NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Sam Surridge scored in the first half and Brian Schwake finished off his league-leading 12th clean sheet of the season as Nashville clinched a playoff spot and remained unbeaten at home with a 3-0 victory over the Chicago Fire on Saturday night.
Eastern Conference-leading Nashville (17-3-6) became the first MLS team to lock up a postseason berth, leads the Supporters’ Shield race and is the only team in the league unbeaten at home at 12-0-1.
Surridge staked Nashville to a 1-0 lead in the 33rd minute and it stood through halftime. Cristian Espinoza added an insurance goal in the 78th minute and Hany Mukhtar scored in the 87th to set the final margin.
It was the 16th goal of the season for Surridge, the fourth for Espinoza and the 11th for Mukhtar as the whole front line for Nashville found the net.
Schwake, a 25-year-old first-year starter, notched one save and has surrendered only 21 goals in 26 starts.
Chris Brady saved two shots for the Fire (11-8-6), who have lost two straight after a seven-match unbeaten streak.
The Fire handed Nashville its first loss of the season with a 1-0 victory April 4 at Soldier Field. Philip Zinckernagel scored 16 seconds into that match for the lone goal — the earliest scored in Fire history.
Up next
Fire: at Charlotte FC on Saturday.
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Nashville: vs. Toronto FC on Saturday.