FENTON • In a game that had all the trappings of a standard AC St. Louis game, the team managed to change the script Sunday night.

AC St. Louis took an early lead against last-place Miami FC but then got outplayed at the start of the second half and saw the match get tied. But AC St. Louis recovered, scoring a goal in the 70th minute and getting an own goal in the 75th minute that led to a 3-1 win at the Anheuser-Busch Center.

Brad Stisser had a goal and an assist in the team's first win in more than a month, a run that saw AC play to four ties and a loss as it fought to stay in the playoff chase. Two of those four ties came in matches the team led late in the game.

"It was about time we responded," said forward Mike Ambersley, whose ninth goal of the season put AC St. Louis ahead 2-1. "It helped that they scored early in the half; it gave us time to come back. To score two goals (after losing the lead) and win shows a lot of character and it gives us a big boost going into the last five games. A win's huge for us."

AC St. Louis is now in the race for the final playoff spot, though it remains on the outside looking in. With five games to play, AC is two points out of eighth, but it has to catch two teams, neither of which it currently holds the tiebreaker on.

"We're making it interesting," coach Dale Schilly said.

AC St. Louis took the lead in the 19th minute when Stisser headed in a free kick from Luke Kreamalmeyer on a play the team had been practicing all week. But the end of the first half and the first 20 minutes of the second half saw steady pressure by Miami, which finally got a goal from Abe Thompson in the 63rd minute.

In the past, a goal like that would be fatal, but not this time. In the 70th minute, Stisser dug a ball out of the corner and crossed to Ambersley, who scored from close range, the third straight game in which he has had a goal. Five minutes later, a cross from AC St. Louis' Mark Bloom was put into the net by Miami's Martyn Lancaster. Miami launched steady pressure in the closing minutes and had a goal wiped out by an offsides call in the 89th minute.

AC was helped by the addition of Chris Schuler, who's on loan from Real Salt Lake, on the back line, but he is scheduled to rejoin his MLS club today for a midweek match and probably won't be available for Saturday's game with Minnesota.