MLS Seattle Sounders FC

Sounders FC Edged 2-1 by Cascadia Rival Portland in Preseason Friendly in Tucson

Published on February 14, 2019 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Seattle Sounders FC News Release


TUCSON, ARIZ. - Fielding a rotated team after last Saturday's opening fixture in Tucson versus Houston, Sounders FC Head Coach Brian Schmetzer's Sounders FC suffered a late 2-1 loss to Cascadia rival Portland Timbers under the lights at Kino Sports Stadium in Tucson, Arizona on Wednesday evening. Second-year player Handwalla Bwana found the scoresheet for the Rave Green, as a mixture of First Team and Tacoma Defiance players combined for a strong outing against their oldest rival. Sounders FC now looks to wind down its time in the desert over the next three days, concluding the Tucson portion of its preseason training camp with a third and final friendly against FC Dallas on February 16.

After a hard-fought opening half hour that was indicative of the Seattle-Portland rivalry, Bwana vaulted the Rave Green into an early lead in the 33rd minute of play. The University of Washington product crashed Portland's far post, heading home a Marlon Vargas cross from the right side of the area. For Bwana, it was his second preseason goal versus Portland in as many years, with the winger scoring on February 3, 2018 at Kino in a 2-1 win over the Timbers. Vargas - an 18-year-old Sounders FC Academy product currently signed to the Tacoma Defiance - earned his first assist of 2019 preseason on the play.

Portland was awarded a penalty in the 37th minute of action, as Jordy Delem was ruled to have fouled Andy Polo inside Seattle's 18-yard-box. Diego Valeri stepped up to covert the spot-kick, equalizing the score at one goal apiece leading into the intermission.

Portland looked to have earned another penalty in the 54th minute, this time for an alleged Delem handball, but the use of video review determined that initial call to be incorrect, preserving the 1-1 deadlock. The winner for the Timbers came in the 88th minute, with Dairon Asprilla getting behind the Seattle defense on the right side of the area and feeding Jeremy Ebobisse for a late tap-in.

Sounders FC's 2018 preseason camp in Arizona concludes with a final exhibition match versus FC Dallas on Saturday, February 16 before the club returns to Seattle. As part of its 2019 preseason preparations, Sounders FC is set to host Uruguayan club Nacional in a friendly at CenturyLink Field on Wednesday, February 20 at 7:30 p.m. PT. One of the most storied clubs in South America, Nacional has won the Uruguayan Primera División 46 times, in addition to three Copa Libertadores titles and three Intercontinental Cups.

MATCH SUMMARY

Seattle Sounders FC 1 - Portland Timbers 2

Wednesday, February 13, 2019

Venue: Kino Sports Complex I Tucson, Arizona

Weather: 63 degrees and clear

SCORING SUMMARY

SEA - Handwalla Bwana (Marlon Vargas+) 33'

POR - Diego Valeri (penalty kick) 40'

SEA - Jeremy Ebobisse (Dairon Asprilla) 88'

MISCONDUCT SUMMARY

SEA - Alex Roldan (caution) 36'

SEA - Marlon Vargas+ (caution) 50'

POR - Andrés Flores (caution) 90'

LINEUPS & STATS

Seattle Sounders FC - Bryan Meredith (Trey Muse 74'); Henry Wingo (Kyle VanAlstine* 74'), Jordy Delem (Josh Atencio+ 74'), Jonathan Campbell (Aleks Berkolds* 74'), Jordan McCrary (Nouhou 74'); Danny Leyva+, Alex Roldan (Joel Rydstrand* 74'), Marlon Vargas+ (Azriel Gonzalez+ 58'), Harry Shipp (Danny Robles+ 74'), Handwalla Bwana (Ray Serrano+ 74'), Will Bruin (Alec Diaz+ 74')

+ Player currently signed to USL roster

* Sounders FC Academy player

^ Guest player

Portland Timbers - Jeff Attinella (Steve Clark 60'); Derek Valentin (Marco Farfan 60'), Larrys Mabiala (Bill Tuiloma 60'), Julio Cascante (Claude Dielna 60'), Jorge Villafaña (Miller* 60'); David Guzmán (Andres Flores 60'), Cristhian Paredes (Diego Chara 60'), Andy Polo (Dairon Asprilla 60'), Diego Valeri (Marvin Loria 60'), Sebastian Blanco (Tomas Conechny 60'); Lucas Melano (Jeremy Ebobisse 60')

*Guest player

Check out the Seattle Sounders FC Statistics

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Major League Soccer Stories from February 14, 2019


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