Carlos Darwin Quintero (yellow jersey) gets ready to shoot against host Walter Ferretti in the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League on September 16, 2015, in Managua, Nicaragua. (Photo: www.pinolerosports.com)

MANAGUA, Nicaragua – Club America edged closer to a place in the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinals with a 3-1 win over host Walter Ferretti on Wednesday.

All the goals were netted in the first-half, including two by Carlos Darwin Quintero, who tied teammate Oribe Peralta for second on the tournament’s all-time scoring list with 20 goals.

The Aguilas (3W-0D-0L, 9 points) maintained their spot atop the Group E table with maximum points from three games, while idle Motagua (1W-0D-1L, 3 points) stayed in second and Walter Ferretti was eliminated (0W-0D-3L, 0 points) with one game to play.

Quintero opened the scoring in the 13th minute with one of the goals of the tournament. The 27-year-old perfectly measured his strike on a long ball played into the right side of the box by Javier Guemez, half-volleying it over goalkeeper Denis Espinoza from 11-yards out and into the far side netting.

The lead was doubled in the 27th minute, when Michael Arroyo converted a penalty kick after Dario Benedetto was pushed over in the left side of the box by Eulises Pavon. It was Arroyo’s second goal in as many SCCL games and the third of his career.

While Walter Ferretti looked like it might be undone by a brilliant strike and a kick from the spot, it stuck to the game plan and halved the deficit in the 39th minute. Thanks to some nifty dribbling in the left side of the box, Pavon managed to free himself from the clutches of three defenders, got to the end line and played a ball just beyond the top of the six-yard box. Jose Bernardo Laureiro reacted quickly and slotted it into the back of the net for the Nicaraguan side’s first-ever SCCL goal.

The SCCL defending champion’s two-goal lead was restored three minutes later and, unsurprisingly, Quintero was the one to connect. Rubens Sambueza held up the ball capably in the right side box, back-heeling a pass to the forward sprinting Quintero. Using his strength to ward off a defender, the former Santos standout drilled a low right-footed shot inside the far post from eight-yards out.

Group E play resumes on September 24 with Motagua needing a win at Walter Ferretti to avoid elimination.