Sounders FC (15-9-8, 53 points) vaulted into third place in the Western Conference on the back of a dominant 3-0 victory on the road at Vancouver Whitecaps FC Wednesday evening. The midweek match marked the second of three games in an eight-day span for Seattle, with Georgi Minoungou making his second-ever start for the First Team. Minoungou made the most of his opportunity, securing what would ultimately be the game-winner in the 14th minute. The Rave Green put the match away in the second half, as Albert Rusnák converted a penalty in the 65th minute, followed by a Paul Rothrock strike two minutes later. Stefan Frei secured his 10th shutout of the season – his fifth career season recording double-digit clean sheets (all with Sounders FC).
With the victory, Seattle now sits in third place in the Western Conference at time of writing, with two matches left to play in the 2024 regular season. The club next travels to Colorado to face the Rapids on Saturday, October 5 (6:30 p.m. PT / Apple TV, 950 KJR AM, El Rey 1360 AM).
MATCH NOTES
• With the win, Seattle vaults into third place in the Western Conference with 53 points (15-9-8). The top four teams in each conference secure home-field advantage in the MLS Cup Playoffs.
• With tonight’s match, Seattle and Vancouver have played 38 times in the regular season since Vancouver joined MLS in 2011, with Sounders FC leading the series 11-7-7. Dating back to 1974 in the North American Soccer League, the two sides have played 154 times, with Seattle leading the all-time series 74-53-27.
• Per the Elias Sports Bureau, Sounders FC is the most in-form team in MLS over the past 15 matches. The Rave Green’s 35 points over that span lead the 29-team league, with Supporters’ Shield winner Inter Miami second with 34 points during that period.
• Georgi Minoungou scored his first career MLS goal for Seattle in the 14th minute, doing so in his seventh appearance (second start) in all competitions since signing with Seattle on August 28. He has made five additional appearances for the Rave Green since 2023 via Short Term Agreements.
• Albert Rusnák recorded his 14th and 15th assists of the regular season on Minougou’s and Rothrock’s goals, setting a new personal single-season high for him. He is one shy of Seattle’s single-season club record of 16 assists set by Nico Lodeiro in 2018.
• Rusnák’s penalty kick goal in the 65th minute was his ninth goal in MLS play this year and his tenth in all competitions.
• Seattle stays alive in the Cascadia Cup race with the result, moving into a tie with Portland with seven points (2-2-1). Vancouver leads the regional competition with eight points. The Rave Green host Portland in the final 2024 Cascadia Cup match in a Decision Day contest at Lumen Field on October 19.
• Stefan Frei recorded his 10th shutout of the regular season tonight, his fifth season recording double-digit clean sheets. Only Nick Rimando has achieved that same mark, and Frei is the only goalkeeper to do so for one club (Sounders FC).
• Brian Schmetzer trotted out nearly the same starting lineup as he did against Houston over the past weekend, with the only change being Georgi Minoungou slotting in at the right wing for Pedro de la Vega.
MATCH SUMMARY
Seattle Sounders FC 3 – Vancouver Whitecaps FC 0
Wednesday, October 2, 2024
Venue: BC Place Stadium
Referee: Chris Penso
Assistants: Walt Heatherly, Kevin Lock
Fourth Official: Renzo Villanueva
VAR: Jose Carlos Rivero
Attendance: 17,362
Weather: 55 degrees and clear
SCORING SUMMARY
SEA – Georgi Minoungou (Jordan Morris, Albert Rusnák) 14’
SEA – Albert Rusnák (penalty) 65’
SEA – Paul Rothrock (Albert Rusnák, Jordan Morris) 67’
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
VAN – Sam Adekugbe (caution) 13’
VAN – Alessandro Schopf (caution) 39’
VAN – Fafa Picault (caution) 46’
VAN – Fafa Picault (ejection) 88’
VAN – Ralph Priso (caution) 90’+1’
LINEUPS & STATS
Seattle Sounders FC – Stefan Frei; Alex Roldan, Yeimar, Jackson Ragen, Nouhou (Jonathan Bell 87’); Cristian Roldan (Josh Atencio 74’), Obed Vargas, Georgi Minoungou (Pedro de la Vega 76’), Albert Rusnák, Paul Rothrock (Reed Baker-Whiting 74’); Jordan Morris (Danny Musovski 76’)
Substitutes not used: Andrew Thomas, Nathan, Danny Leyva, Dylan Teves
Total shots: 11
Shots on goal: 5
Fouls: 7
Offside: 2
Corner-Kicks: 6
Saves: 3
Vancouver Whitecaps FC – Yohei Takaoka; Mathias Laborda (Edier Ocampo 71’), Ranko Veselinovic, Tristan Blackmon (Bjorn Utvik 71’); Sam Adekugbe, Alessandro Schopf (Levonte Johnson 59’), Sebastian Berhalter, Andres Cubas (Ralph Priso 71’), Pedro Vite; Fafa Picault, Brian White (Deiber Caicedo 78’)
Substitutes not used: Isaac Boehmer, Ryan Raposo, Belal Halbouni, Damir Kreilach
Total shots: 10
Shots on goal: 4
Fouls: 12
Offside: 2
Corner-kicks: 3
Saves: 2
