Ramírez, Schulte propel Crew to 2-0 victory over Nashville

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Christian Ramírez scored early, Columbus benefited from an own-goal late and the Crew blanked Nashville SC 2-0. Patrick Schulte finished with four saves to earn the clean sheet for Columbus (9-6-4), which takes a 3-2-2 lead in the series. Nashville had won two straight over the Crew, including a 3-1 victory earlier this season. Nashville (10-5-5) has cooled off a bit since a 10-match unbeaten streak ended in a 1-0 loss to CF Montreal. The club hasn’t scored since Hany Mukhtar had a hat trick in a 3-1 victory over first-year member St. Louis City. Mukhtar leads the league with 13 goals this season. Columbus took the lead on an unassisted goal by Ramírez in the 20th minute. It was his seventh netter of the season.