Crew-Revolution Preview

The New England Revolution have won all but one of their last seven games, with the only exception coming in a narrow loss to the Columbus Crew.

Looking to avenge that defeat, the Revolution try to avoid a three-game season sweep to the Crew as these Eastern Conference foes continue their postseason quests Saturday night at Gillette Stadium.

New England (14-13-3) had outscored opponents 11-3 during a season best-tying five-game winning streak before falling 1-0 at Columbus on Sept. 20. Crew forward Federico Higuain scored in the 48th minute and Steve Clark matched a season high with six saves.

However, the Revolution resumed their winning ways last Friday with a 3-2 victory at Sporting Kansas City. They blew a 2-0 lead before Jermaine Jones scored the tiebreaking goal in the 85th minute.

"It was a great response to the loss last week," coach Jay Heaps told the team's official website. "There's a lot of football left to be played. The Eastern Conference is really tight, so we're just focusing on getting up in the table."

With 45 points, New England is two ahead of fourth-place Columbus (11-9-10) with four games remaining.

The Crew are seeking a season best-tying third consecutive win after beating Montreal 2-0 last Saturday, their fourth clean sheet in six matches. Ethan Finlay opened the scoring in the second minute and Higuain added his team-leading 11th goal on a penalty kick.

"We did not want to get too far ahead of this game, but we know we have a tough task ahead of us in October," Finlay said. "We want to finish strong on the road. The next three games (away from home) are going to be challenging, but I think we are up for it."

While Columbus has won five straight at home, it's gone 1-5-6 over its last 12 road contests. Its only victory over that stretch came 2-1 at New England on July 26, snapping a four-game losing streak in the series. Higuain and Finlay provided all the offense, with Finlay's tiebreaking goal coming in the 84th minute.

"It's nothing. It's the same thing. It's a soccer game," coach Gregg Berhalter said of playing on the road. "We prepare the same way for both games. Our game is to take the game to the opponent, to dominate the opponent with the ball. We try to do that anywhere, regardless if we're playing in LA or New York, anywhere.

"I haven't always thought of it like that, but with this group, we're confident in what we can execute. That's the mentality that we have. It may not always go our way, but in terms of what we're trying to do, it's the same."

The Revolution have gone unbeaten at home since that July 26 defeat, outscoring opponents 12-4 during a 5-0-1 run. Lee Nguyen has scored five of his team-leading 12 goals during that stretch - including three match-winners - while adding two assists.