Of the Columbus Crew’s 13 second-half shots, only one found the back of the net.

Columbus fought to a 1-1 tie against Seattle Sounders FC on Saturday at Crew Stadium to extend its unbeaten streak to seven games. But many Crew players, including defender and team captain Chad Marshall, said they expected a win.

“They came out and got the early goal, which was upsetting,” Marshall said. “I think that, throughout the entire game, we were the better team. We created better chances. I don’t know what it is, but eventually, we’ll beat these guys.”

Seattle forward Fredy Montero provided the Sounders with a 1-0 lead in the seventh minute, scoring a header off a cross from midfielder Erik Friberg. The Crew responded with a 67th-minute penalty-kick goal from forward Emilio Renteria to tie the game.

That scoreline held for the rest of the contest.

The tie was just the third in the Crew’s history against Seattle and improved their all-time record against Seattle to 0-3-3. Last season, the Crew suffered a 0-2-1 record against the Sounders, which included a 4-0 defeat in league play Sept. 18 and a 2-1 loss at Seattle’s Qwest Field in the United States Open Cup final just 17 days later.

Crew midfielder Robbie Rogers said he felt Columbus was the better team Saturday.

“I really felt like we killed them in the second half,” Rogers said. “I wanted to win that one really bad. I’ll keep this in mind when we go to Seattle.”

The Crew outshot Seattle, 13-1, in the final 45 minutes, and also took six corner kicks in the half — three of which came in stoppage time — compared to only one taken by Seattle.

Renteria, who spoke through a translator, even said he felt there was much to be desired from his game-tying penalty-kick goal.

“I hit it terribly,” he said.

Terribly hit or not, Renteria’s goal increased the Crew’s point total in the standings to 13 and allowed them to jump to second place in the Eastern Conference. Columbus now trails the No. 1 New York Red Bulls by two points.

Despite helping to improve the team’s place in the standings, Renteria expressed disappointment in the tie, saying it would have been nice to take three points from Saturday’s match.

“There were plenty of opportunities, probably the most I’ve seen since the beginning of the season,” he said. “It would have been nice to get that extra goal.”

By contrast, Columbus coach Robert Warzycha said he was satisfied with his team’s play.

“I think we started the game pretty well,” he said. “I think there was good balance.”

Warzycha also said he was happy to take a result in the form of a tie from Saturday’s match.

“The most important thing is the result at the end of the day,” he said. “The result is after 90 minutes. I’m happy that we tied the game.”

The Crew next will travel to California for a Saturday match against the San Jose Earthquakes. Kickoff is scheduled for 10:30 p.m.