against the Columbus Crew and a 2–3 loss to D.C. United in overtime. Chicago returned home to Soldier Field with a 1–0 victory against the Miami Fusion, due in part to Thornton's return from his injury and the debuts of Bocanegra and Sorber for the team. The Fire settled into a stretch of five home fixtures over seven matches, winning four times and improving their record to 6–5–1 to overtake Dallas and Tampa Bay for first place in the Central Division. Stoitchkov was left out of the starting lineup for most of May due to a groin strain and replaced by Ante Razov, who recorded 10 goals in 12 matches to lead MLS in scoring and earned the first hat-trick in club history. Chicago also lost a trio of key players—Razov, Armas, and defender C. J. Brown—to the U.S. national team for the 2000 U.S. Cup for two weeks in June; as a result, the team dipped into second in the Central Division before regaining their lead with a victories against Kansas City and Miami at home. The Fire stayed atop the Central Division and were five points behind Kansas City in the overall league standings by late June, but conceded late goals to tie Los Angeles and San Jose during a three-match road trip. As the team entered a crowded stretch of league and U.S. Open Cup matches, they lost several players to international call-ups as well as both Stoichkov to a torn groin muscle and defender Luboš Kubík to a sprained knee for a month. Chicago fell behind Tampa Bay in the Central Division standings entering the All-Star break at the end of July after several draws and overtime matches. The Fire defeated Tampa Bay to draw level with them on points atop the Central Division and the two team stayed tied through two more matches in mid-August. With four of six remaining matches against Central Division rivals, the Fire began an unbeaten streak to clinch the division title and earn a 17–9–6 overall record for the regular season. Following a victory against the Los Angeles Galaxy and tie with Tampa Bay, the latter ending with two injured defenders, Chicago won three consecutive home matches to reach second place in the overall league standings. The Fire finished the regular season with a 3–2 victory in Columbus and tied Kansas City atop the league standings with 57 points, but