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VIDEO: GUATEMALA CITY - Carlos Ruiz scored twice in the second half to spark Guatemala to a 3-1 victory over 10-man Antigua and Barbuda on Friday night and boost its chances of advancing in CONCACAF World Cup qualifying.
The victory moved Guatemala into a tie for second place in Group A with the United States. Both sides now have four points after the Americans fell 2-1 to Jamaica in Kingston on Friday night. Antigua and Barbuda remained last with one point from three matches.
Guatemala had to overcome not only Peter Byers' goal six minutes before halftime but a deluging rain that soaked Estadio Mateo Flores.
Guatemala noticeably improved after the interval and received its reward in the 60th minute. Marco Pappa wriggled free on the right side of the penalty area and curved a cross toward the back post with the outside of his foot for Ruiz to head home the equalizer.
The home side escaped a further setback after 68 minutes when the visitors hit the bar, but Antigua goalkeeper Molvin James aided the Guatemalans' efforts eight minutes later by procuring a second yellow card for delaying a restart.
Ruiz and his teammates soon took advantage of the extra space on a field littered with puddles of standing water. The veteran striker pounced again shortly after James' dismissal to give the Guatemalans the lead before Dwight Pezzarossi secured the victory in second-half stoppage time by finishing off another Pappa feed.
The win ended a four-game losing streak for Guatemala and marked only its third victory in its last 10 games.
