After grabbing three points during a midweek match against the Colorado Rapids, the Columbus Crew was back at home in front of the sixth straight home sellout crowd to take on Charlotte FC on Saturday night. Though things were not pretty weather-wise, after a delayed kickoff, an eventual 4-2 win was what the Black & Gold needed to get their season back on track.

A commanding start to the first half saw the Crew take an early lead. In the fifth minute, forward Cucho Hernandez played a through ball to Christian Ramirez who took the pass in stride and slotted the shot past Kristijan Kahlina.

Colummbus had a chance to double the lead in the ninth minute when Hernandez had a one-time shot from just inside the 18-yard box, but the attempt went high over the crossbar.

Later in the first half, Yaw Yeboah came close to giving the Crew a 2-0 lead after Hernandez found the wing back alone at the corner of the penalty area. His ensuing shot just missed the near post of an open net.

It wasn’t until the 21st minute when the Black & Gold pulled further ahead through Max Arfsten — who replaced Mohamed Farsi in the starting lineup after the wing back was injured in warmups — who got his second first-team goal. Ramirez received a pass from Yeboah in the final third before switching the play to his right to find Arfsten. The rookie dribbled at his defender, took a couple of step overs and curled a low shot to the far post past Kahlina.

Charlotte looked to have gotten one back minutes later when former Columbus winger Justin Meram had a diving header attempt past goalkeeper Patrick Schulte. The goal was later disallowed after VAR determined Meram was in an offside position on the cross into the penalty box.

Another former Crew member in Harrison Afful attempted to get his name on the score sheet with a shot from outside of the penalty box that was saved by Schulte. The follow-up attempt was deflected out by left center back Malte Amundsen, giving the visitors a corner kick.

In the latter stages of the first half, Hernandez got in on the action following a Lucas Zelarayan ball over the top to find the Colombian striker. Hernandez was able to get a foot on the lofting ball and put it past an onrushing Kahlina to make the score 3-0.

The Black & Gold came out with the same intensity in the second half but Charlotte was able to break through after just 11 minutes. Midfielder Karol Swiderski received a ball in the penalty box and was able to control the pass before sliding it past Schulte.

Just minutes later, a mental mistake by Columbus saw the Crew turn the ball over which allowed Meram to score against his former club goal to bring Charlotte within one.

The Black & Gold extended their lead to 4-2 two minutes later, however. Arfsten dribbled into the penalty box and squared a pass that was left by Hernandez and found the foot of Ramirez. The forward controlled the pass and his shot found the back of the net, his second goal on the night.

Columbus held on to that 4-2 lead, gaining an important three points.

Farsi replaced

Shortly after fans were allowed back in their seats after the severe weather alert was lifted prior to the match and teams began warmups, Farsi pulled up and was being attended to for a leg problem. Head coach Wilfried Nancy opted to start Arfsten in his position, which turned out to do well with the roookie getting a goal and an assist in his first MLS start.

Sellouts galore

Saturday’s announced attendance of 20,199 marked the sixth straight home sellout. This is the seventh overall sellout on the season at Lower.com Field, tying the most in club history from last year.

What’s next

The Crew is on the road next Saturday, June 10, when the Black & Gold travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Fire. Kick off is slated for 8:30 p.m. ET from Soldier Field.