The Seattle Sounders defeated LAFC 2-1 after extra time in the Western Conference Semifinal at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles, Calif., on Saturday night. Ryan Hollingshead opened the scoring for LAFC in the 50th minute before an own goal from Maxime Chanot in the 59th minute forced extra time. Jordan Morris scored the match-winner in the 109th minute to put Seattle two matches away from its third MLS Cup trophy.
The Sounders and LAFC played a cat-and-mouse affair over the majority of the first half, feeling each other out and jockeying for possession and field position.
Obed Vargas finally had the match’s first shot on target in the 39th minute when his hit from the top of the box was right at goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.
Seattle had two chances in the 43rd minute when Jon Bell tried to redirect a loose ball into the net, but Maxime Chanot cleared the effort off the line.
LAFC broke the match open in the 50th minute when Hollingshead redirected a pass from Mateusz Bogusz from 12 yards out into the far corner.
The Sounders equalized just nine minutes later when Vargas crossed a ball from the right side across the front of goal where Chanot made an awkward attempt at a clearance and put the ball into his own net for an own goal.
Seattle was dealt an injury blow in the 65th minute when Yeimar was forced to exit after a great performance stifling LAFC in their final third.
Stefan Frei kept Seattle in the match in the 87th minute when Aaron Long chipped a ball up to himself with his back to goal from 12 yards out and bicycle-kicked a shot headed for the bottom corner that Frei parried wide.
Frei made another fantastic stop in the fifth minute of stoppage time to send the contest to extra time. A close-range deflected header from Hollingshead off an LAFC corner seemed destined for net, but Frei made the reaction save to keep the match on level terms.
Frei stood on his head yet again in the 100th minute when he denied Bogusz from 12 yards with a diving kick save.
Ilie was inches away from finding a go-ahead goal on the ensuing corner when a spinning shot just skipped past the far post.
The Sounders took a late lead when Georgi Minoungou forced Lloris into a diving save of his own in the 108th minute. Off the ensuing corner, the ball bounced toward Morris, who spun and one-timed a shot for a tight angle inside the near post.
Hollingshead unleashed a wicked shot in the 120th minute that deflected off Cristian Roldan, but Frei managed to push away at the near post.
Despite being down key contributors Nouhou and Paul Rothrock, the Sounders relied on the likes of Reed Baker-Whiting, Bell and Nathan among others to step up and advance to the Western Conference Championship. They will take on the winner of Sunday’s other semifinal between the No. 2 LA Galaxy and No. 6 Minnesota United.
THREE TAKEAWAYS
Hometown hero
What a moment for Morris to send his hometown club into their first Western Conference Championship appearance since 2020. The Mercer Island, Wash., native now has nine postseason goals, which is tied with teammate Raúl RuidÃaz for the most among active MLS players.
Frei masterclass
As he’s done throughout his entire career in Seattle, Frei displayed his playoff acumen with nine saves on the evening. A mix of timely deflections and diving stops kept Seattle in the match long enough for Morris to come through.
Over the hump
The Sounders finally exercised their LAFC demons, capturing their first win over the Black and Gold in their last 11 matches and after dropping four games earlier this year. Seattle got it done when it counted most, though, much like it did at No. 1 seed LAFC in the Western Conference Championship in 2019 en route to an MLS Cup title.
