Seattle Sounders FC ousted Cascadia rivals Vancouver Whitecaps FC 5-1 on aggregate in the Concacaf Champions Cup Round of 16, following a 2-1 second-leg victory on Wednesday in Spokane.
The Sounders, who won 3-0 in the first leg at BC Place, will meet either FC Cincinnati or Tigres UANL in the quarterfinals next month.
Seattle nearly put the tie to bed within the first minute of the match as Albert Rusnák found himself with a close-range opportunity, but sent his finish wide of the mark.
The Whitecaps responded by growing into the game, resulting in their lone goal via Jeevan Badwal's guided curler from the top of the box, nestling into the top left corner despite a touch from goalkeeper Stefan Frei.
Pressure mounted in the second half as Vancouver threw numbers forward in an effort to close the aggregate gap, but that only allowed Seattle to slam the door shut with a pair of goals at the other end.
First, Danny Musovski equalized with a towering header in the 79th minute before Paul Rothrock added the nail in the coffin on the counterattack in the 83rd minute.
Goals
Three Things
- THE BIG PICTURE: Seattle Sounders move on to the CCC quarterfinals for the first time since being crowned the first-ever MLS champions of the competition's new iteration in 2022. Meanwhile, Vancouver, which reached the CCC final a year ago, are eliminated despite getting off to the strongest start in MLS history through Matchday 4 of the regular season.
- MOMENT OF THE MATCH: As Vancouver pushed forward in need of goals, Danny Musovski quelled any fears of a late comeback with a monstrous header to equalize.
- MAN OF THE MATCH: Paulie Primetime continues to deliver for the Sounders, finding the back of the net for a third consecutive game and closing out the Round of 16 tie.
Next Up
- SEA: Sunday, March 22 at Minnesota United FC | 2:30 pm (Apple TV, FOX) | MLS regular season
- VAN: Saturday, March 21 vs. San Jose Earthquakes | 10:30 pm ET (Apple TV) | MLS regular season
