Real Salt Lake earned a spot in Major League Soccer’s postseason with a 2-2 draw against host St. Louis City SC on Saturday and some help elsewhere.
After leading by two goals in the first half, RSL settled for the draw but still landed a wild-card berth, reaching the postseason for a fifth straight year.
Nigerian forward Victor Olatunji accounted for both of RSL’s goals. He scored in the 17th minute off a perfect pass from Zavier Gozo, and in the 32nd minute with an assist from Diogo Gonçalves.
RSL appeared headed for the playoffs comfortably, before St. Louis rallied. Eduard Lowen scored on a penalty kick in the 42nd minute, and Joao Klauss scored in the 88th minute to tie the game.
St. Louis had a 27-8 advantage in shots, including an 8-3 edge in shots on goal. RSL goalkeeper Rafael Cabral made six saves, while St. Louis’ Roman Bürki stopped one shot.
The draw left RSL needing some help to advance, and the club got it in the form of LAFC’s 2-2 draw with the Colorado Rapids.
RSL, the San Jose Earthquakes and the Rapids finished the season with 41 points each, but RSL (12-18-4) had one more victory than each of those teams to finish in ninth place in the Western Conference.
The reward for RSL is a wild-card matchup against the eighth-place Portland Timbers on Wednesday in Portland, Ore. The winner of that game will advance to the main playoff bracket, which will feature three-game series in the first round.