SEATTLE, WASH. - Second-half goals from Kelvin Leerdam and Harry Shipp fueled Sounders FC (5-1-2, 17 points) to a second-half comeback in a 2-2 draw with the San Jose Earthquakes (2-5-1, 7 points) on Wednesday evening at CenturyLink Field. Nicolás Lodeiro recorded two assists to give him a league-leading six on the season, as Seattle extended its home unbeaten streak to eight games (7-0-1). Brian Schmetzer's club now prepares for a home clash with Los Angeles FC on Sunday, April 28 (12:30 p.m. PT / ESPN, YouTube TV, 950 KJR AM, El Rey 1360 AM).
San Jose struck first in the 34th minute courtesy of Shea Salinas. Catching Seattle on the counterattack, Magnus Erickson found Salinas on the left side of the 18-yard-box, and the veteran midfielder eluded the defense and fired a left-footed shot past Stefan Frei.
The visitors made it 2-0 on the other side of halftime, with Salinas completing his brace on an assist from Cristian Espinoza. After a lengthy bout of possession in Seattle's final third, Espinoza dribbled down the right side of the area and sent a cross that found Salinas at the far post.
Sounders FC responded quickly with a pair of goals two minutes apart in the 65th and 67th minutes by Leerdam and Shipp, respectively. The first came off a Nicolás Lodeiro corner kick in the 65th minute, with the Uruguayan finding Kim Kee-hee inside the six-yard-box for a glancing header that fell right to Leerdam for his third goal of the season, tied with Jordan Morris and Raúl RuidÃaz for the team lead.
Shipp equalized two minutes later, marking his second consecutive game with a goal. Brad Smith's throw-in found Lodeiro, who recorded his second assist of the match with a cross to Shipp, who hit a pinpoint volley that sliced through the defense inside the far post. It marked the sixth assist of the season for Lodeiro, which leads MLS.
Following Wednesday's result, Sounders FC hosts Los Angeles FC on Sunday, April 28 at CenturyLink Field (12:30 p.m. PT / ESPN, YouTube TV, 950 KJR AM, El Rey 1360 AM) in a rematch of last weekend's contest that resulted in a 4-1 win for LAFC.
MATCH NOTES
- Sounders FC stretched its home unbeaten streak to eight games, but saw its club-record seven-match home winning streak snapped. The team's last home loss came on September 19, 2018 in a 1-0 defeat to Philadelphia.
- Seattle extended its unbeaten streak against San Jose to eight games. Sounders FC's last loss to the Earthquakes came June 20, 2015, a 2-0 San Jose victory at CenturyLink Field.
- Kelvin Leerdam scored his third goal of the season in just his eighth appearance. Entering the 2019 campaign, he had scored one goal in 41 career MLS appearances. He is now tied for the team lead in goals this season with Jordan Morris and Raúl RuidÃaz.
- Harry Shipp has now scored in consecutive games for the second time in his career, as he netted Seattle's lone goal in Sunday's match at LAFC. He last scored in consecutive games as a member of the Chicago Fire in 2014.
- Nico Lodeiro's multi-assist game was his second of the 2019 campaign, and first since the season-opener against Cincinnati FC on March 2. He now leads MLS with six assists in 2019.
- Kim Kee-hee's assist was the first of his MLS career in his 37th regular-season appearance.
- Brad Smith recorded his third assist of the season and fourth of his career, and is now tied for second on the team with VÃctor RodrÃguez.
MATCH SUMMARY
Seattle Sounders FC 2 - San Jose Earthquakes 2
Wednesday, April 24, 2019
Venue: CenturyLink Field
Referee: Fotis Bazakos
Assistants: Chris Wattam, Jeff Hosking
Fourth Official: Marcos de Oliveira
VAR: Guido Gonzales Jr.
Attendance: 37,722
Weather: 55 degrees and clear
SCORING SUMMARY
SJ - Shea Salinas (Magnus Eriksson) 34'
SJ - Shea Salinas (Cristian Espinoza) 53'
SEA - Kelvin Leerdam (Kim Kee-hee, Nicolás Lodeiro) 65'
SEA - Harry Shipp (Nicolás Lodeiro, Brad Smith) 67'
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
SEA- Handwalla Bwana (caution) 37'
SJ - Danny Hoesen (caution) 70'
SEA - Nicolás Lodeiro (caution) 77'
SJ - Luis Felipe (caution) 87'
SJ - Chris Wondolowski (caution) 90'+5'
LINEUPS & STATS
Seattle Sounders FC - Stefan Frei; Kelvin Leerdam, Kim Kee-hee, Chad Marshall, Nouhou (Brad Smith 55'); Gustav Svensson (Harry Shipp 56'), Cristian Roldan, Handwalla Bwana, Nicolás Lodeiro - captain, VÃctor RodrÃguez (Henry Wingo 63'); Jordan Morris
Substitutes not used: Bryan Meredith, Alex Roldan, Jordy Delem, Román Torres
Total shots: 21 (Bwana, 6)
Shots on goal: 8 (Bwana, 3)
Fouls: 11 (Three players, 2)
Offside: 0
Corner-kicks: 12 (Lodeiro, 12)
Saves: 4 (Frei, 4)
San Jose Earthquakes - Daniel Vega; Nick Lima, Florian Jungwirth, Harold Cummings, Paul Marie; Judson (Luis Felipe 79'), Jackson Yueill, Magnus Eriksson (Vako 75'), Shea Salinas - captain, Cristian Espinoza; Danny Hoesen (Chris Wondolowski 86')
Substitutes not used: Andrew Tarbell, Jimmy Ockford, Eric Calvillo, Marcos Lopez
Total shots: 17 (Espinoza, 5)
Shots on goal: 6 (Espinoza/Salinas, 2)
Fouls: 17 (Jungwirth/Yueill, 3)
Offside: 0
Corner-kicks: 3 (Three players, 1)
Saves: 6 (Vega, 6)
