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Sounders Lose First Of Year At Home, 3-1 To Rochester

July 19, 2008 - USL First Division (USL-1)
Seattle Sounders News Release


TUKWILA -- In a place where they've almost always managed to pick up some points, the Seattle Sounders came up empty on Friday night.

Former Sounders star Andrew Gregor snapped a 1-1 tie with a goal in the 27th minute, and Matthew Delicate scored on a counterattack breakaway just one minute after subbing into the game midway through the second half as the Rochester Rhinos pinned a 3-1 loss on Seattle at Starfire Sports Complex.

The loss, in front of 2,965 fans, was just the second in 15 games all-time -- and the first in regular-season play -- for the Sounders at Starfire, where they are now 8-2-5. The only other time they came up short was to Puerto Rico in the second leg of last year's United Soccer Leagues First Division semifinals. The Islanders won that game, 1-0, but the Sounders went on to win the series in penalty kicks.

"I wrote three things on the blackboard for them to look at: Effort, quality and decision-making. Not any of those were on display tonight," Sounders coach Brian Schmetzer said.

The Sounders (5-5-8, 23 points) have struggled to find the win column since a 3-1 victory against Minnesota at Starfire on June 7. Seattle is just 1-3-3 in seven USL-1 games since then, the only win coming last Sunday at Montreal, 1-0.

The Sounders did remain in fourth place in the standings, although the three teams ahead of them -- Charleston (27 points in 15 games), Puerto Rico (27 in 16 games) and Vancouver (24 in 14 games) all have at least two games at hand.

"We have to find a rhythm and a better way to play and get results at home," defender Danny Jackson said.

The Sounders never led in the game as the Rhinos (5-5-6, 21 points) extended their unbeaten streak to four games. They started the season at 0-4-3, scoring just two goals in their first seven games.

Rochester got onto the board on a counterattack at the outset of the 15th minute. Johnny Menyongar gained control of the ball about a third of the way into Seattle's zone and sent it to a streaking Luke Kreamalmeyer down the right wing side.

Kreamalmeyer's goal was his second in a week against Seattle. He scored the only goal of the game in a 1-0 Rhinos win at Rochester on July 11.

Easily catching up to it behind the Sounders defense, Kreamalmeyer took it into the right side of the box. From about 15 yards away, he fired a shallow shot that flew across the goalmouth just out of the reach of goalkeeper Chris Eylander, caught the inside of the left post and bounced into the net at 14:08.

The Sounders needed less than two minutes to tie it. Leighton O'Brien sent a long through ball down the left side, and Sebastien Le Toux won a foot race to it. Le Toux took it into the box, saw O'Brien running straight down the center of the field toward the top of the box, sent the ball that direction, and O'Brien slammed it home at 16:05, knotting it at 1-1.

Gregor, who was part of Seattle's 2005 USL championship team, put Rochester ahead to stay at the 26:50 mark. Once again, it was on a counterattack as Kreamalmeyer got the ball to Gregor running into the left side of the box. Gregor, as he was falling down, beat Eylander one on one to the back right corner.

After Gregor gave the Rhinos their 2-1 lead, the Sounders had two near misses. In the 37th minute, Kevin Sakuda sent a perfectly placed target ball from the right wing side into the box for Kenji Treschuk, whose header was saved on the line by Rochester goalkeeper Scott Vallow.

Just four minutes later, Le Toux went into the box one on one against a Rhinos defender and let loose with a shot from the top of Vallow's front porch, only to see it blocked.

Le Toux was blocked twice more from the top of the arc early in the second half. But from that point on, the Sounders didn't generate much in the way of dangerous chances, although they did have a couple of shots go just wide during stoppage time. Seattle actually wound up with a significant advantage in shots, 16-5.

The three goals surrendered by the Sounders were the most they've allowed in a league game since a 3-1 home loss to Vancouver on May 12, 2007.

"We didn't win the ball on the first (Rhinos) goal, we gave it away on the second goal -- it's just disappointing when you try to be a strong defensive team and you have a couple lapses," Jackson said. "Give credit to them for taking advantage and putting the ball in the net."

The Sounders return to action on Thursday at Minnesota, and then return home to play the Charleston Battery at home on Saturday, July 26.

QUICK KICKS -- Starting defender Taylor Graham missed his first game of the season. Graham, sidelined with a hamstring injury, had played in all but 101 minutes of Seattle's first 17 games. ... The Sounders have won just once in seven league game (1-3-3) since a 3-1 victory against Minnesota at Starfire on June 7, picking up just six of a possible 21 points. ... Seattle went 0-2-1 in three games against Rochester. The teams tied 1-1 at Starfire on May 14 as the Rhinos scored in the 90th minute, and Rochester won last Friday on its home field, 1-0. ... Seattle's Jason Cascio and Kenji Treschuk both avoided any yellow cards on Friday. Each of them has four, and the next one means a one-game suspension.

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