Portland outshot Seattle 22-6 and held the possession advantage, but were undone by a 76th minute own goal by center defender Julio Cascante.
After 76 minutes of commanding play, the Timbers were ultimately defeated by the own goal, a deflection off Cascante inside the six yard box from a Kim Kee-hee cross. Portland created opportunities in the attack, but the desperation for a goal sent players forward, and helped Seattle see a pair of legitimate chances in the final minutes.
Portland had its chances in the early stages — 14, including blocked shots — but couldn’t put any away, continuing its theme of struggling to find scoring over the past three games.
For most of the season, Portland and Seattle were at opposite paces, the Timbers punching near the top of the Western Conference and the Sounders winning two of its first 11 games. The Timbers won both of the first two meetings against the sides, too.
But the storied rivals are back in each others’ crosshairs.
The Sounders won their last six entering Sunday, and were undefeated over the last nine games, pulling within two points of the Timbers, who brought a three-game skid into the contest.
Portland has little time to pout as it returns to Providence Park to host defending MLS Cup champions Toronto FC on Wednesday, a challenge that some on the team welcome.
“It’s bitterly disappointing … we’re even more disappointed than anybody,” center defender Liam Ridgewell said. “But in this game, luckily you get an opportunity to go out there and prove yourself once again and try to put this one behind us.”
RIDGEWELL RETURNS
Ridgewell, the team’s $700,000 center back, returned to the lineup for the first time since suffering a quad injury in May. The 36-year-old served as a welcome addition to a back line that had given up a season-worst six goals in its last three games (all losses).
“I’ve been in the game for a long time, lost four in a row before,” Ridgewell said. “We win a game and it will all soon be forgotten.”
LANGSDORF NOT ROSTERED
Timbers homegrown signee and Mountain View High School graduate Foster Langsdorf continues to wait for his first team debut.
The rookie did not make the 18-man roster for Sunday’s game amid a battle for playing time in the forward rotation.
After dealing franchise-leading goal scorer Fanendo Adi to Cincinnati last month, the Timbers have struggled to find consistent scoring. Langsdorf, who is under contract with the first team, is in the Golden Boot race for his 14 goals with Timbers 2, the club’s USL side.
