(SUN BOWL STADIUM, El Paso, TX) - Zack Scott slammed home a header off a corner kick in the 15th minute and Kevin Sakuda nailed the match shut with a beautiful steal, run and shot in the 54th as Seattle ended the El Paso Patriots short run at Sun Bowl Stadium with a 2-0 loss Saturday night.
El Paso falls to 6-7-2 while Seattle improves to 7-2-4.
The Sounders dominated the run of play from the kickoff, ruining new Patriots' head coach Jesus "Chuy" Enriquez's debut with a lackluster effort.
The match was also El Paso's last regular-season effort at the Sun Bowl. The Patriots will return to their original home at Dudley Field next weekend to fulfill a lease obligation with the City of El Paso, which owns the stadium.
Seattle's first goal came on a corner kick from Andrew Gregor. After a low-flying, accurate cross, Scott came in unmarked for the strong header just two yards away from the goalmouth. El Paso goalkeeper Scott Alexander had no chance at the ball, screened off from the play by a Sounders' player.
The Patriots misplayed a number of balls throughout the match, including some errant passes that made their way to the feet of Seattle players. One of those errant passes resulted in the Sounders' second goal.
Lurking on the right side of the midfield, Sakuda picked up a pass headed into the middle from El Paso's left wing. With an open lane to the 18-yard-box, Sakuda drove the ball past two Patriots defenders and chipped a beautiful arcing shot from 15 yards out that went over Alexander's head and nestled in the left upper 90.
Perhaps it was telling that both of Seattle's goals were scored by defenders. Nonetheless, El Paso has company in the Central Division race as the team wraps up its seven-match homestand next weekend.
Though the Patriots 20 points is still good for second in the division, Cincinnati, with 18 points, can pass El Paso with a win tomorrow at home vs. Pittsburgh. Milwaukee, at 15 points, can also climb closer with a win tomorrow at home against Indianapolis, which lost Saturday night, 2-1, to division-leading Minnesota.
The Patriots have garnered only four of a possible 15 points in the five matches they've played thus far. Their only win came June 20 against Milwaukee.
SEATTLE 2, EL PASO 0
Scoring: S-Scott (15, Gregor), S-Sakuda (54).
SEATTLE: Rich Cullen, Kevin Sakuda, Danny Jackson, Zack Scott, Scott Jenkins, Viet Nguyen (73, Chad Brown), Jason Farrell, Andrew Gregor, Alex Bengard, Kyle Smith, Marco Velez (63, Hercules Gomez).
EL PASO: Scott Alexander, Sidnei dos Santos, Carlos Martinez, Hamlet Diaz, Ahmed Figueroa (55, Javier Carrazco), Pablo Cabrera, David de la Torre (57, Enrique Cervantes), Omar Mora (17, Junro Narita), Laurenco Andrade (77, Jose Abarca), Tim Pierce (63, Victor Arreola), Mike Griego.
Shots: S 5-5-10, EP 4-7-11. Saves: S 0-2-2, EP 0-2-2. Fouls: S 5-11-16, EP 4-7-11. Offsides: S 3-1-4, EP 3-0-3. Corner Kicks: S 5-6-11, EP 0-1-1. Cautions: none. Ejections: none. Attendance: 575. Officials: Darren Engers, Michael Brow, Jeff Kattawar, Gibby Widner.
