3:0 Houston New York Ching Cochrane Mullan 03.25.06 · Preseason

The 3-0 win Houston Dynamo delivered to the New York Red Bulls in both teams' final game of the Carolina Challenge Cup on Saturday night at Blackbaud Stadium made two things abundantly clear: Houston is nearly ready for competitive play. However New York, which failed to score a goal in any of the tournament's three games, is not.

In the 19th minute, Brian Ching, unmarked inside the New York six-yard box, got on the end of a perfectly placed Brian Mullan cross from the right flank, easily heading the ball home.

Yet to win a game in the tournament, New York looked better -- defensively at least -- than it did on Wednesday's loss 1-0 to the USL First Division Charleston Battery, taking the field with a four-man back line as opposed to the three-man defense it used on Wednesday.

"We played better than we did on Wednesday," Red Bulls coach Mo Johnston said. "I really don't think the score was indicative of our effort defensively. We'll go to work on Tuesday, and hope to sort some things out up front before [our first regular season game] Sunday."

Youri Djorkeaff nearly leveled the score on a 62nd minute free kick, forcing Houston goalkeeper Pat Onstad to spectacularly tip the ball out the top left corner. The free kick, however, proved to be the Red Bulls only threat of the second half.

Houston doubled the score in the 70th minute when Craig Waibel flicked on to Ryan Cochrane, who had remained in the New York penalty area after a busted corner kick. Cochrane slammed the ball past Tony Meola from 10 yards out.

Mullan closed out the scoring for the night in the 78th minute following a lengthy build up down the left flank. Receiving the ball just outside the penalty area, Ching played the ball across to an onrushing Mullan, whose first-time shot found Meola flat-footed.