Portland Timbers Take First Place in the West with win over Aviators
July 9, 2004 - USL First Division (USL-1)
Edmonton Aviators News Release
Edmonton, ABâ The Edmonton Aviators Men lost to the Portland Timbers tonight by a score of 6-1 after a grueling travel day.
After traveling all night and arriving in Portland at 3am Thursday morning, the Edmonton Aviators took the field against the Western Conference powerhouse Timbers.
The Timbers came out strong and scored early to take a 1-0 lead, but Sean Fraser, the Aviators' hottest player of late, scored just minutes later to tie the game.
The score remained 1-1 into halftime as the Aviators absorbed the Timbers' attack and stopped any offensive chances Portland created.
The second half was a different story as the Timbers scored in bunches and racked up a 6-1 victory.
"When you can't run anymore, you can't play anymore," said Aviators Head Coach Ross Ongaro. "The guys put everything they had into it but they were just too tired in the second half."
When asked if there was something about Portland that gave the Aviators problems after giving up 12 goals in two games to the team, Ongaro said there was nothing.
"Both games were totally different. This was just a case of us missing some players due to injury and suspension and the players that we had not being rested. We used all of our substitutions but couldn't keep up to Portland," said Ongaro. "The guys worked hard right up to the last second. They showed a lot of character; it's unfortunate they were too tired to play in the second half."
The Aviators Men return to Edmonton for the July 13th double-header at Commonwealth Stadium. The men take on the Vancouver Whitecaps at 6pm (MST) and the women take on the Calgary Wildfire at 8:30pm (MST). It is the final double-header of the Aviators' season.
USL First Division Stories from July 9, 2004
- Milwaukee Ready to Host Virginia Beach Tonight - Milwaukee Wave United
- A different Rhinos team in Rochester, Friday - Montreal Impact
- Gordon, Alvarez light up Edmonton as Timbers roll - Portland Timbers
- Portland Timbers Take First Place in the West with win over Aviators - Edmonton Aviators
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
