WASHINGTON — Lucas Zelarayán scored on a first-half penalty kick, Christian Ramírez added a goal after halftime and the Columbus Crew blanked D.C. United 2-0 on Saturday night.
Zelarayán staked Columbus (4-2-1) to a 1-0 lead in the 39th minute and has had a hand in nine goals (seven scores and two assists) in eight career matches against DC United — his most against any opponent.
Ramírez added an insurance goal two minutes into the second half. Mohamed Farsi and Will Sands had assists.
The Crew, who picked up their third straight win, have two 2-0 victories over DC United this season and improved to 4-0-1 in the last five meetings.
DC United (1-4-2) has won just two of its last 20 matches dating to last season.
United had a 14-13 edge in shots and both teams had five shots on goal.
Patrick Schulte stopped four shots for Columbus. Tyler Miller had three saves for DC United.
Columbus returns home to host the New England Revolution on Saturday. DC United travels to play Montreal on Saturday.
