Crew eliminated in 1-1 deadlock

Columbus missed two penalty kicks against New England.
COLUMBUS (AP) -- New England goalkeeper Matt Reis saved two Columbus Crew penalty kicks, helping the Revolution advance to the MLS Eastern Conference finals with a 1-1 tie Sunday night.
Reis fouled Crew forward Kyle Martino inside the penalty area in the 24th minute but then blocked Ross Paule's attempt to convert the resulting penalty kick.
Final stop for win
Columbus had a chance to take the lead with a second penalty kick in the 73rd minute, but midfielder Tony Sanneh's shot was corralled by Reis.
"You want to try to read the player as much as you can," Reis said. "You try to give yourself a little bit of a chance, and for me personally they both worked out tonight."
The Crew made a league-record 20 straight successful penalty kicks before Paule's miss, ending a streak that began in 1999.
"He guessed right both times," Paule said of Reis. "Give credit to him. He stood his ground."
Paule said he considered taking the second penalty kick before asking striker Jeff Cunningham if he was interested.
But Paule and Cunningham both were called off by Sanneh, the U.S. national team veteran acquired by the Crew in late August.
Sanneh attempted to fool Reis with a stuttering approach to the ball, but acknowledged he was distracted when Reis also faked a move on the goal line.
"I blame myself, but I give him credit in the one-on-one duel against me," Sanneh said. "I'm supposed to freeze him, but he froze me."
First in league history
Reis became the first goalkeeper in league history to stop two penalty kicks in a playoff game, and the third to do so in any game.
New England coach Steve Nicol said Reis "came up smelling like roses," but disputed the suggestion his team's success over the top-seeded Crew was "miraculous."
"The players said it before I did: if we're better with the ball, we'll give anyone a game," Nicol said.
Taylor Twellman scored in the 81st minute for New England, and Columbus' Edson Buddle tied the score in added time.
Tie produces win
The tie, combined with New England's 1-0 victory over the Crew in the first leg of the two game, home-and-away series last weekend, gave the Revolution a 2-1 final aggregate score.
New England will face D.C. United at 7 p.m. Saturday for a berth in the MLS Cup after eliminating the Crew, who entered the playoffs on an 18-game unbeaten streak.