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Quick Hits: Sounders Offense Hits Season-High Four Goals vs. St. Louis

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Seattle Sounders midfielder Cristian Roldan yells to the home crowd after his first goal against St. Louis City on Saturday, April 18, 2026 at Lumen Field in Seattle, Wash. (Maddy Grassy / Sounders FC Communications) [/caption]

The Seattle Sounders continued their offensive brilliance at home, scoring a season-high four goals against St. Louis City on Saturday night in a 4-1 win. The result, which came in Seattle's second MLS home game of the season (this time on grass made for the World Cup), pushed the Sounders to 5-1-1 on the young season — good for fourth place out west.

Cristian Roldan followed a two-assist Concacaf Champions Cup second leg win vs. Tigres on Wednesday with a brace on Saturday night. Albert Rusnák assisted on both of Roldan's set-piece goals while scoring his own on a second-half penalty drawn by Paul Rothrock. Striker Osaze De Rosario came on late to score the fourth — his first of the season as the young forward vies for minutes in a competitive lineup.

St. Louis spoiled what would have been another Seattle clean sheet with a stoppage-time goal from Eduard Löwen.

Roldan Capitalizes on St. Louis Miscommunication

City (1-4-3) came into the game with one win, but had been sound in set-piece defense — St. Louis hadn’t conceded a set-piece goal all season.

So when Rusnák, fresh off two goals in the second-leg win over Tigres on Wednesday, saw a very light defensive contingent on the far post in the 22nd, there was no choice but to capitalize. He found an unmarked Cristian Roldan, who slithered in for a header that left City's defense in pure frustration.

15 minutes later, with a corner on the left side coming, Rusnák and Cristian Roldan did the unthinkable — the exact same thing.

Roldan finished the perfect cross this time off a first-touch volley, which eluded keeper Roman Bürki's save attempt to bounce in.

"Those two goals started us on a path to a comfortable victory," head coach Brian Schmetzer said postgame.

For those USMNT fans whose chief criticism of the presumed World Cup participant in Roldan is that he doesn't score enough, four goal contributions in two matches is a tough sight to see.

Lumen Ushers Seattle Offense Back Into Spotlight

The Sounders, with just six goals in their first six MLS games, have renewed their offense.

Three strong goals on Wednesday vs. Tigres in their return to Lumen Field after being gone since Feb. 22 set the table for Saturday, and Seattle reignited its offense despite rotating its lineup.

Rothrock drew a penalty early in the second half purely because he was playing at a pace beyond what St. Louis was capable of matching, while Cristian Roldan’s goals were the product of pure confusion from City.

Osaze De Rosario's 86th-minute goal, which was a beauty as he worked from left to right in the box to free up a window for a strong strike, was the cherry on top of a 2.0 expected-goal night.

Rotated Lineup Continues to Perform

Antino Lopez picked up his fourth start in place of an unavailable Jackson Ragen and looked every bit as solid at the center back spot. Though he didn’t make any flashy plays, Lopez helped shut down transition chances simply by being in the right spots — the mark of any good Seattle center back. At the end of the match, Schmetzer brought newly signed midfielder Peter Kingston on to close for Cristian Roldan as Tacoma Defiance products continue to litter every corner of the roster.

Danny Musovski was solid at the nine, putting two shots on target, while Snyder Brunell was dynamic on the wing instead of his normal defending midfield spot next to Cristian Roldan. Brunell’s ability to play the two positions positively gives Schmetzer some much-needed flexibility in these fixture-congested times.

Instead, Hassani Dotson started in the defensive midfield and looked solid as he recovered from a long concussion-protocol stint — though he was 1-for-5 on ground duels (per FotMob).

Returning to the striker spot, Schmetzer went to the double-striker look with Jordan Morris and Musovski in the 53rd, as Morris again deferred to play more of a playmaking spot. Now that De Rosario has seen one go in, Schmetzer may choose him and Musovski at striker with Morris playing wider to deliver balls in.

Finally, Jesús Ferreira got some rest before subbing on in the 53rd. He put an instinctive pass in to De Rosario to make it four.

Defense Reigns Supreme Again

St. Louis also came into the night having scored just six goals, but this was another lockdown performance from Seattle, which has allowed just three goals in seven MLS games.

Not bad.

Keeper Andrew Thomas had to make only one save, but had another great game of organizing the backline with audible shouts all night long. And organized the defense was, blocking five balls with 21 clearances while allowing 0.9 expected goals.