WATCH: Sounders Settle for Fourth Straight Draw, Arriola Strikes Late
The Seattle Sounders moved to 7-9-7 to remain 13th in the MLS Western Conference after drawing with the LA Galaxy 1-1 on the road on Saturday night. Paul Arriola scored almost immediately after coming on in the 81st minute to tie it up, replacing star striker Dejan Joveljic after the Sporting Kansas City transfer left with cramps.
By the end of the night, both teams put up over two expected goals each as Sounders coach Brian Schmetzer said he had to be stern with his veterans for missing chances after Seattle trailed 1-0 at halftime. With the result, the Sounders sit two points out of a playoff spot with 11 games to go, needing to turn nights like these into wins — Saturday marked Seattle’s fourth straight one-point result.
Emerald City Spectrum reporter Qasim Ali breaks down the action and where the Sounders sit on the table at this crossroads in the season.
WATCH: Sounders Settle for Scoreless Draw with Red Bulls, Pick Up First Clean Sheet Since April
Emerald City Spectrum reporter Qasim Ali breaks down a 0-0 draw between the 7-9-6 Seattle Sounders (13th in Western Conference) and Red Bull New York (7-10-6) on Saturday night.
The Sounders won the expected-goals battle 2.1-1.0 and took 20 shots, but six key saves from RBNY keeper Ethan Horvath and close-range misses by Paul Rothrock and Sebastian Gomez kept the Rave Green scoreless. Defender Kalani Kossa-Rienzi was the latest in a constant stream of Sounders players to get injured, as the wingback sprained his right ankle in the first half and was confirmed to be in a boot postgame. On a positive note, the Sounders tabbed their first clean sheet since April, as keeper Andrew Thomas had four saves while Cristian Roldan, Alex Roldan and others played sound defensive games.
The Sounders will take on the team one spot ahead of them in the LA Galaxy next week, with 12 games left before the MLS Cup Playoffs.
Apple Cup Preview: Washington State Begins Kirby Moore Era Against No. 17 Washington
Washington State will officially begin the Kirby Moore era on the road when the Cougars take on the Washington Huskies in the Apple Cup, presenting a substantial challenge for the new coach as he tries to get his squad off to a fast start.
Moore will become Washington State’s third head coach in as many years, taking over a roster that has undergone significant changes throughout the offseason as they head into the first season competing in the new-look Pac-12 conference. With plenty of new faces on both sides of the ball, the Cougars will open the new campaign as a heavy underdog against a ranked Huskies team while looking to avenge last season’s loss.
What stands out as the Cougs prepare for their annual - at least for now - rivalry matchup in Seattle?
Pinnick at the Wheel for Washington State Offense
Caden Pinnick will take over as Washington State’s starting quarterback as the Cougars open the season with with plenty of changes on offense.
Pinnick, a transfer from UC Davis, was named Big Sky Freshman of the Year and will be tasked with leading an offense that features a few noteworthy returners from last year’s squad, including a backfield with Kirby Vorhees, Maxwell Woods and Leo Pulalasi all returning. The Cougars will also bring back their second and third-leading receivers from a year ago in Tony Freeman and tight end Trey Leckner. Leckner, however, will miss part of the season after suffering a foot injury.
Sounders Trade for DC United MF Caden Clark, Loan Osaze De Rosario to Denmark
The Seattle Sounders made one more move to close out the summer 2026 transfer window as it expired Wednesday afternoon, trading for 23-year-old DC United midfielder Caden Clark, as first reported by Niko Moreno of Sounder at Heart. The Sounders ship out a 2028 Superdraft second-rounder and pick up a contract for Clark with wages of over $400,000 this season and a club option for the 2027 sprint season and ensuing 2027-28 season.
Clark, who spent a season in the German Bundesliga three years ago, has played just seven games for United and has floated all over MLS since he started his pro career at 16 years old. He played a central attacking midfielder position primarily for DC last season, but should figure into the winger conversation in Seattle.
That’s because GM Craig Waibel and head coach Brian Schmetzer had hinted at the team having more moves in the pipeline after last week's big-name addition of striker Dejan Joveljić from Sporting Kansas City. Waibel had said the team was looking for "speed in the channels" in particular, and reporting from Moreno confirmed the Sounders had a bigger name winger than Clark in mind, but the deal didn’t come to fruition.
Clark had eight goal contributions in just 12 games with the NY Red Bulls II of the USL Championship in 2020 before playing for the first team in MLS for over two seasons, notching 11 goal contributions in 47 games. His performance as teenager earned him a seven-digit transfer to RB Leipzig, but he never saw Bundesliga minutes in the 2022-23 season.
Clark, who spent a season in the German Bundesliga but didn’t play a game three years ago, has played just seven games for United this year and has floated all over MLS since he started his pro career at 16 years old. He largely played in the central attacking midfield for DC United last season, but will likely figure into the wings for Seattle.
That’s because GM Craig Waibel and head coach Brian Schmetzer had hinted at the team having more moves in the pipeline after last week's big-name addition of striker Dejan Joveljić from Sporting Kansas City. In particular, Waibel had said the team was looking for "speed in the channels," and reporting from Moreno confirmed the Sounders had a bigger-name winger than Clark in mind but couldn’t get that deal done.
WATCH: Sounders Snap Eight-Game Losing Streak, Draw with Cincinnati Despite Rotated Team
Emerald City Spectrum reporter Qasim Ali breaks down the Seattle Sounders’ 1-1 draw at FC Cincinnati on Saturday night.
The result marked the end of a franchise-worst eight-game MLS losing streak as Kalani Kossa-Rienzi bagged the equalizer in the 83rd minute off service from Albert Rusnak. Seattle also managed to split the points with a heavily rotated squad that saw Stuart Hawkins and Ryan Sailor notch 90-minute games while winger Paul Rothrock wore the captain’s armband for the first time.
WATCH: Sounders, Reign Drop Midweek Matches; Rave Green Lose Eighth Straight
The Seattle Sounders and Seattle Reign both lost 2-1 on Wednesday, with the Sounders falling to MLS foe Austin FC at Lumen Field and the Reign losing to NWSL side Racing Louisville on the road.
The Sounders (7-9-3) dropped their franchise-record eighth MLS game in a row, falling to 12th in the Western Conference. Though young center back Stuart Hawkins scored late, the Rave Green were unable to cope with a rotated Austin team focused on its Leagues Cup run despite narrowly winning the expected-goal battle and outshooting the visitors.
Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer backed the effort his injury-riddled team is putting in during this streak, but watched as All-Star center back Jackson Ragen exited the game early with a hyperextended knee. Schmetzer clarified that Ragen’s removal was precautionary.
At any rate, Seattle is now missing Cristian Roldan, Pedro de la Vega, Yeimar, Paul Arriola, Ragen, Jesus Ferreira and Jordan Morris with a trip to FC Cincinnati looming on Saturday. Cristian Roldan and Morris could make a return by that fixture.
As for the Reign (8-8-3), Wednesday marked another lost lead as Seattle couldn’t defend the advantage generated by leading scorer Maddie Mercado’s (seven goals in 2026) early goal. Instead, Louisville’s USWNT team star Emma Sears ran riot for a brace, scoring two goals against the run of play as Laura Harvey’s squad failed to deliver on a large xG night for the second game in a row.
The Reign, who suffered just their second loss since the June World Cup break, will also play again on Saturday as they head to defending Shield-winning Kansas City.
WATCH: Recapping an Up-and-Down Start for Reign in 2026
Emerald City Spectrum reporter Qasim Ali breaks down a rocky start to the Seattle Reign’s 2026 season. Seattle is 4-5-2 at the World Cup/CBA break with 19 games to play, leaving the Reign in 10th place in the NWSL and out of playoff positioning — down from a fifth-place finish in 2025. Seattle has managed a win in just one of its final seven games before the break.
Seattle’s offense is tied for the second-least productive group in the league, while the defense is tied for the fourth-fewest goals allowed as head coach Laura Harvey's young squad struggles to find consistency in the face of key injuries and growing pains. Still, with such a young squad, the Reign can’t be counted out yet.
WATCH: Recapping Sounders Solid Start, And Late Troubles, Ahead of the World Cup
Emerald City Spectrum reporter Qasim Ali breaks down a 7-3-3 start to the Seattle Sounders’ 2026 campaign. The team started 6-1-1 before falling into a slump and entering the June FIFA World Cup break at sixth in the Western Conference.
The Sounders will be back in action on July 16 against their rival Portland Timbers, as Cristian Roldan (United States) is the only Seattle player rostered for the World Cup.
WATCH: Reign Break Scoreless Streak, Beat Expansion Boston 2-1
Emerald City Spectrum reporter Qasim Ali breaks down a 2-1 win for the Seattle Reign over the Boston Legacy (2-6-3) on Friday night. Seattle improved to 4-4-2 and broke a five-game scoreless streak thanks to goals from Sofia Huerta and Maddie Dahlien, conceding a late stoppage-time goal to spoil a clean-sheet performance.
Sounders Down Western Conference Front-Runner San Jose in Heritage Cup Classic
Emerald City Spectrum reporter Qasim Ali breaks down a 3-2 barn-burner between the Seattle Sounders (7-1-3, 3rd in Western Conference) and San Jose Earthquakes (9-2-2, 2nd in Western Conference).
Osaze De Rosario netted an 89th-minute game-winner as the game swung back and forth after an early Sounders mistake led to a second-minute San Jose goal. Albert Rusnák scored off a penalty kick late in the first half to equalize before Jesús Ferreira went coast-to-coast in a spectacular individual effort to give Seattle the lead.
The goals come at good times for Ferreira and De Rosario, who have both been lacking on the scoring edge as Seattle finally met its expected-goal mark after two frustrating draws against Kansas City and San Diego.
The win also meant history for the Sounders, who swept San Diego in the regular season for the first time.
Sounders, Reign Look to Make Statements Ahead of World Cup Break
The Seattle Sounders (6-1-2, 4th in MLS Western Conference) and Seattle Reign (3-2-2, 7th in NWSL) have gotten off to strong starts, but are both coming off draws in which they could have come away with more on the offensive end.
The Reign’s Mia Fishel also spoke with The Spectrum on Wednesday about reigniting the team’s offense, which is coming off three straight scoreless showings as the striker recovers from an injury-riddled stretch.
Preview: Seawolves Host Undefeated Chicago Hounds, Need Old Mate Upset to Avoid Early-Season Hole
If there is any team that is an early favorite to win the 2026 MLR title, it is the Chicago Hounds. Over their first three matches, they have scored 131 points and given up 69 on their way to three convincing victories, and they’re the only team to get all five possible points out of each of their initial matches. The California Legion, who broke through an injury-knocked Seawolves side in the final minutes of the match last Sunday, found themselves out of their depth in their own road match against the Hounds. Seattle has the advantage of being the hosts, but it is still a tall task to take down what has clearly been the best team in the league during the first third and change of the 10-match MLR season.
Also on the line for the two teams is the Old Mate, officially known as the MLR Supporters Challenge Cup. The Old Mate comes from the very first MLR game ever played between the Houston SaberCats and NOLA Gold on April 21, 2018, and was taken by the Gold in their victory that game but then lost to the Austin Elite in the Gold’s following match. From then on, in an unbroken line of victors to the present, the Old Mate has gone from team to team in the manner of a boxing world title. While originally an unofficial title like the Raeburn Shield, the MLR formalized it before the 2026 season as the Supporters Challenge Cup.
According to the North American Rugby Database (NARDb), the Seawolves have held the Old Mate 20 times, with seven successful challenges against a Mate holder and 13 successful defenses of the Mate. The Seawolves last won the Mate with their Week 15 victory over the SaberCats last year, but were unable to defend the Mate against the Free Jacks in their following game.
Previewing Seawolves Season, First Match versus Old Glory
With six teams remaining in Major League Rugby and 10 games upcoming for the Seattle Seawolves, what will this season look like for the league’s first champions?
For starters, the league’s big contraction over the offseason has concentrated remaining talent among the six teams, and further restrictions on international players have led to these teams having much more domestic rosters.
The shake-ups were no more apparent than when Anthem Rugby Carolina, who had gone winless in their first two seasons, notched a clean 39-26 victory on the road against the combined California Legion in the league’s first match on Saturday, March 28.
Preview: 3-Seed Gonzaga Aims to Start New Sweet Sixteen Streak
When the Gonzaga Bulldogs lost to the one-seeded Houston Cougars in the second round of last year’s NCAA Tournament, it snapped the Zags’ nine-year streak of advancing to the Sweet 16.
Prioritizing different personnel in the offseason with a goal of improving defensively, GU rode a well-rounded rotation into a 30-3 record a year later, consistently sitting in the AP Poll’s Top 15 each week. Gonzaga is still a capable offense, currently playing through its Third-Team All-American big man Graham Ike. But it also boasts one of, if not the best, defensive units Mark Few has ever coached, posting the ninth-best defensive rating (93.9) in the country, per KenPom.
Aside from Ike, the team has gotten contributions from every player in the rotation. From Jalen Warley’s adaptability to Emmanuel Innocenti’s perimeter defense to Mario Saint Supéry’s three-point precision, every (Bull)dog has had its day over the course of the season. There was, of course, the bad loss to a Portland team that finished 9th in the WCC. And although the Zags’ first loss of the season was to No. 3 Michigan, the final score was 101-61, with the Wolverines being the toughest opponent GU has faced by far in a now dampened non-conference schedule compared to preseason projections.
Now a 3-seed in the West Region, what challenges lie ahead for them in the opening rounds of the tournament?
Preview: Gonzaga Set to Face Oregon State in WCC Tournament Semifinals
After four-seeded Oregon State (16-16, 9-9) pulled out a slim 78-77 quarterfinals win over five-seed San Francisco on Sunday, the Gonzaga Bulldogs (28-3, 16-2) finally know their first opponent in the WCC tournament. The Zags and Beavers will square off on Monday in the Orleans Arena at 6 PM PT, with the winner advancing to the conference championship game on Tuesday.
These two teams met just once during the regular season, with the contest being GU’s first action since one of the worst losses in its program’s history, an 87-80 defeat to Portland. To say Gonzaga responded on the road against OSU would be an understatement, as it topped the Beavers 81-61 on February 7 and featured WCC Player of the Year Graham Ike matching his career-high in scoring with 35 points.
But Oregon State has won four of its six games since that blowout loss, so how do they stack up this time around versus the Bulldogs?
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