The Colorado Rapids secured their second consecutive victory and fifth in eight games with a 2-1 effort versus the Houston Dynamo on Wednesday night at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park. The win put Colorado within two points of Houston and Salt Lake for the chance to move out of last place in the Western Conference.

Vicente Sánchez scored on a PK a the 20-minute mark and DP Kevin Doyle sent home a header in minute 79, fed by fellow Irishman Sean St. Ledger who was making his DSGP debut for Colorado, in the win.

A third consecutive win on Saturday against Sporting KC would put Colorado back in the playoff mix, despite their current last-place standing.

Following the match, head coach Pablo Mastroeni, Doyle and St. Ledger all spoke with the media about the result.

Here are the highlights…

Pablo Mastroeni: “Coming off of the win in Chicago, there was a lot of patience in that game. It was a well-balanced game. I felt like we were in control from the beginning to the end. We created a lot of great opportunities to score and they defended well in that tight spot. The overall performance was really impressive and dictated by the guys on the field. It’s taken us a long time to get to this point, but I am really proud of their effort and their commitment to the game plan and execution.”

Mastroeni: “(Vicente Sánchez) brings an element of attack that no one else does, and that very few in the league do. He has an ability to drop the team back, run at them and create space for his teammates. I think tonight in the first half he did a tremendous job. He’s a very dynamic player.

Mastroeni: “(Sean St. Ledger’s assist)’s not one you chalk up. The game is won by the players on the field and that was an example of that. He felt it in the moment, and is experienced enough to understand that it was a good opportunity. The touch he had was tremendous. He is a guy that has really helped this team out since he has come on board.

Mastroeni: “We’re fighting every day for three points.”

Kevin Doyle: “Sean (St. Ledger) put in a brilliant job. It was an important goal for us, and a very important win. Those two wins in a row gave us a little bit of momentum after a disappointing spell. We need everything we can get at the moment.”

Doyle: “(St. Ledger and I have) played a lot of games together over the years. He has settled really well since he has been here. He’s only been here a few weeks and it seems like he has been here all season. He’s been in the league so he knows how everything is. The lads have played against him so they respect him – it’s been an easy transition for him here.”

Doyle: “It’s now or never (for a playoff run). We’ve always been one or two games away from being just on the edge of it with a game at hand. We’ve always believed it, but it’s just a difference of believing it and doing it. We need to win a lot more games from now to the end of the season to have a chance to finish respectfully.

Sean St. Ledger: “When you win an away game you have to build on that to gain confidence. I feel like tonight was a huge result for us. We’ve earned six points in a matter of a few days, and we’re going into Saturday against Sporting Kansas City full of confidence and looking to get nine points. It’s been a great effort so far, but we need to finish now.”

St. Ledger: “I’ve played against Kevin (Doyle) many times, I know when there is a ball hanging in the air it’s a 50/50 chance he’s going to win it. I knew if I could get it over the keeper he would score. People don’t see all of the hard work we put in on the training pitch, and I think it has paid off tonight. We’re looking forward to Saturday now.”

St. Ledger: “We know what is ahead of us. We know that we have to win the majority of our games if we’re going to go anywhere. Tonight was a great start against Houston. We have to be consistent in all 90 minutes to win games. This is a team effort, and if we want to get off of the bottom of the table it has to start with the players.”

Colorado faces Sporting KC at 7 p.m. MDT Saturday at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park. The game will be broadcast on Mile High Sports AM 1340 or Listen Live via the online stream or apps for iPhone and Android devices.