San Diego native Duran Ferree posted a clean sheet in his first career Major League Soccer start, and San Diego FC opened its second MLS Cup season with a 5-0 blowout of CF Montreal on Saturday at Snapdragon Stadium.
Ferree — a 19-year-old product of the United Soccer League’s now-defunct San Diego Loyal SC program — earned the start with Pablo Sisniega serving a one-game suspension and CJ dos Santos still recovering from a broken cheekbone sustained last July.
The Del Norte High School alum came through early into the match. He made his first MLS save in just the fourth minute, stopping Hennadii Synchuk’s attempt from left of the goal.
Ferree stepped up again in the 27th minute when he extended his 6-foot-2 frame while leaping behind a crowd in front of the net, plucking Dagur Thorhallsson’s corner kick out of the air.
The denial of a Montreal opportunity helped SDFC preserve an initial 1-0 lead, built at the 14th minute when the Chrome and Blue made good on its own corner-kick chance.
Anders Dreyer — sporting a new look with a close-cropped haircut, but otherwise donning the same All-Star form of the 2025 season — threaded the needle through the Montreal defense to set up Chris McVey for the first SDFC goal of 2026 MLS Cup play. McVey punched a header past goalkeeper Thomas Gillier off of the Dreyer assist.
Dreyer’s 16 assists in 2025 trailed only league leader Lionel Messi, and the right wing is off to a torrid start in 2026 with a second assist on Saturday. He dropped off a pass to Marcus Ingvartsen, who rifled a left-footed shot in the 59th minute.
Ingvartsen’s goal came in a three-goal SDFC deluge bookending the halftime break. The decisive stretch began during first-half extra time when Dreyer attacked on a breakaway that Gillier initially denied.
Anders Dreyer #10, Christopher McVey #97, and Marcus Ingvartsen #7 of San Diego FC celebrator after a goal against CF Montreal during the season opener at Snapdragon Stadium on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026 in San Diego, California. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
But Gillier could not stop Amahl Pellegrino, who was on the spot for the follow-up. Pellegrino, a late-season acquisition from San Jose in 2025, scored three goals in seven MLS Cup matches with SDFC after joining the club in August.
Pellegrino’s putback on Saturday marked a crescendo to a late first-half flurry of action. Montreal threatened in the waning moments before intermission, but Ferree eliminated a threat when he dove out of the box and headed the ball out of attacking range.
Just before Dreyer’s breakaway in extra time, Ferree also stopped an Olger Escobar shot attempt for the second of the goalkeeper’s two saves on the night.
SDFC extended the lead further in the 53rd minute. Minutes after Montreal’s Tomas Aviles was shown a red card for a foul of Pellegrino — which resulted in a lengthy injury delay and VAR review — Onni Valakari capitalized against the short-handed visitors with a rocket from beyond the box that found the back of the net.
Right to Dream grad Bryan Zamble punctuated the rout with one final goal. An 18-year-old who signed just two days earlier, Zamble celebrated by jumping the barrier to join in supporters’ section.