Soccer-Portland slump to third straight defeat in MLS

May 15 (Reuters) - New York City condemned last season's Major League Soccer champions Portland to a third straight defeat on Sunday after Thomas McNamara curled a shot past Timbers goalkeeper Jake Gleeson from outside the box to give his side a 2-1 victory. The win saw New York go second in the Eastern Conference, behind Montreal on goal difference on 16 points from 11 games, while Portland are second bottom in the West with 12 points from 12 games. David Villa gave the visitors the lead in the 12th minute with his fourth goal in three games before Timbers forward Fanendo Ali pulled them level with an impressive solo effort in the 55th minute. McNamara grabbed the winner 10 minutes later to condemn the Timbers to their longest losing streak since they dropped five in a row in July 2012. New York goalkeeper Josh Saunders preserved the win with several excellent saves, including a diving stop to deflect wide Darlington Nagbe's close-range attempt early in the second half. Villa and Ali, who left the game three minutes after scoring due to a hamstring issue, joined Toronto striker Sebastian Giovinco at the top of the scoring charts by each tallying their eighth of the season. In a game postponed to Sunday because of inclement weather the previous day, Houston's Giles Barnes scored the winner as Dynamo beat Real Salt Lake 1-0, while Orlando City beat Sporting Kansas City 2-1. (Reporting by Tim Wharnsby; Editing by Peter Rutherford)