SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Ellis McLoughlin and Bobby Convey scored 12 minutes apart late in the second half to guide the San Jose Earthquakes to a 2-1 win over the New England Revolution on Saturday night at Buck Shaw Stadium.

McLoughlin opened the scoring with a well-placed header in the 71st minute – just four minutes after entering the game as a second-half substitute – while Convey converted what proved to be the game-winning strike from a set piece in the 83rd minute.

Chris Tierney scored his second career goal in the 86th minute to pull the Revs (3-4-4, 13 pts.) within one in the closing stages, but the late fight-back fell short as the Earthquakes (3-4-3, 12 pts.) secured their second consecutive home victory.

For the first time this season, Revolution head coach Steve Nicol named an unchanged starting lineup after his side claimed a 1-0 win over Vancouver Whitecaps FC last weekend. Unavailable once again was the injured trio of Ousmane Dabo (R adductor strain), Didier Domi (L quad strain) and Marko Perovic (L knee sprain).

The Revs controlled possession in the very early stages, but it was San Jose which created the game’s first scoring chance in the seventh minute. Steven Lenhart teed up Joey Gjertsen for a drive from the top of the box, forcing Revolution goalkeeper Matt Reis into a smart save.

Reis had the crossbar to thank for keeping the game scoreless in the 13th minute, when Khari Stephenson’s clever free kick eluded the wall and crashed off the woodwork.

Shalrie Joseph returned the pressure by testing Earthquakes goalkeeper Jon Busch with a knuckling drive in the 25th minute, but the veteran netminder was alert to punch the shot away.

New England continued to gain a foothold as the first half progressed and had legitimate appeals for a penalty waved away in the 37th minute when Tierney appeared to be taken down in the box as he shaped to shoot. No foul was given, however, and the teams went into the halftime break scoreless.

After finishing the first half with a surge, the Revs began the second half in a similar vein and threatened again in the 56th minute. Benny Feilhaber linked up with Joseph outside the box and the captain slipped a pass into the right side of the area for Rajko Lekic, whose quick shot was easily handled by Busch.

Despite holding the upper hand through large parts of the match, the Revs eventually conceded the opener in the 71st minute as they saw their 283-minute shutout streak come to an end. MLS’ 2010 Golden Boot winner Chris Wondolowski was the provider as his right-wing cross found McLoughlin at the back post for a free header, which he guided back across the face of goal and inside the right post.

Wondolowski almost put his own name on the score sheet in the 79th minute when his blistering shot from 20 yards out whistled past the right post, but Convey one-upped his teammate with a fantastic finish to double the Earthquakes’ lead four minutes later. Convey seemed likely to cross from a free kick toward the right touchline, but instead whipped a vicious shot into the far upper corner as it kissed off the left post.

Tierney pulled one back for the Revolution with a curling free kick in the 86th minute – expertly bending the ball around the wall and inside the left post – but the goal proved to be mere consolation as a frantic late push failed to result in an equalizer.

The Revs will return to action on Wednesday, May 25, when they visit Sporting Kansas City for a U.S. Open Cup play-in match at the Blue Valley District Activities Complex in Overland Park, Kan. The Revolution’s league schedule will resume on Saturday, May 28, when the club hosts the LA Galaxy at Gillette Stadium.

New England Revolution at San Jose Earthquakes
May 21, 2011 – Buck Shaw Stadium (Santa Clara, Calif.)
San Jose Earthquakes 2, New England Revolution 1

Scoring Summary:
SJ – Ellis McLoughlin (Chris Wondowlowski) 71
SJ – Bobby Convey (unassisted) 83
NE – Chris Tierney (unassisted) 86

New England Revolution: Matt Reis, Darrius Barnes, A.J. Soares, Ryan Cochrane (Zack Schilawski 83), Kevin Alston, Chris Tierney, Benny Feilhaber, Shalrie Joseph ©, Stephen McCarthy, Zak Boggs (Sainey Nyassi 66), Rajko Lekic

Substitutes Not Used: Bobby Shuttleworth, Franco Coria, Kenny Mansally, Kheli Dube, Pat Phelan

STATS: Shots: 10; Shots on Goal: 3; Saves: 2; Corner Kicks: 8; Offside: 3; Fouls Committed: 13

San Jose Earthquakes: Jon Busch, Bobby Convey, Ike Opara, Jason Hernandez, Chris Leitch, Ryan Johnson (Ellis McLoughlin 67), Khari Stephenson, Brad Ring, Joey Gjertsen (Anthony Ampaipitakwong 64), Steven Lenhart, Chris Wondolowski ©

Substitutes Not Used: Andew Weber, Steven Beitashour, Bobby Burling, Sam Cronin, Matt Luzunaris

STATS: Shots: 11; Shots on Goal: 4; Saves: 2; Corner Kicks: 3; Offside: 4; Fouls Committed: 17

* Note that all statistics are unofficial

Misconduct Summary:
SJ – Bobby Convey (caution) 53
SJ – Steven Lenhart (caution) 57

Team Records:
New England Revolution – 3-4-4, 13 pts.
San Jose Earthquakes – 3-4-3, 12 pts.

Referee: Yader Reyes

Assistant Referees: Peter Balciunas, Adam Garner

Fourth Official: Alejandro Mariscal
Weather: Clear and 71 degrees

Attendance: 9,736

NOTES

• With the loss, the Revolution fell to 11-18-4 all-time against San Jose, including a 5-8-3 mark on the road … the Revs are now winless against San Jose in the last three matches
• The loss extended the Revs’ winless streak on the West Coast to eight matches, dating back to the start of the 2010 season … the Revs are now 0-6-2 in West Coast games since taking a 1-0 win at Seattle on Aug. 20, 2009
• There were no changes to the lineup that head coach Steve Nicol used in the last match … tonight’s match marked the first time this season Nicol used the same a repeat starting 11, both overall and in back-to-back matches … overall this season, New England has run out 10 different starting lineups in 11 games
• Ryan Cochrane (2001-03) and Stephen McCarthy (2006-08) both played collegiately at Buck Shaw Stadium on the campus on Santa Clara University, the home the school shares with the Earthquakes …. both are former three-year performers at Santa Clara
• This game marked the first time in his eight-year career that Ryan Cochrane faced his former team – the Earthquakes – of four seasons … during the whole or parts of his four seasons in Houston, he never once faced San Jose, with whom he began his MLS career in 2004
• Chris Tierney scored his first goal of the season and his second career goal with his 86th-minute free kick goal
• Ellis McLoughlin’s 71st minute goal for San Jose snapped the Revs’ 283-minute shutout streak that dated back to April 30 against Chivas USA (57th minute)