BAY LAKE – The San Jose Earthquakes and Seattle Sounders advanced to the knockout stages of the MLS is Back tournament following victories on Sunday night.
The Quakes used two second-half goals to get past the Chicago Fire 2-0. The result continued San Jose’s goal-scoring run and came after the team controlled the possession throughout the match.
After failing to capitalize in the first half, the opening goal finally came through an unexpected source. Having not scored in over a year, Cristian Espinoza received a through ball from Jackson Yueill and improved the angle with his first touch before scoring with his second.
Chicago thought it had an equalizer in the 70th minute as Robert Beric put it in the back of the net. That goal was ruled out after a CJ Sapong foul in the build-up.
The Fire was paid for that missed chance with seven minutes to play when Chris Wondolowski extended his lead atop the MLS all-time goal scoring charts with his 161st goal.
The Seattle Sounders recovered from their slow start to the tournament and advanced thanks to a 3-0 win over a disjointed Vancouver Whitecaps FC side in the late match.
It was a big game for Jordan Morris, who was involved in all three goals, scoring one, assisting on another, and earning a penalty for the other. The penalty was the opener as Morris was fouled, allowing Nicolas Lodeiro to score.
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Morris added the second in the 34th minute after a beautiful ball over the top fell into his path, allowing him to continue his run and send it past the keeper to double the lead.
The third came in the second half through Raul Ruidiaz, putting away Morris’ header across the box after a corner. It could have been so much worse for Vancouver as it never looked in the game. The result means the Caps have conceded five unanswered goals after its collapse to San Jose in the opener. All hope is not lost for them, but they need a massive win against Chicago to stay in the tournament.
PHOTO COURTESY: Jared Martinez and Matthew Stith
Florida Soccer Report 
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