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D.C. United continue their long homestand while the Colorado Rapids continue their long Eastern swing when the clubs meet Saturday at RFK Stadium. United have a win and a draw against Western opposition in the first two games of this home stretch, coming off a scoreless result with FC Dallas. The Rapids have a win and a draw against Eastern teams to start their three-game trip, last a scoreless draw at New England.

REFEREE: Terry Vaughn. SAR (bench): Steven Taylor; JAR (opposite): Jason Cullum; 4th: Daniel Fitzgerald MLS Career: 142 games; FC/gm: 28.6; Y/gm: 3.8; R: 46; pens: 45

INJURY REPORT:

• D.C. UNITED ? OUT: MF Branko Boskovic (L ACL tear); MF Junior Carreiro (L ankle sprain); DF Devon McTavish (concussion); DF Jed Zayner (L hamstring strain)
• COLORADO RAPIDS ? OUT: FW Omar Cummings (R ankle sprain); FW Caleb Folan (R groin strain); FW Macoumba Kandji (L knee ACL tear); QUESTIONABLE: DF Eddie Ababio (R hamstring strain); PROBABLE: GK Matt Pickens (R groin strain); FW Quincy Amarikwa (L ankle sprain); FW Conor Casey (L hamstring strain); MF Sanna Nyassi (lower back strain)

INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: DC: Conor Shanosky (U.S. U-20 national team)
SUSPENDED: COL: Brian Mullan (through June 26)
WARNINGS:
SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: COL: Conor Casey

HEAD-TO-HEAD

• ALL-TIME (35 meetings): United 16 wins (2 shootout), 58 goals ? Rapids 13 wins (1 shootout), 47 goals ? Ties 6
• AT RFK (17 meetings): United 10 wins (2 shootout), 35 goals ? Rapids 3 wins (0 shootout), 15 goals ? Ties 4
• The teams are meeting for the second time this season. Two goals from Caleb Folan and a late three-goal explosion (over the final 20 minutes) gave the Rapids a 4-1 win April 3 at Dick?s Sporting Goods Park.
• United?s 1-0 win at Dick?s Sporting Goods Park last year was their first in Denver in a decade, since a 5-2 win May 6, 2000. The Rapids won eight of the 10 home matches in between, with two draws.
• The Rapids? win at RFK Stadium on May 15 of last year was their first there since 1999. The teams also met on East Capitol Street in MLS Cup 1997, a 2-1 United win.
• The teams last played to a draw on Aug. 19, 2006, a 1-1 result at RFK Stadium.
• Coaches record: Gary Smith vs. DC: P6 W3 L3 D0 ? Ben Olsen v COL: P2 W1 L1 D0

LAST MEETING (MLS)

• 4/3: COL 4, DC 1 (Folan 38, 81; Smith 71; Cummings 90 ? Quaranta 70)
• Caleb Folan put the Rapids into the lead in the 38th minute when he latched onto a perfectly weighted ball from Jeff Larentowicz and feinted past the D.C. defense before connecting well with a left foot drive past Pat Onstad.
• United evened terms in the 70th minute through a Santino Quaranta first-time volley at the far post from a cross by rookie Chris Korb.
• But barely a minute later, Rapids midfielder Jamie Smith popped up in the box to head home an Anthony Wallace long-range cross to push the Rapids back in front.
• Folan then completed his double when he outjumped the D.C. defense to expertly head a Sanna Nyassi cross into the right hand corner of the net in the 81st minute.
• Omar Cummings, who was rested for the start of the game and did not come on until an early second-half injury to Conor Casey, finished off a header in injury time off an assist from midfielder Pablo Mastroeni.
• COLORADO RAPIDS (4-4-2): Matt Pickens ? Kosuke Kimura, Marvell Wynne, Drew Moor, Anthony Wallace - Brian Mullan (Sanna Nyassi 72), Pablo Mastroeni, Jeff Larentowicz, Jamie Smith - Conor Casey (Omar Cummings 52), Caleb Folan (Quincy Amarikwa 87).
• D.C. UNITED (4-1-3-2): Pat Onstad ? Chris Korb, Daniel Woolard, Rodrigo Brasesco, Marc Burch ? Kurt Morsink (Fred 83) ? Santino Quaranta, Dax McCarty, Branko Boskovic (Andy Najar 54) ? Blake Brettschneider, Chris Pontius (Josh Wolff 65).

D.C. UNITED

D.C. United finished off a week unbeaten, playing to a scoreless draw with FC Dallas on Saturday evening at RFK Stadium. United have 11 points from 9 games on the year, sitting in fifth place in the Eastern Conference.

LAST MATCH

• 
  The game's best chance came in the closing stages. A low cross from Josh Wolff found Fred dangerously open in front of the net. But his header couldn't get the best of lunging FCD goalkeeper Kevin Hartman, who steered the shot aside.
• Hartman was credited with three saves in the FC Dallas goal, while Bill Hamid made two saves for United.
• United coach Ben Olsen made two changes to the team that defeated Seattle Sounders FC 2-1 at RFK Stadium. Stephen King came in for Clyde Simms in midfield and Joseph Ngwenya replaced Josh Wolff up top.
• D.C. UNITED (4-4-2): Bill Hamid - Perry Kitchen, Ethan White, Dejan Jakovic, Daniel Woolard - Andy Najar (Santino Quaranta 72), Dax McCarty, Stephen King, Chris Pontius (Fred 81) - Joseph Ngwenya (Josh Wolff 54), Charlie Davies.

TEAM NEWS

• After eight goals over a two-game stretch, D.C. United has allowed just one goal in the last two ? that coming on a penalty kick.
• ?The positive is that we had a fairly good performance after a good performance on Wednesday,? Olsen said. ?That?s what we are striving for here. We are striving to play consistent soccer, and if we do that over the course of a year, it?s usually enough to make the playoffs.?
• It was a second game with a pair of rookies in the back four for United, with Ethan White at center back and Perry Kitchen at right back.
• ?Perry is playing probably out of position, but you wouldn?t know it,? Olsen said. ?Him knowing when to get forward still has a little work to do, but that?s to be expected when you don?t know that position. But defensively, he?s very committed.? Said Kitchen: ?It?s always fun to go forward since I?ve been sitting back at center back for a while now,? he said. ?I was just trying to pick my moments [against Dallas], and when I was going forward I wasn?t trying to do anything too crazy.?
• Stephen King made his first start of the league season, coming into the central midfield in place of Clyde Simms, who had started five matches in a row.
• 
  ?It?s a little bit of a different dynamic with [Dax McCarty] and [Stephen] King there than it would be with [McCarty] and Clyde [Simms],? Olsen said. ?King had a good understanding ? when Dax [McCarty] sits [King] is more comfortable going forward. They played off each other pretty well all night long.?
• Andy Najar also made a second consecutive game after going five league games without an appearance in the first XI. ?I thought he had a great game; he was special tonight, definitely the best player on the field,? said Olsen.
• United also kept a clean sheet for a second time on the season, something it took until July 10 to achieve a year ago. ?We?ve got a good mixture of athletic guys, guys who can win balls in the air, and a good mixture of guys who are smart and composed,? goalkeeper Bill Hamid said to the Washington Times. ?It makes a very solid back line.?
• Said United captain Dax McCarty: ?That?s progress ? those are things you can build from. Now it comes down to: You?re at home, can you take the chances that you get? And we didn?t do that.?

COLORADO RAPIDS

The Colorado Rapids continued on their three-game Eastern Conference trip, playing to a scoreless draw with the New England Revolution on Saturday evening at Gillette Stadium. The Rapids have 14 points from 8 games, opening the week in third place in the Western Conference.

LAST MATCH

• Ryan Cochrane and Benny Feilhaber each had chances find the woodwork for the Revolution, while Rapids goalkeeper Matt Pickens was called upon to make two saves, including a point-blank stop of a Shalrie Joseph header.
• Matt Reis made one save as the Revolution recorded their first shutout of the season.
• Rapids head coach Gary Smith made three changes to the team that beat the Houston Dynamo 2-1 at Robertson Stadium. Marvell Wynne came in for Jamie Smith, and Caleb Folan and Quincy Amarikwa made an all-change strike pair in place of Andre Akpan and Omar Cummings.
• COLORADO RAPIDS (4-4-2): Matt Pickens - Marvell Wynne, Tyrone Marshall, Drew Moor, Scott Palguta - Kosuke Kimura, Pablo Mastroeni, Jeff Larentowicz, Wells Thompson (Jamie Smith 73) - Caleb Folan (Andre Akpan 30), Quincy Amarikwa (Ross LaBauex 85)

TEAM NEWS

• For the first time since 2008 ? and just the second time since Conor Casey arrived at the club ? the Rapids played a game without either Casey or Omar Cummings in the scoreless draw at New England. The only other previous occasion was a 3-2 loss at the LA Galaxy on Oct. 12, 2008.
• "There were moments that we might have made a little bit more of," Smith said. "But we've got so many bodies changing in and out now because of injuries it's very difficult to find serious fluency here."
• The Rapids recorded a shutout for the first time since March 26, and after three consecutive losses, now have two draws and a win in their last three games.
• ?All and all, it?s a clean sheet. It?s three unbeaten, it?s another point to the tally, and it?s the end of a very, very long week,? Smith said. ?We?ll all be very pleased to get back home.
• The club learned Cummings will be lost for 2-4 weeks with a grade II sprain of his right ankle. Caleb Folan was also forced to leave the United match after just a half-hour with a right groin strain, after suffering from a strained quadriceps leading up to the match.
• "I have to say we're going through a difficult period," Smith said. "But we have two very promising and bright individuals. Those bodies will be back, and we will be in a good position and all the better for it."
• The visit to United and a return trip to the East Coast is a third consecutive game against Eastern Conference opposition. The Rapids are in a stretch of playing four out of five games on the road.
• ?We were well organized (against New England. We had) good shape and showed discipline as a group, and that?s not easy when you?re playing your third game in seven days,? Smith said. ?These guys have gone through an awful lot. We?ve gone to two different time zones. We?ve managed to play on a level pegging with a good team, a competitive team.?

MLS CUP CHAMPIONS COME TO RFK

D.C. United (3-4-2, 11 points) hopes to remain unbeaten in its three-game MLS May home stand as 2010 MLS Cup champion Colorado Rapids (4-3-2, 14 points) come into RFK Stadium following a scoreless draw against the New England Revolution on May 7. United remained unbeaten in two outings last week, after battling FC Dallas to a scoreless draw on Saturday, May 7.

The tie came only four days after defeating Seattle Sounders FC 2-1 on Wednesday, May 4 behind goals from Charlie Davies and Josh Wolff. A victory on Saturday night could see United climb as high as second place in Major League Soccer?s Eastern Conference, as Colorado looks to vault into first place in the Western Conference table with a win.

LAST TIME OUT

Colorado defeated D.C. United 4-1 at Dick?s Sporting Goods Park earlier this season on Sunday, April 3 in League action. The Rapids were the beneficiaries of two goals from newly-signed Caleb Folan. After Folan?s first goal in the 39th minute, United squared the game in the 70th minute on a volley by Santino Quaranta, but Colorado?s Jamie Smith answered immediately with a header that beat goalkeeper Pat Onstad.

Folan then scored his second goal in the 81st minute, followed by an Omar Cummings strike in the 92nd minute to preserve the home victory. Niether Folan or Cummings will play tomorrow, as both are out through injury, leaving Conor Casey as a likely frontline threat for the Rapids. 

LINEUP CHANGES

D.C. United?s current starting lineup looks far different from the lineup that played in the loss to Colorado on April 3. Most notably, United was without the services of current MLS goal leader, Charlie Davies, who missed the first match due to a groin injury, as well as goalkeeper Bill Hamid.

The Black-and-Red?s backline has also changed, as the club has enjoyed strong performances of late from rookie defenders Perry Kitchen and Ethan White, along with veterans Dejan Jakovic and Daniel Woolard. Three of those four did not play in the last Colorado match, as Kitchen was on duty with the U-20 U.S. National Team, Jakovic was suspended, and White was still being implemented into the lineup.

ALL-TIME RESULTS

United is 16-13-6 all-time against Colorado in MLS regular season play, with a significant 10-3-4 advantage at RFK Stadium in those contests. In the all-time series, the Black-and-Red have scored 35 times, while only allowing 15 goals in Washington, D.C.

An important stat proved to be the story of the first stop

Reigning Street League Champion Nyjah Huston won the first stop of Street League DC Pro Tour 2011 in Seattle at the KeyArena in dominating fashion. Huston's score of 104.6 was more than enough to take home the $150,000, as well as an automatic spot in the SLS Championship in Newark, NJ on August 28th.

If winning the $150,000 wasn't enough, Nyjah won $15,000 for best trick on the last run of the contest after he had the win all wrapped up, Huston pulled a backside 270 to..

In an exciting if overlooked Saturday night fight card, Ronnie Mann put on an impressive showing in his Bellator Fighting Championships debut, while Richard Hale and Christian M'Pumbu advanced to the light heavyweight tournament final at Bellator 42.

Mann spent three rounds brutalizing an overmatched Josh Arocho, winning a unanimous decision in which one judge awarded him a shocking (but not completely unreasonable) 30-25 victory, while the other two judges gave him the more conventional 30-27 scores. The British Mann was making his Bellator debut, and he was confident and aggressive, displaying great positional control and violent ground and pound. Mann, who improved his professional MMA record to 19-2-1, showed that he's going to be a force to be reckoned with in Bellator's featherweight division, although he's going to have to beat much better opponents than Arocho, whose record fell to 6-10.

Hale beat D.J. Linderman by a razor-close split decision, with two judges giving him the bout 29-28 and one judge giving Linderman a 29-28 advantage. Linderman and Hale were close -- with Linderman perhaps having a slight advantage -- in the first couple of rounds, but Hale spent most of the third round controlling Linderman on the ground while trying to secure a rear-naked choke. The third round was enough to earn the victory for Hale.

Up next for Hale is a tournament final fight with M'Pumbu, who beat Tim Carpenter by first-round TKO with a big right hook to the chin, followed by right uppercut that knocked Carpenter to the ground. The referee ran in and stopped the fight as soon as Carpenter fell, and Carpenter complained that it was too fast a stoppage. But credit M'Pumbu for an impressive display of punching power.

In other Bellator action, Luiz Alberto Nogueira beat Jerod Spoon by unanimous decision, 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28. Spoon put forth a good effort in a fast-paced, exciting fight, but Nogueira is on another level as a striker. One of Brazil's top bantamweights, Nogueira lets the punches and kicks fly with speed and precision, and he looked great in improving his professional MMA record to 11-1.

And then there was the most inspirational performance of the night: Returning to the cage for the first time since suffering an ugly knee injury last year, Jared Hess looked good and made short work of Chris Bell, forcing Bell to tap out just 1:40 into the first round. It was great to see Hess fighting again, and he demonstrated that he's back at 100 percent.

For this week's media round-up we begin with Liz Clarke's feature in today's Washington Post. Clarke takes a look at the continued progress of forward Charlie Davies and his long road to recovery. Staying with the Post, Steve Goff caught up with United President and CEO Kevin Payne earlier this week regarding the club's stadium situation. 

Charlie Davies stopped by the studios of Comcast SportsNet this week to chat with Ivan Carter, while Russ Thaler and Sebastian Salazar give us the most recent Black-and-Red Report. Thaler also caught up with Ben Olsen at Wednesday's training session. CSN will broadcast tonight's match with Colorado at 7:30 p.m. ET.

Craig Stouffer of the Washington Examiner recently spoke with Academy product Conor Shanosky ahead of his departure to France for United States U-20 duty. Thomas Floyd from the Washington Times sat down with Josh Wolff ahead of United's match with Colorado, and found that the forward is enjoying his role as elder statesman of the Black-and-Red. 

Lastly, Travis Clark caught up with Charlie Davies late in the week, while Ben Olsen gave a progress report on his team and chatted with the Spots Junkies. For a look at the Black-and-Red's next opponent following the Rapids match, check out what's at stake for Ajax this weekend in Holland. 

An important stat proved to be the story of the first stop

Reigning Street League Champion Nyjah Huston won the first stop of Street League DC Pro Tour 2011 in Seattle at the KeyArena in dominating fashion. Huston's score of 104.6 was more than enough to take home the $150,000, as well as an automatic spot in the SLS Championship in Newark, NJ on August 28th.

If winning the $150,000 wasn't enough, Nyjah won $15,000 for best trick on the last run of the contest after he had the win all wrapped up, Huston pulled a backside 270 to..

Bellator featherweight champion Joe Warren won a controversial unanimous decision over Marcos Galvao on Saturday night in Yuma, Arizona, with all three judges seeing the fight differently than nearly every member of the MMA media saw it.

Particularly surprising about the decision was that judge Chuck Wolfe scored the bout 30-27 for Warren: Not only did Wolfe score the first and third rounds for Warren, as did his fellow judges, but Wolfe also gave Warren the second round, even though almost everyone else watching thought that round was decidedly Galvao's.

Although Wolfe declined to go into a detailed blow-by-blow account of the second round, he defended his scorecard and his decision, saying on Tuesday morning that he thought all three rounds in the fight were close, and that in close rounds, something relatively minor can be the difference in a 10-9 score.

"It could be one takedown different, it could be one punch different, it could be one kick different, it could be one attempted submission different," Wolfe said.

Wolfe said he wasn't aware that his scoring of the fight had caused a controversy in the MMA community, and he said that as a judge he can't be concerned about how fans or the media view his decisions. He also said that his background as a professional kickboxer and his knowledge of MMA gives him insight that surpasses that of the average fan watching at home.

"I've judged and refereed since the beginning of the sport, I've been head official for over 600 different bouts," Wolfe said. "If you want to question my credentials, I think I have way more than anyone out there to be qualified to judge. I know fans get disappointed, but I don't think you're going to have Joe Warren fans complain about how the decision went."

Wolfe acknowledged that Galvao landed some significant strikes in the fight, but he said nothing Galvao did was enough to justify giving him any of the three rounds.

"Did he damage Warren in that fight? Yeah, he did, for a short period of time," Wolfe said. "I remember the bout very clearly. When they are close rounds there's one thing or maybe two things that might put someone ahead. ... You can grade it 10-10 but you might as well not be there if you're not going to score someone to win the round."

Bellator promoter Bjorn Rebney said after the fight that he found Wolfe's 30-27 score for Warren hard to understand, but the judges work independently of the promoters. Bellator 41 took place at a resort owned by the Cocopah Indian Tribe, and Wolfe and the other judges were hired by the Potawatomi Athletic Commission. Wolfe noted that the tribal commission follows the standard procedures employed by state athletic commissions, including telling the judges to watch the fights with their naked eyes. Judges are not provided with TV monitors, which means they're seeing the fight from a different vantage point than the fans at home.

"There are a lot of things that a fan will cheer about outside the cage, but each judge has a different viewpoint and a different angle," Wolfe said. "Unfortunately, judges don't have a replay, don't have a rewind, they just have to judge by what they see."

Ultimately, Wolfe said, if Galvao isn't happy with the decision he should look in the mirror, not at the judges.

"He had three rounds to take Warren out if he really wanted to beat him -- he had three rounds to dominate Warren, as well as Warren had three rounds to dominate him," Wolfe said. "It's up to the fighter. ... Don't leave it in the hands of the judges, especially when it's a close fight."

An important stat proved to be the story of the first stop

Reigning Street League Champion Nyjah Huston won the first stop of Street League DC Pro Tour 2011 in Seattle at the KeyArena in dominating fashion. Huston's score of 104.6 was more than enough to take home the $150,000, as well as an automatic spot in the SLS Championship in Newark, NJ on August 28th.

If winning the $150,000 wasn't enough, Nyjah won $15,000 for best trick on the last run of the contest after he had the win all wrapped up, Huston pulled a backside 270 to..

An important stat proved to be the story of the first stop

Reigning Street League Champion Nyjah Huston won the first stop of Street League DC Pro Tour 2011 in Seattle at the KeyArena in dominating fashion. Huston's score of 104.6 was more than enough to take home the $150,000, as well as an automatic spot in the SLS Championship in Newark, NJ on August 28th.

If winning the $150,000 wasn't enough, Nyjah won $15,000 for best trick on the last run of the contest after he had the win all wrapped up, Huston pulled a backside 270 to..

For the second consecutive Saturday night, Bellator has the mixed martial arts spotlight to itself, as Bellator 42 is the weekend's only major MMA card. The big question facing Bellator is whether the match-ups they've put together will result in the kind of exciting card that will get fans buzzing, and create a little momentum for the promotion heading into the home stretch of its fourth season.

Bellator 42 took a hit when Paul Buentello suffered an injury and had to pull out of his fight with Bellator heavyweight champion Cole Konrad, so whatever attention this card can garner will come from the semifinals of the light heavyweight tournament, and the promotional debut of Ronnie Mann.

Here are the basics on Saturday night's card:

What: Bellator 42

Where: Lucky Star Casino, Concho, Oklahoma

When: Saturday, the MTV2 broadcast starts at 9 PM ET.

Predictions on the three main card fights below.

Richard Hale vs. D.J. Linderman
Although Bellator's light heavyweight tournament is devoid of household names, Hale made a name for himself with an incredible inverted triangle choke submission in his first-round tournament fight. That was the highlight of the year so far for Bellator, and the promotion would love to see Hale emerge as a star. I don't know if stardom is in Hale's future, but I do think he's crafty enough to beat Linderman, who advanced to the tournament semifinals by defeating Raphael Davis.
Pick: Hale

Tim Carpenter vs. Christian M'Pumbu
In the other light heavyweight semifinal, I like Carpenter to remain undefeated and beat M'Pumbu. Carpenter won a split decision over Daniel Gracie in the first round of the tournament, and I expect him to take another decision here.
Pick: Carpenter

Ronnie Mann vs. Josh Arocho
The British Mann, whose Bellator debut was delayed because of visa issues, is the reigning Shark Fights featherweight champion and was a good pickup for Bellator. Mann is 18-2-1 in his professional MMA career, has an excellent submission game and has a lot of interesting fights ahead of him in Bellator's talented featherweight division. Arocho, however, has a 6-9 professional record and isn't in Mann's class. I expect this fight to end quickly, with Arocho tapping out.
Pick: Mann

Jerod Spoon vs. Luiz Alberto Nogueira
Spoon is on a five-fight winning streak, but the 26-year-old Nogueira has a 10-1 record and is one of Brazil's best bantamweights, and I like him to beat Spoon by TKO.
Pick: Nogueira

An important stat proved to be the story of the first stop

Reigning Street League Champion Nyjah Huston won the first stop of Street League DC Pro Tour 2011 in Seattle at the KeyArena in dominating fashion. Huston's score of 104.6 was more than enough to take home the $150,000, as well as an automatic spot in the SLS Championship in Newark, NJ on August 28th.

If winning the $150,000 wasn't enough, Nyjah won $15,000 for best trick on the last run of the contest after he had the win all wrapped up, Huston pulled a backside 270 to..

Omar Salazar graces the cover of our June/July issue with a massive backside tailslide.

Omar Salazar, backside tailslide

"Omar annihilated this ledge in a matter of minutes and the back tail was the highlight for sure. It was not an easy approach either. He had to go mach 10 around a corner while simultaneously ollieing a grate, then take two quick pushes, and set up right before a crack-riddled bump. A sick example of Omar's raw power."­--Jonathan Mehring, photo

FEATURES

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DEPARTMENTS
18
Squawk Box
The news and other gossip.

20
HOWL
Glen E. Friedman & Nick Dompierre

34
FACE OFF
Andrew Reynolds vs Jim Greco

40
MEMORY SCREENED
Cairo Foster

42
SKATE ANATOMY
Ryan Sheckler

44
QUIRK
Jason Jessee Is A Skate Hoarder

88
WHO'S HOT
Issey Yumiba, Derrick Wilson and Sebo Walker