HOUSTON - Alex scored in the 77th minute and the Houston Dynamo outlasted the short-handed San Jose Earthquakes 2-1 on Saturday night.

With San Jose playing down a man, Oscar Garcia led Sheanon Williams in stride down the right wing. Williams' service to the penalty spot reached Alex, who calmly tapped it in for the tiebreaker.

The Earthquakes (7-10-5) evened it in the 70th minute. After a foiled corner, Cordell Cato lofted a pass to Shaun Francis in the left side of the box. Francis' header went over goalkeeper Joe Willis, and Quincy Amarikwa chested the ball into the goal.

DaMarcus Beasley started the scoring in the 55th minute. He faked out Victor Bernardez at the top of the penalty area and slipped a left-footed shot past David Bingham to the near post. It was the first goal of the season for the U.S. national team player.

Houston (8-8-7) has a three-game unbeaten streak.