Seattle Sounders USL

2007 Quarterfinals: Sounders hand Rapids worst-ever loss by MLS team

August 7, 2007 by adamspangler

The Seattle Sounders rolled past another Major League Soccer side Tuesday night, throttling the Colorado Rapids 5-0 at Qwest Field to return to the US Open Cup Semifinals for the first time since 1995.

Defenders Taylor Graham and Zach Scott scored on headers off set pieces in a two-minute span midway through the first half to set the tone for the Sounders, who earned a home match against FC Dallas in a Sept. 4 Semifinal.

The five-goal deficit is the worst defeat suffered by an MLS team in Open Cup history. The league’s worst loss to USL opponents prior to Tuesday night was three goals, which has happened four times since 1996. Of those four games, two of them involved the Rapids.

Josh Gardner and Sebastien Le Toux also found the back of the net for Seattle, both connecting after the Rapids were down to 10 men following defender Facundo Erpen’s second yellow card in the 49th minute. The goal for Le Toux was his fifth of the tournament, putting him alone atop this year’s scoring chart.

The Sounders had little trouble extending their overall unbeaten streak to 11 matches (10-0-1), posting their third convincing victory in four US Open Cup matches this year – Seattle has outscored its foes 14-3 in the competition, with a 2-1 win over USL First Division rival Portland in the Second Round the only close call.

Worst losses by MLS since 1996

2007 Quarterfinals: Seattle (USL-1) 5:0 Colorado
2005 Fourth Round: Minnesota (USL-1) 4:1 Colorado
2003 Fourth Round: Wilmington (USL-2) 4:1 Dallas
2001 Second Round: Charleston (USL-1) 4:1 Metrostars
2000 Second Round: Richmond (USL-1) 3:0 Colorado

Colorado, meanwhile, lost for the eighth time in its past 12 games overall (1-8-3).

The Rapids fell behind in the 23rd minute when the 6-foot-4 Graham was alone on the back post to knock a corner kick by Gardner past Colorado goalkeeper Zach Thornton for his first goal of the season.

Just 120 seconds later, Leighton O’Brien’s free kick from 30 yards out on the left side found Scott streaking in alone on the back post. Thornton had no chance on the wide-open header, as Scott’s second goal of the year quickly made it 2-0.

Thornton did well to save Roger Levesque’s shot in the 41st minute, but the ball bounced out and deflected off Rapids defender Ugo Ihemelu, who was rushing back to help, and into the net for an own goal and a 3-0 lead for the Sounders.

If the outcome wasn’t already decided, Erpen’s second booking in the the 49th ensured it. The Argentine was sent off after a harsh challenge on Levesque that saw his cleats planted into the back of the forward’s thigh, leaving Colorado a man down for the final 41 minutes.

Given more space with which to operate, Le Toux excelled.

The Frenchman picked up a poor back pass by Colorado’s Nico Hernandez and carried the ball forward before finding Gardner streaking down the left side. Gardner pounded a shot that Thornton got a hand on, but he couldn’t keep it from becoming Gardner’s second goal of the season and a 4-0 advantage in the 56th minute.

12 minutes later, Le Toux – the TheCup.us Player of the Round after scoring twice and setting up the other goal in a 3-1 win over Chivas USA in the third round – got one for himself. He dribbled around Ihemelu and beat Thornton for his 11th goal of the year to complete the rout.

Chris Eylander posted the shutout for the Sounders, including a top-notch stop on Herculez Gomez in first half stoppage time. That was one of two quality scoring chances for Colorado on the night, the other coming in the 20th minute when Jose Cancela’s cross was flicked on by Conor Casey and looked like it would bounce into the net before Seattle defender Danny Jackson cleared it off the line.

Scoring Summary:
SEA – Taylor Graham (Gardner) 23
SEA – Zach Scott (O’Brien) 25
SEA – Own Goal (Ihemelu) 43
SEA – Josh Gardner (Le Toux) 56
SEA – Sebastien Le Toux (unassisted) 68

Lineups:

Colorado Rapids – Zach Thornton, Brandon Prideaux, Ugo Ihemelu, Facundo Erpen, Colin Clark (Niko Hernandez 45), Jacob Peterson, Pablo Mastroeni (Jovan Kirovski 60), Jose Cancela (Dan Gargan 51), Mehdi Ballouchy, Conor Casey, Herculez Gomez (Daniel Osorno 64)
Substitutes Not Used: Bouna Coundoul, Terry Cooke, Nick LaBrocca

Seattle Sounders – Chris Eylander, Kevin Sakuda, Danny Jackson, Taylor Graham, Zach Scott, Kenji Treschuk (Nate Knox 79), Hugo Alcaraz-Cuellar, Leighton O’Brien (Greg Howes 45), Josh Gardner, Sebastien Le Toux (Andre Schmid 71), Roger Levesque (Noah Merl 56)
Substitutes Not Used: Ben Dragavon, Adam West, Santa Maria Rivera

Misconduct Summary:
COL – Gomez (Caution) 29
SEA – Treschuk (Caution) 29
COL – Erpen (Caution) 38
COL – Cancela (Caution) 43
SEA – O’Brien (Caution) 43
COL – Erpen (Ejection, second caution) 49
SEA – Le Toux (Caution) 69

Referee: Ricardo Salazar
Referees Assts.: Jeff Hosking, Mike Rottersman
Fourth Official: Shahram Pourazari
Attendance: 6,619

2007 Third Round: French connection helps Sounders knock out Chivas USA

July 18, 2007 by

A bad bounce put the Seattle Sounders behind early in Wednesday night’s US Open Cup Third Round match, but the duo of Sebastien Le Toux and Roger Levesque made sure the USL First Division team still bounced Chivas USA from the tournament. It was the second year in a row that Chivas had been eliminated in the opening round, and their third straight Open Cup loss.

Le Toux converted passes from Levesque into goals in the 44th and 52nd minutes, then let Levesque score a goal of his own in the final minutes as host Seattle posted a 3-1 victory over the MLS team in front of 3,589 fans at Qwest Field.

The Sounders advanced to the Quarterfinals for the first time since 2003. They will play host to the Colorado Rapids, one of just three MLS sides remaining in the competition, on Aug. 7.

Frenchman Laurent Merlin scored his first goal for Chivas USA, opening the scoring on a strange play in the 16th minute. His shot deflected off Sounders defender Danny Jackson, bounding up and over Seattle goalkeeper Chris Eylander. Jackson suffered a bruised left heel on the play and had to leave the match 10 minutes later.

The combination of Levesque, an American from Maine with a French name, and Le Toux, a Frenchman, hooked up for the equalizer in the 44th. Levesque received the ball from Leighton O’Brien, passing up a potential shot and leaving it for Le Toux, who beat Chivas USA goalkeeper Preston Burpo.

Burpo, who starred for the Sounders for nine years before signing with Chivas USA last year, was victimized by his former team again in the 52nd, with O’Brien again starting the sequence. Levesque got a long ball from O’Brien, then touched it over to Le Toux, and the Frenchman finished for his fourth goal of this year’s Open Cup.

Twice, Levesque nearly tallied a third goal for Seattle. First, his blast from the right side was deflected out by Francisco Mendoza for a corner kick in the 66th. Three minutes later, Levesque’s header off a cross from second-half sub Greg Howes sailed over the crossbar.

Levesque finally got his goal in the 82nd, thanks to Le Toux. Josh Gardner blazed down the left side, beating his defender, and played a cross into the box. Le Toux, sitting on a hat trick, let the ball roll between his legs to Levesque, behind him all alone on the back side, and he had an easy finish for his first goal of this year’s competition.

Chivas USA ended up with the advantage in shots (14-8), but had few dangerous scoring chances. Eylander turned in a nice save on a header by Maykel Galindo, another former Sounders player, in the 34th minute, and made a diving stop on a shot in the 75th. Eylander and Burpo each finished with four saves on the night.

2007 Second Round: Sounder beat Timbers 2-1 in another chapter in rivalry

June 26, 2007 by

The rivalry between the two clubs from the Northwest has always been an intense one, and Tuesday’s Second Round US Open Cup match just added another chapter to the book. A total of seven yellow cards and one ejection marked the Sounders 2-1 victory over Portland.

Portland started off red hot, taking two shots on goal in the opening minute of play. In the 19th minute, Portland grabbed the lead on a free kick goal from defender Justin Thompson.

The turning point of the match came just before halftime, when Portland’s Cameron Knowles was sent off for elbowing the Sounders Roger Levesque in the penalty area. Former Timbers standout Hugo Alcaraz-Cuellar stepped up and converted the penalty kick to tie the game.

Things were a bit testy in the remaining minutes of the half, as Portland’s Scot Thompson and Seattle’s Josh Gardner were cautioned after a confrontation just minutes before the penalty kick.

As Portland switched tactics to a more defensive stand, Seattle grabbed the go ahead goal in the 70th minute. Jake Besagno put away a Greg Howes cross to make the game 2-1 Sounders.

Portland pushed for the equalizer, and nearly got it in the 80th minute, when Brian Jordan combined with a teammate for a one-two combo, but Chris Eylander saves the low shot from Jordan.

Seattle’s win avenges a 2-0 loss to the Timbers in the Third Round of the 2005 tournament. This game also marks Portland’s third straight loss to a professional team in the Open Cup and their fourth defeat in their last five against pro teams.

Scoring
(POR) Justin Thompson (Andrew Gregor) 19’
(SEA) Hugo Alcaraz-Cuellar (PK) 41’
(SEA) Jake Besagno (Greg Howes) 70’

2007 First Round: Sounders, Le Toux overpower USASA’s Banat Arsenal

June 12, 2007 by

Sebastien Le Toux paced the Seattle Sounders to a 4-1 victory over the USASA’s Banat Arsenal. Nathan Knox opened the scoring for Seattle with a goal nine minutes in, after a pass from Leighton O’Brien. Knox looked like he scored in the opening minute, but the goal was disallowed due to a foul on Seattle. Banat came right back and tied the game at one in the 18th minute. Maurice Hughes scored from a cross by Ty Hibbert to give the Phoenix amateurs hope early on.

After the goal, it was all Sounders, as Banat were not allowed a shot the rest of the half. Sebastien Le Toux then struck twice in four minutes. In the 32nd minute, Le Toux took a diagonal pass from Roger Levesque at the right end of the goal arc, and beat Banat goalkeeper Chris Rehfuss for a 2-1 lead. Four minutes later, when Greg Howes sent a short cross to Le Toux from inside the penalty area, who buried it for a 3-1 Sounders lead. Howes himself finished the scoring in the match just before half time, taking a cross from Knox to put the game out of reach.

Seattle move on to face Northwest rivals Portland on June 26 at the Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila, Wash.

Scoring Summary

Seattle:
(SEA) Nathan Knox (Leighton O’Brien) 9’
(BAN) Maurice Hughes (Ty Hibbert) 18’
(SEA) Sebastien Le Toux (Roger Levesque) 32
(SEA) Sebastien Le Toux (Gregory Howes) 36’
(SEA) Gregory Howes (Nathan Knox) 44’

Seattle Sounders: Chris Eylander; Danny Jackson, Jake Besagno, Zach Scott (Santa Maria Rivera 71’); Kevin Sakuda, Leighton O’Brien (Kenji Treschuk 35’), Greg Howes, Roger Levesque (Andre Schmid 56’), Josh Gardner; Sebastien Le Toux (Craig Tomlinson 45’), Nathan Knox.

Banat Arsenal: Chris Rehfuss; Cory Norris (Brad Moore 75’), Frank Clay, Nick Tiggs, Elliot Weber; Ryan Lockhart (Imad Id-Deen 53’), Jaimie Miranda (Alan Watson 45’), Maurice Hughes, David Hopkinson (Brett Parry 45’); Esteban Bayona, Ty Hibbert.

Shots: SEA 21, BAN 6
Saves: SEA 3, BAN 5
Corners: SEA 6, BAN 0
Fouls: SEA 23, BAN 21
Offsides: SEA 5, BAN 1
Cautions: (BAN) Lockhart 19’, (SEA) Scott 34’, (BAN) Id-Deen 88’