Revolution 5-1 Rhinos: Kelyn Rowe Leads New England in a Beatdown

The New England Revolution did something for two matches in a row that they haven't been able to do consistently in a long time: beat teams they were supposed to beat. The Rochester Rhinos were the latest victim, falling 5-1 to a relentless Revolution attack on Tuesday night in Rochester.

Kelyn Rowe lead the offensive explosion, picking up two great goals and an assist. The goal he helped was Andy Dorman's, the second of the game. Chad Barrett and Jerry Bengtson rounded out the scoring, while Kendell McFayden picked up the consolation goal for Rochester.

Technical issues with the stream left the majority of the first half nearly unwatchable for fans not on-site at Sahlen's Stadium. However, during that time period, Kelyn Rowe managed to score his first goal of the match off a feed from Chad Barrett.

A lightning delay of over 50 minutes turned the match upside down just after half-time. Right before the match was halted, Andy Dorman finished a deft feed from Rowe to make it 2-0 Revs. Right on the other side of the delay, Jerry Bengtson latched onto a lax backpass and finished to make it 3-0.

Rowe dribbled in after a feed from Tyler Polak and made it 4-0. Late in the match, McFayden had a strike from the top of the box that deflected off of A.J. Soares' knee. Matt Reis appeared to think it was going either high or wide, but it dipped wickedly into the upper 90 and in. Finally, Chad Barrett cleaned up from a corner to complete the scoring in the 81st minute.

Dimitry Imbongo had to leave early with an apparent injury. Andy Dorman also appeared to suffer either a cramp or a hamstring problem in the final minutes, but had to tough it out because the Revs had already made all of their subs.

Despite tough conditions, the Revs managed to pull through and put together several excellent sequences of passing and attacking. Rowe's performance was amazing, and he led the team from the middle of the pitch. After putting in a devastating shift in the attack, he even hung deep once Dorman was pushed up to alleviate the stress on his injured leg. It was easily a Man of the Match performance, and one that showcases the sort of talent and ability the former USA youth international has.

Rochester's squad was depleted and ravaged by injuries, so they made themselves a bit of an easy target. In short, they were a team that the Revs should have brushed aside. Uncharacteristically, that's exactly what they did, and that in many ways is more important than the performance itself, as it's something the squad has struggled with in recent years.

Perhaps more importantly, they did it without many of their crucial first-team players. Fagundez, Nguyen, Agudelo, Goncalves, and Shuttleworth weren't even in the match day squad, and yet the rest of the Revs stepped up and produced an offensive masterclass. The team is truly in a serious patch of good form.

The Revs will be in action next on Sunday at 4:30 PM against the Galaxy, in a match that will be televised nationally on NBC Sports Network. Their next Open Cup match will be against the winner of Wednesday night's Red Bulls - Reading United contest, and it will be held on June 12th.