Historical Moments:
2009: On March 19th Professional Soccer made a triumph return to Seattle, as the Seattle
Sounders, named after Seattle NASL team made it's debut with a 3-0 win over Red
Bull New York, who played in the previous years MLS Cup. Scoring the first goal
for the Sounders was Fredy Montero. The Sounders would use their huge home
field advantage to three straight wins to start their inaugural season as they
proved early on they would not be a typical expansion team. They would have almost
the same amount of ties and wins and they would surge to the playoffs with
a record of 12-7-11. During the season, the Sounders would not sink lower than
fifth place. In the first round, the Houston Dynamo used a Brian Ching goal in
extra time of the second leg to eliminate the Sounders. In the midst of the season,
the Sounders won the US Open Cup, replicating the accomplishment of the Chicago
Fire.
2010: Unable to match the hot start from their inaugural year, the Sounders spent much
of the season before the World Cup break in the bottom half of the West. Eventually,
the team would heat up again and use a seven match unbeaten streak and a
five game winning streak to propel themselves back to the playoffs with a record
of 14-10-6. Their stay in the playoffs would be brief as the LA Galaxy beat them
3-1 on aggregate. On a side note, the Sounders successfully defended their
US Open Cup, beating the Columbus Crew in the final.
2011: The Sounders would start the season 0-2-2. That would only prove as a warm-up act
for the rest of the season as the Sounders played much better during the spring
and summer. There were no long wining streaks, but there were no long losing
streaks either as the Sounders used a 5-0-2 run during the summer and a 7-2-0 stretch
ending the year to finish second in the West with a solid record of 18-7-9.
But in the playoffs, they were upset by Real Salt Lake 3-2 on aggregate.
2012: Looking to continue adding to their impressive resume after three seasons as a club,
the Sounders won seven of their first nine matches to start the year to challenge
the Earthquakes for the top spot in the West early on. But a nine game winless
streak brought the club back to earth as they struggled to regain their
early form and finished the season 15-8-11 and in third place. Against Real Salt
Lake in the playoffs, the Sounders finally advanced for the first time as Mario
Roberto Martinez scored in the 81st minute of the second leg in Utah for the
surprise result. But their dreams of a first MLS Cup appearance were vanquished
against the Los Angeles Galaxy, going quietly 4-2 on aggregate.
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