ORLANDO, Fla. — Orlando City had waited until the last moment. Needing a win on Decision Day to clinch their third straight trip to the playoffs, the Lions kept their fans on edge, falling behind 1-0 in the first half before leveling it early in the second.

In the end, Orlando City made the waiting worth it.

Facundo Torres scored on a penalty kick in the 84th minute and Orlando City grabbed the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with a 2-1 victory over the Columbus Crew on Sunday.

"Today is a great day," Orlando City coach Oscar Pareja said. "We overcome. That is the culture of us. Suffering probably too much."

Orlando City (14-14-6) beat Columbus (10-8-16) for the seventh time in the last eight meetings. Orlando City went 9-8-0 at home this season. The only other team to finish a season without a draw at home, excluding the shortened 2020 season, was the 2002 New England Revolution.

The Lions came out flat, going behind 1-0 on a Derrick Etienne goal in the 38th minute. It was Etienne’s 10th goal of the season, tying Lucas Zelarayán for the team lead.

Júnior Urso’s sixth goal of the season pulled Orlando City even in the 56th minute, setting the stage for Torres’ match winner. A handball call on the Crew’s Milos Degenek led to the penalty kick. It was Torres’ ninth goal, second on the team to Ercan Kara’s 11.

The Lions were on the edge of missing the playoffs, becoming one of the few teams in MLS history to win the U.S. Open Cup and then miss the postseason. With a seven-point lead for the final playoff spot with six games to go, the Lions made their supporters sweat, losing four of their next five.

With everything on the line, Orlando City rallied to win.

"We tried to take it like this was our first game of the playoffs," Urso said. "We think about that because if we win, wer're in. If we lose, out. So today I think it was our first game."

Orlando City enters the postseason as the 7-seed in the Eastern Conference. The team will play at CF Montreal next weekend in the first round of the MLS Playoffs.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.