Despite another frustrating night, the Rave Green have clinched a spot in the MLS playoffs. That does very little however to numb the sting of letting the Vancouver Whitecaps lift the Cascadia Cup in Seattle, and letting another home game go by without all three points.
Seattle entered the game off the back of frustrating losses against Miami and Austin, facing a Vancouver team that were undefeated in five, and beat the Sounders 3-0 in the reverse fixture.
Head Coach Brian Schmetzer made two changes to the lineup he put out against Austin. Jesus Ferreira started on the right wing as Snyder Brunell shifted into the midfield with Obed Vargas out on Mexico U-20 international duty. Jordan Morris started up top in his first starting 11 since his July 19th injury against San Jose.
Early injuries
In the 9th minute, the Sounders were forced to make immediate adjustments as Alex Roldan went down with a hip injury after jostling for a loose ball and was soon replaced by Kalani Kossa-Rienzi.
Seattle’s injury woes would go from bad to worse in the 13th as Yeimar came up hobbling after an awkward turn, meaning Brian Schmetzer would have to replace half of his back line before even 15 minutes had been played. Kim Kee Hee would sub in for Yeimar.
“When Yeimar and Alex went down, it felt like the team was in shock”
-Brian Schmetzer
Both players will receive MRIs tomorrow, and Brian Schmetzer said postgame that the extent of the injuries won’t be known until after the tests.
Exchanging chances
The game’s first shot on goal would come for the visitors in the 25th minute, when Ali Ahmed was able to cut onto his right foot before having his low shot parried by Stefan Frei.
Seattle took this first quality chance as a wakeup call, immediately jumping into a spell of attacking-third possession, capped by a glancing Paul Rothrock header which was saved and held by Whitecaps goalkeeper Yohei Takaoka.
A scramble in the Sounders’ box would provide some drama in the 45th, as a Tate Johnson shot with Frei off his line would be denied only by an unfortunate ricochet off of Whitecaps star DP Thomas Muller.
Halftime
At halftime, the Sounders knew they had clinched a playoff spot, with Colorado dropping points against Minnesota, but had to switch a flip in the locker room after a lethargic first 45 minutes.
“The first half was disjointed.”
-Brian Schmetzer
Tempers would flare in the tunnel as an argument between the two squads would lead to Nouhou receiving a yellow card for squirting Vancouver striker Daniel Rios with a water bottle while exiting the pitch.
Brian Schmetzer would look to his bench at halftime for an attacking spark, replacing Jordan Morris with Danny Musovski.
Whitecaps opener
It would be Vancouver who found first blood in the 51st minute. Thomas Muller picked the pocket of Snyder Brunell at midfield, before rolling a through ball for Brian White, who slotted past Stefan Frei 1-0.
“Snyder will learn from that, and besides that he did great.”
-Jackson Ragen
Seattle’s lightning-quick comeback
The Sounders, at their lowest point of the match, suddenly awakened immediately after conceding. It started in the 54th with an Albert Rusnak corner kick to the top of the six. Jackson Ragen was able to rise far above the crowd and head home the equalizer.
Just a minute later, Rusnak would once again pop up on the attack. Paul Rothrock went on a run deep into Vancouver territory and bend a through-ball to Jesus Ferreira, whose centering ball was deflected but still found Rusnak at the far post, and the Sounders’ #11 roofed his shot to give the Rave Green a sudden lead.
32,750 fans at Lumen field had been frustrated for nearly the entire match, but the Sounders were able to nearly instantaneously rediscover the goalscoring form that had made them one of the most in-form sides in MLS during the month of August.
Schmetzer said postgame that the goals came from good goalscoring intent, but that he would have liked to see his squad continue their momentum instead of once again falling back.
Whitecaps response
Vancouver found a corner-kick equalizer of their own in the 69th, with Sebastian Berhalter putting the ball onto the head of center back Mathias Laborta, who was able to find space between Danny Musovski and Jackson Ragen to send it beyond Frei, 2-2.
Frantic final 20 minutes
Both teams had their chances to retake the lead. Christian Roldan had a flick header denied by Takaoka in the 71st minute, and Vancouver’s Andres Cubas sent a good chance from the top of the box over the bar in the 77th.
The flow of the match however had shifted firmly back into canadian hands, with the Sounders finding looks on the counter but mostly playing in their own defensive third.
Brian Schmetzer played his attacking trump cards in the 81st, bringing in Georgi Minoungou and Osaze De Rosario to try and find a winner.
The Sounders thought they had that winner in the second minute of stoppage time. A De Rosario cross led to a point-blank shot for Georgi Minoungou, but his effort was blocked off the line by Ralph Priso, and Christian Roldan’s deflected follow-up was tipped wide by Takaoka.
Some final heroics were needed from Stefan Frei in the sixth minute of stoppage time, with the veteran keeper pawing away a curling Berhalter effort following a free-kick.
A chorus of boos would erupt from the crowd at the full-time whistle, with the Rave Green faithful unhappy with an inconsistent 90 minutes from head referee Malik Badawi.
Despite extending their winless run to four matches and allowing Vancouver to clinch the Cascadia Cup, Seattle left the pitch with a playoff spot.
Post-match quotes
Brian Schmetzer and Jackson Ragen both talked postgame about the sting of letting the Whitecaps lift the Cascadia Cup at Lumen Field:
“It doesn’t feel good.”
– Jackson Ragen
“The Cascadia Cup is an important trophy for us, that’s for the fans.”
-Brian Schmetzer
Schmetzer talked about the game as an important stepping stone towards playoff-level intensity:
“Although the result isn’t what we wanted, this is a good game to carry forward.”
-Brian Schmetzer
Schmetzer praised Albert Rusnak’s performance, as the Sounders talisman tallied a goal and an assist in a full 90 minute shift:
“Tonight was a step forward for him to play 90 minutes, and play with a lot of intensity and leadership.”
-Brian Schmetzer
In the final minutes of the game, Seattle shifted to a 4-4-2 formation, with Osaze De Rosario and Danny Musovski up top. Schmezter said that the formation is something the team could find useful down the road in the playoffs if faced against a back-five.
“We will look at the 4-4-2 in the future.”
-Brian Schmetzer
MATCH NOTES
- Seattle sits in fifth place in the Western Conference following Saturday’s result with 46 points (12-9-10).
- The Rave Green officially clinched a spot in the Audi 2015 MLS Cup Playoffs following the draw. It is the 16th time in 17 years in MLS that Seattle has qualified for the postseason, the most of any expansion team in league history.
- Tonight’s result puts the all-time MLS regular-season series between Vancouver and Seattle at 18-11-11 in favor of Seattle. Vancouver wins the 2025 regular-season series with a record of 1-0-1, defeating the Rave Green 3-0 earlier this year at BC Place.
- This marked the 156th meeting between Seattle and Vancouver dating back to 1974 in the NASL, with Seattle leading the all-time series 74-54-28.
- Vancouver wins the 2025 Cascadia Cup with tonight’s result, earning eight points (2-0-2). Portland and Seattle are tied for second with two points each (1-0-2). The two sides play each other next weekend on Saturday, October 4 at Lumen Field.
- Jackson Ragen’s goal in the 54th minute was his first of the season and his fourth tally in MLS since joining the Rave Green in 2022.
- Albert Rusnák’s goal in the 55th minute was his 13th of the season and 11th in MLS play, both second on the team.
- Rusnák also provided the assist on Ragen’s goal, his 10th in all competitions and ninth in MLS play.
- With his goal and assist tonight, Rusnák became the 13th player in MLS history to record at least 70 goals and 70 assists in the regular season and is the second active player to reach the mark (Diego Fagúndez).
- The Rave Green have only lost one match at home this year in MLS regular-season play (8-1-6).
- Seattle has scored 36 home goals in MLS play this year, the most in a single season in franchise history. The previous record was 34 goals set in 2019.
- Brian Schmetzer made three changes to the starting lineup from last weekend’s match at Austin FC, with Stefan Frei, Jesús Ferreira and Jordan Morris replacing Andrew Thomas, Obed Vargas and Danny Musovski, respectively.
- Seattle next hosts Cascadia rival Portland Timbers on Saturday, October 4 on the Emerald Queen Casino Pitch at Lumen Field (7:30 p.m. PT / Apple TV, iHeart Media Seattle, El Rey 1360 AM).
MATCH SUMMARY
Seattle Sounders FC 2 – Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2
Saturday, September 27, 2025
Venue: Lumen Field
Referee: Malik Badawi
Assistants: Micheal Barwegen, Gerard-Kader Lebuis
Fourth Official: Elijio Arreguin
VAR: Kevin Stott
Attendance: 32,750
Weather: 62 degrees and mostly clear
SCORING SUMMARY
VAN – Brian White (Thomas Müller) 52’
SEA – Jackson Ragen (Albert Rusnák) 54’
SEA – Albert Rusnák 55’
VAN – Mathias Laborda (Sebastian Berhalter) 69’
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
VAN – Mathias Laborda (caution) 3’
SEA – Paul Rothrock (caution) 40’
SEA – Nouhou (caution) HT
LINEUPS & STATS
Seattle Sounders FC – Stefan Frei – Captain; Alex Roldan (Kalani Kossa-Rienzi 11’), Yeimar Gómez Andrade (Kim Kee-hee 18’), Jackson Ragen, Nouhou; Snyder Brunell (Georgi Minoungou 82’), Cristian Roldan; Jesús Ferreira (Osaze De Rosario 82’), Albert Rusnák, Paul Rothrock; Jordan Morris (Danny Musovski HT)
Substitutes not used: Andrew Thomas, Danny Leyva, João Paulo, Pedro de la Vega
Total shots: 10
Shots on goal: 6
Fouls: 10
Offside: 2
Corner-Kicks: 3
Saves: 3
Vancouver Whitecaps FC – Yohei Takaoka; Tate Johnson, Ralph Priso, Mathias Laborda, Édier Ocampo; Andrés Cubas, Jeevan Badwal; Ali Ahmed, Thomas Müller (Sebastian Berhalter 62’), Emmanuel Sabbi (Jayden Nelson 62’); Daniel Ríos (Brian White HT, Rayan Elloumi 78’)
Substitutes not used: Adrían Zendejas, Isaac Boehmer, J.C. Ngando, Giuseppe Bovalina, Mark O’Neill
Total shots: 11
Shots on goal: 5
Fouls: 17
Offside: 3
Corner-kicks: 3
Saves: 3
Discover more from Cascadiasports.net
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
One Reply to “Sounders book playoff spot, snap losing streak with 2-2 draw at home against Vancouver”