COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Adolfo Valencia avoided a pileup for an uncontested goal in the 60th minute as the New York/New Jersey MetroStars beat the Columbus Crew 2-0 Saturday night.

Mike Ammann turned away 11 shots -- only one on goal -- for the shutout. The Crew's only real scoring chance came on Brian McBride's shot in the 5th minute that was smothered by Ammann.

Petter Villegas controlled the ball off a goal kick by the Crew's Matt Napoleon and bounced a long lead pass for Valencia. As the ball rolled to within 17 yards of the Crew goal, Napoleon and defender Todd Yeagley collided. The ball squirted free and Valencia was alone for the score.

Valencia came right back with a nifty move against two defenders to turn a Villegas assist into an insurance goal in the 69th minute.

The victory moved the MetroStars (3-5-0), to second place in the Eastern Division. The Crew, which remained in last place in the Central Division at 3-5-1, drew 17,558 for its largest home crowd of the season.

Columbus' Roland Aguilera was fouled by MetroStars captain Lothar Matthaeus in the 78th minute, touching off a brief confrontation. The Crew's Mario Gori confronted Matthaeus before players from both sides separated them.

The Crew was without Mark Dougherty, its top goalkeeper, and Dante Washington, the leading scorer in MLS.

Dougherty injured a hip during pregame workouts and was replaced by Napoleon in goal. Napoleon made only his second start in his two seasons with the Crew.

Washington -- leading the league with six goals and 13 points -- was injured in an auto accident after Friday's practice. His car was rear-ended by another car, with Washington suffering shoulder and back injuries. He was available, but was replaced in the starting lineup by Miles Joseph.

Joseph made his first start since being traded by the MetroStars for a second-round draft pick Wednesday. Joseph had fallen into such disfavor with MetroStars coach Octavio Zambrano that he was not even permitted to practice with the team for the two weeks leading to the trade.

The match was also a homecoming for former Crew captain Thomas Dooley. Dooley was traded during the offseason after a public feud with Crew coach Tom Fitzgerald.