Battery Trio Shine in CCL Semifinal

   

In yet another wild night in Mexico, three former Charleston Battery players led the charge as the Seattle Sounders finished 1-1 with Santos Laguna in Torreon.  The draw means the Cascadians are eliminated from the CONCACAF Champions League (2-1 aggregate) in the semifinal round.   While the Sounders will be kicking themselves for surrendering to Santos in the Semis once again, at least this time they can return to the States proud of their grit, with their dignity in tact.

Instrumental in Seattle's struggle to reach the Champions League final were three young men who not long ago graced the turf of Blackbaud Stadium.  Osvaldo Alonso, Alex Caskey, and Lamar Neagle shined for the Sounders in last night's exciting, albeit disappointing tie with Santos.  Caskey and Alonso  featured prominently from the starting whistle, while Neagle played the role of super-sub.  Caskey flitted in dangerous crosses throughout the match while Alonso's commanding midfield presence allowed Seattle to press the attack.  Despite controlling the opening stages, the visitors were punished in the 21st minute, as Santos cashed in on some sloppy defending.

Now battling to overturn a two goal deficit, Seattle clicked on from the second half restart.  It was Alonso who lit the fire, with a dazzling run in the 47th minute but his powerful shot was extinguished by Laguna's Sanchez and the chance went begging.  Neagle took the pitch in the 61st minute and things began to open up immediately.  Initially playing the ball in for Steve Zakuani, Neagle poked home the deflected shot in the 73rd to pull Seattle within one.  Ten minutes later, Caskey looped in a deadly cross that was met by Shalrie Joseph at close range.  However, the headed ball was snatched up by the ever present Sanchez and Santos would coast to victory in the final minutes.

The result comes as a hard pill to swallow, but its a marked improvement from being eaten alive in the same fixture a year ago.  And it may come as little consolation, but a 1-1 draw is a respectable finish considering the Estadio Corona is among the most brutal arenas on the continent.  With full bias intended, the Sounders could not have done it without the aid of their former Battery players.  Its exciting to see our Charleston alums flourishing at the top flight of the American game and I'm sure many more will follow in their footsteps!

Well done lads!!  And as always, UP THE BATTERY!!!


(photo credit:  Sounders Facebook page)

Seattle Three-peat, USOC Final: Sounders 2-0 Fire

The Sounders have done it again!  Defeating the Chicago Fire 2-0, Seattle claimed the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup for the third consecutive year.  The game had all the makings of a cup final classic, including a record crowd of 35,615.  The two sides are no strangers to the cup and their experience was evident as the teams took the pitch.

Seattle Three-peat!!!

The first half yielded no goals but the Chicago GK Sean Johnson would be happy to shoulder the blame of that statistic.  Seattle's Mike Fucito created several scoring chances for the Sounders throughout the first half but the Fire's defense weathered the storm.  The half ended as Freddy Montero clanged a shot off the bar, but for all their effort, the teams were level at the break.

It was Fucito who looked to ignite the crowd only minutes into the second half, but his effort struck the post as Chicago dodged yet another bullet.  A goal was in the offing and the raucous rave green mass could sense it.  The Emerald City boasts perhaps the most terrifying atmosphere anywhere in the U.S. and the Fire were feeling the pressure.  The Sounders began the barrage and it was simply a matter of time until the levy broke.  With each shot and save the intensity and volume continued to skyrocket.  The Sounder's Erik Freiburg sent in a corner which was met by Brad Evan's on target header.  Once again, Windy City shot-stopper thwarted the attempt, but only to deliver the ball to Seattle's familiar Colombian hero, Freddy Montero.  Needless to say, the Sounder's frontman ripped the ball into the net as the expectant crowd erupted in jubilation.  In desperation, the Fire made a pair of substitutions and began to fight for their equalizer.  Surprisingly, the visitors forced a miraculous save from Keller, but the effort was adjudged to be offside.  Deep into stoppage time, former Charleston Battery player Osvaldo Alonso weaved through a weary Fire defense and slotted home to ice the cake and the game.  The whistle sounded seconds later and the Seattle Sounders made cup history with the 2-0 win.



The Lamar Hunt US Open Cup is the oldest cup competition in the country and one of the oldest competitions of its kind in the modern sports world.  Seattle are on of only three sides to ever win three consecutive USOC titles.  Sounder's GK and former US National Captain, Kasey Keller, has said the team are far from finished as they rush towards the MLS Cup playoffs and have progressed to the knockout stage in the CONCACAF Champions league.  Seattle are certainly the most exciting team to watch and will undoubtedly exhibit some fantastic football in the coming weeks.