7/22/2015
For Immediate Release
Sounders U23 dispatch Portland to head to Western Conference Championship weekend
The Sounders U23 have secured a spot in the Western Conference Championship of the PDL. Four teams make this competition weekend out of the Western Conference divisions in the PDL. The Sounders U23 face the Burlingame Dragons who won the Southwest Division. FC Tucson, Champion of the Mountain Division, will face the Northwest Division Champion Kitsap Pumas in the other game. The winner of these two games will play for the Western Conference Championship and a spot in the PDL final four.
On Sunday, July 19th, the Sounders U23 traveled to play at Merlo Field at the University of Portland against the Portland Timbers U23. The hot sun beat down on the field and the game started poorly for the Sounders U23 with Anthony Machione finishing off a deflected shot for Portland past Paul Christensen in the 6th minute. The game changed following the goal with the Sounders U23 pressing and attacking the Portland goal. Guilermo Delgado finished off a great individual run with a goal in the 10th minute and it was all Sounders U23 after that.
The game went into half time with the score at 1-1. The Timbers made three changes at the half including the insertion of Collin Partee in goal. David Olsen was also brought on in the second half for the Sounders U23 and hammered home a shot to make it 2-1. The Sounders U23 continued to press the Timbers with the Timbers committing twice the fouls on the day. The physical play came to a head with a second yellow for Michael Sperber for Portland. Jonathan Campbell again made his presence felt as he scored on a corner kick from Florian Valot. The addition of Derek Johnson found the final goal as Johnson headed home a free kick to make the final score 4-1 for the Sounders U23.
With the win, the Sounders U23 take the second seed from the NW Division into the Western Conference Championship weekend against the Burlingame Dragons on Friday, July 24th in Tucson, Arizona. Jamael Cox, a former Sounders Academy and Sounders U23 player plays for the Dragons and will be suited up on Friday night.
The Western Conference Championship weekend will be held at Kino Sports Complex in Tucson, Arizona. Game times are 6pm for the Sounders U23 and Burlingame Dragons and 8pm for the Kitsap Pumas and FC Tucson. Information on how to follow the game can be found at www.uslpdl.com.
Sounders U23/Sounders Women
The Sounders U23 and Sounders Women teams are owned and operated by owners Lane Smith, Cliff McElroy, and Mike Jennings.
The Sounders U23 play in the Northwest Division of the Premier Development League (PDL) and the Sounders Women play in the W-League which is the first and longest-standing women’s soccer league in North America. Featuring current college age amateur players with former international and professional stars, both the PDL and the W-League provide elite amateurs the opportunity to compete while maintaining their eligibility as college student-athletes. Both the PDL and the W-League are recognized throughout the world for providing superior competition for players, while offering affordable family entertainment for fans throughout North America. The Sounders U23 team is the direct PDL affiliate to the Sounders FC first team and USL S2 team.
Sounders U23/Sounders Women VP/GM: Darren Sawatzky (Darrens@SoundersU23.com)
