AUSTIN, Texas — A well-played match was finally given some payoff at the end.
Gyasi Zardes' headed in a stoppage time goal, lifting Austin FC to a 1-0 victory over Toronto FC Saturday night at Q2 Stadium.
Zardes' goal was the punctuation mark on what was the most dominant performance the Verde and Black have put on all season.
Austin controlled over 62% of the possession and launched 15 shots in the game with two on target, the latter of which being the signifying blow of the match. The Verde and Black had 11 corners in the match and completed an outstanding 83.6% of their passes.
Conversely, the Eastern Conference's current cellar dwellers, Toronto FC, only managed three shots all match, none of which were on target, and completed just under 70% of their passes.
This thoroughly dominant performance, which follows a 2-1 victory Wednesday night in Seattle against one of the Western Conference's top teams, indicates that Austin FC just may be recapturing the magic they had last season when they advanced to the Western Conference Finals.
This week's back-to-back wins has now put the Verde and Black firmly back into the playoff discussion, as they now reside as the eighth place team in the Western Conference after Saturday's match.
Austin FC will have another two-game set next week, first on Wednesday when they host the Chicago Fire at Q2 Stadium in a U.S. Open Cup match and then an MLS match on Saturday night when they travel to Houston for a pivotal match in the standings.
Houston currently sits at ninth in the Western Conference, only a point back of Austin.