring Dallas within one. Just 10 minutes later, he received a pass from Abe Thompson, which he headed into the net after Perkins came out to try to knock it away.

"It's always great to come back and score the game-tying goal," Toja said. "Especially on the road."

United recorded 16 shots, while Dallas had 15. Both goalkeepers made six saves.