FRISCO, Texas -- Now you know for sure why Brian Ching has been dubbed the "Hawaiian Superman".
By turning sudden agony into sudden ecstasy for Houston with a stunning goal in the 114th minute, Ching put Dynamo on an improbable path to a MLS Cup championship Sunday at Pizza Hut Park and then was honored with the Honda MVP award.
For all of one minute, 11 seconds, it looked as though New England's Taylor Twellman would be taking home the MVP hardware. Twellman scored to give Revolution a 1-0 lead with seven minutes remaining in the second overtime. But Ching wasn't going to give up, nor were his Houston teammates.
Straight from the kickoff, Houston roared back toward the New England goal and Ching stationed himself in the box to take his last best shot. It all came together in magical fashion as a cross by Brian Mullan was partially deflected. Ching instinctively gauged the flight and speed of the ball and snapped off a header that got by sprawling New England goalkeeper Matt Reis.
"It's the best award I've ever won, because it came in the course of our team winning a championship," Ching said. "We have a lot of MVPs on this team, but there's only one award. I'm happy to accept it as a reflection on our group of guys who just kept battling when things looked bad."
When New England scored so late, after 112 scoreless minutes, Ching's reaction was no different than what the throng of orange-clad Houston supporters were collectively feeling.
"My heart sank," Ching said. "But I told myself I wasn't leaving this field without giving it my all. I knew my teammates were feeling the same thing. We've just got a bunch of warriors."
With only seven minutes left to force a penalty kick session, Dynamo and Ching came through a goal that was about as shocking as a desperation Hail Mary pass in football or a halfcourt buzzer-beater in basketball.
"I knew Mullan was going to cross the ball," Ching said. "We were fortunate to get a little deflection. I just got in the box and did the things that make me a goal scorer. The ball fell right to me and I was fortunate enough to put it in."
Ching also found the net as Houston claimed the title with a 4-3 edge in the penalty kick shootout. He made a hesitation move on his run-up to the ball and easily sent his penalty kick past Reis.
Houston coach Dominic Kinnear thought his team might get one chance by throwing enough bodies forward after New England went up 1-0 with seven minutes left. But he never could have imagined that chance would come so soon.
"When Ching's header hit the net, I was in a state of disbelief," Kinnear said. "It happened so fast. You go from complete despair to complete elation. The path that led me from despair to elation was too fast and my mind couldn't catch up to it."
Besides Ching's offensive heroics, Houston goalkeeper Pat Onstad pointed to a defensive play that underscored Ching's MVP effort. Marking on a free kick in the 86th minute, he knocked the ball away from Taylor Twellman.
"He made a game-saving tackle inside the six-yard box late in the second half," Onstad said. "That's the kind of plays this team makes."
Ching got just two shots on goal against New England's stingy defense, but made the last one count.
"You make the most of your opportunities," Kinnear said. "When people don't have that many chances, that's why consistency is such a huge thing for a forward. If you do get that chance, how effective will you be when it happens?"
Ching answered that question with a goal that he and Dynamo fans will long remember. In the ultimate MLS game, Ching was Superman without the cape.
Robert Falkoff is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
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