SEATTLE, WASH. - Jordan Morris and Carlos Vela scored as Sounders FC (5-1-3, 18 points) drew 1-1 with Los Angeles FC (7-1-2, 23 points) on Sunday afternoon at CenturyLink Field in front of 38,581 fans and a national television audience via ESPN. Morris' goal gives him a team-leading four strikes on the season, as Seattle extended its home unbeaten streak to nine games (7-0-2), just five shy of the club record. Sunday's match was the second of two contests between the two sides in eight days, as LAFC gave Seattle its first loss of the season last Sunday in a 4-1 result at Banc of California Stadium.
Seattle went up 1-0 inside the first minute courtesy of Morris, who got behind the LAFC defense and slotted a shot past Tyler Miller for his team-leading fourth goal of the season. Just 45 seconds into the match, Morris' goal is the second-earliest strike in club history, behind only Clint Dempsey scoring 23 seconds into a match vs. San Jose on March 14, 2015.
The visitors equalized three minutes later on the counterattack, with Jordan Harvey springing Diego Rossi up the left flank for a cross to Vela for a tap-in at the far post. It marked the third goal for Vela in two matches vs. Seattle this season, following a brace last Sunday at Banc of California Stadium.
Sounders FC was forced to play the final 72 minutes of Sunday's match with 10 men after Cristian Roldan was issued a red card in the 18th minute. Kelvin Leerdam was also issued a red card in the fourth minute of stoppage time, meaning the Rave Green completed the final moments of the match with nine players.
Brian Schmetzer's side now hits the road to face Minnesota United FC on Saturday, May 4 in Seattle's first match at Allianz Field (5:00 p.m. PT / JOEtv, YouTube TV, 950 KJR AM, El Rey 1360 AM).
MATCH NOTES
- Sounders FC now has 18 points through nine games (5-1-3) and currently sits third in the Western Conference, five points behind first-place LAFC.
- Sounders FC stretched its home unbeaten streak to nine games (7-0-2), just five shy of the club record. The team's last home loss came on September 19, 2018 in a 1-0 defeat to Philadelphia.
- Seattle earned its first point all-time against LAFC, and now owns a 0-3-1 mark against the second-year club.
- Morris scored his fourth goal of the season and 19th of his career. Three of his four goals in 2019 have come at CenturyLink Field. Morris' four goals in nine games surpass his total of three goals in 23 games in 2017. He tallied a career-high 12 markers in his rookie season of 2016.
- Just 45 seconds into the match, Morris' goal is the second-earliest strike in club history, behind only Clint Dempsey scoring 23 seconds into a match vs. San Jose on March 14, 2015.
- Cristian Roldan and Kelvin Leerdam each received a red card, marking the second time in Sounders FC history that the club had two players ejected in one game (last: May 4, 2013 at Philadelphia). Roldan did not previously have a red card with Sounders FC, while Leerdam earned a red card on March 31, 2018 vs. Montreal.
- 15-year-old Sounders FC Academy product Danny Leyva made the 18-man lineup for the first time in his professional career on Sunday. Leyva signed for the First Team as a Homegrown Player on April 9, 2019.
- Carlos Vela netted his league-leading 11th goal of 2019 in the fourth minute of play for LAFC.
MATCH SUMMARY
Seattle Sounders FC 1 - Los Angeles FC 1
Saturday, April 28, 2019
Venue: CenturyLink Field
Referee: Ted Unkel
Assistants: Jason White, Jeffrey Greeson
Fourth Official: Michael Radchuk
VAR: Hilario Grajeda
Attendance: 38,581
Weather: 55 degrees and partly sunny
SCORING SUMMARY
SEA - Jordan Morris 1'
LAFC - Carlos Vela (Diego Rossi, Jordan Harvey) 4'
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
SEA- Kim Kee-hee (caution) 10'
SEA - Cristian Roldan (ejection) 18'
LAFC - Mark-Anthony Kaye (caution) 18'
LAFC - Tristan Blackmon (caution) 42'
SEA - Nicolás Lodeiro (caution) 59'
SEA - Kelvin Leerdam (ejection) 90'+5'
LINEUPS & STATS
Seattle Sounders FC - Stefan Frei; Kelvin Leerdam, Román Torres, Kim Kee-hee, Brad Smith; Jordy Delem, Cristian Roldan, Harry Shipp (Alex Roldan 70'), Nicolás Lodeiro - captain, Handwalla Bwana (Henry Wingo 79'); Jordan Morris (Saad Abdul-Salaam 90'+7')
Substitutes not used: Bryan Meredith, Jonathan Campbell, Danny Leyva
Total shots: 4 (Four players, 1)
Shots on goal: 3 (Three players, 1)
Fouls: 14 (Lodeiro, 5)
Offside: 0
Corner-kicks: 5 (Lodeiro, 5)
Saves: 4 (Frei, 4)
Los Angeles FC - Tyler Miller; Tristan Blackmon (Lee Nguyen HT), Walker Zimmerman, Eddie Segura, Jordan Harvey (Mohamed El-Munir 70'); Eduard Atuesta, Mark-Anthony Kaye, Latif Blessing; Diego Rossi, Christian Ramirez (Adrien Perez 77'), Carlos Vela - captain
Substitutes not used: Pablo Sisniega, Peter-Lee Vassell, Niko Hamalainen, Josh Perez
Total shots: 21 (Vela, 6)
Shots on goal: 5 (Vela, 2)
Fouls: 7 (Seven players, 1)
Offside: 3 (Rossi, 2)
Corner-kicks: 4 (Vela, 4)
Saves: 2 (Miller, 2)
