Seattle Sounders Women News Release - www.sounderswomen.com
Monday, July 1, 2013
TUKWILA, Wash. – With a chance to host the Western Conference Championship by winning their final three matches; the Sounders Women stumbled on the first step with a 2-1 defeat against the Colorado Rapids Women. Two goals from Kristen Hamilton led the Rapids, and the lone goal for Seattle came on a penalty kick earned and finished by Sara Campbell.
The Sounders and Rapids met on a scorcher at Tukwila, Washington's Starfire Sports, with temperatures reaching into the 90s before first kick, and during the first half of the match.
Hamilton knocked in goals in both halves of the match, putting her Rapids up 2-0 early in the second period. The lead proved to be insurmountable for the Sounders, who tallied a Campbell penalty kick conversion, but could not manage to equalize late.
Coming off their first loss of the W-League season last week against the Pali Blues, the Sounders came out with a new formation, and the addition of their returning University of Washington players. The Sounders produced a confident start. They maintained possession in the attacking third, and created a few chances on goal, while limiting the Rapids touches throughout the first 25 minutes of the match.
The Sounders looked most likely to score first. In the 28th minute, midfielder Rachel Mercik played a ball from the left side and sent it in with a cross to the back post where she found Janine Beckie wide open. Beckie rose and met it with her head, looking to direct it inside the far post, but the ball took a slight deflection off of a Rapids defender and went out for a corner kick.
On the ensuing kick from the left corner, Canadian National Team player Melissa Busque sent a dangerous, swinging ball in to the face of the goal. The cross nearly found its way in just under the cross bar at the back post, but Rapids goalkeeper Hannah Clark was able to slap the danger away.
The Rapids immediately responded to the pressure from the Sounders and counter attacked. Just as the Sounders looked to be on the verge of getting out ahead with a goal, the Rapids flipped the script, and put themselves on the scoreboard first. Hamilton took a pass from the inside out to the right wing. She worked her way past a Sounders defender heading to the near post. The Rapids forward managed to split two defenders and sneak a right-footed poke underneath goalkeeper Erin McNulty at the near post.
After the goal, the momentum and control of the match took an obvious swing in the Rapids' favor. They were finding more opportunities to move the ball with a purpose in their attack.
The Sounders Women found themselves scrambling after the 30th-minute goal. They began to turn the ball over on poor touches and mental errors in the latter part of the first half, and even needed a Jenna Peterson clearance off the line to keep the score at 1-0.
Despite the Sounders coming out of the halftime break with good energy, Hamilton scored once again, picking up a long pass down the right channel and beating the Sounders defense with a big chop toward the front of goal. As McNulty slid out to close the space, Hamilton lifted it over her for her second goal of the game.
The Sounders nearly found themselves back in the game in the 65th minute when Jenna Richardson earned room in the penalty area. She took a ball in from the left and made a well-timed turn to shed a Rapids defender. Richardson lined up a shot and put it on target low at the near post, but Clark was there to make the save.
On the resulting corner kick, the Sounders once again nearly hit paydirt. Busque sent the corner to the near post where she found Richardson. Richardson angled a header with scoring potential over Clark, but the effort slammed off the crossbar, where it was cleared out for another Sounders corner.
Busque linked up with her Canadian teammate Richardson again at the near post on the second corner, but this time her header fell wide, and relieved the pressure on the Rapids.
Seattle finally turned attack into a goal in the 82nd minute. Campbell calmly converted an 82nd-minute penalty kick for her team-leading fourth goal of the season. The foul was committed by Clark when she came out high in the penalty area to meet a long-ball from McNulty. Campbell got to the ball first, and was put to the ground with heavy contact by Clark, who missed her effort to clear it.
"[McNulty] played a direct, excellent through ball over the top, a defender missed it, and I happened to be that second runner that was able to get a touch on it before I got clipped," Campbell said. "Looking back on it, perhaps getting fouled I may have wanted to regroup and let somebody else take the penalty kick, but in the moment I felt it, and put it away."
After converting the penalty, the Sounders continued to press the issue but could not create any leveling chances late in the dwindling minutes. The loss was only the second of the Sounders' W-League season, but also their second consecutive.
The Sounders Women are back at Starfire Sports on Friday, July 5 for their final home match of the 2013 W-League campaign. They take on the Santa Clarita Blue Heat at 7 p.m.