In the most anticipated US Open Cup non-Final game in years, the Seattle Sounders and the Portland Timbers met at PGE Park in front of 16,382 fans, the largest non-doubleheader, non-final game in the Modern Era (1995-present) of Open Cup history; many of them were traveling from Seattle to watch their team play their longtime Cascadia rivals. Those traveling fans were treated to a 2-1 Sounders win in the Rose City, giving them a 2-1 edge all-time in the Open Cup.
The Sounders started right out of the gate only 48 seconds in as Roger Levesque, who could be considered the most hated player on the team by Timbers fans, put home a diving header from Sanna Nyassi to give Seattle the early lead. Later, in the 27th minute, Stephen King receives a pass from Nate Jaqua and makes the most of it, blasting it inside the far post to give the Sounders a 2-0 lead.
The Timbers, however, wouldn’t go down without a fight. Mere minutes before half, in the 43rd, Mandjou Keita finds a pass from David Hayes in the box and volleys it past Sounders keeper (and former Timber) Kasey Keller to pull Portland within one.
Portland had plenty of chances in the second half to try and equalize, but it wasn’t to be. Seattle one-ups its rival 2-1 at PGE Park to move on to the Quarterfinals, where they will take on the Kansas City Wizards next Tuesday at the Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila, Wash.
VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS: SEATTLE SOUNDERS VS. PORTLAND TIMBERS