Heading into the 2016 MLS Cup Final on Saturday, SoundersFC.com is taking a look at the 10 best moments in the Seattle Sounders’ Major League Soccer history. No's. 10-8 were released on Monday, No's. 7-5 on Tuesday, No'. 4 and 3 on Wednesday, No. 2 on Thursday and No. 1 on Friday.
No. 4: The Sounders’ First Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Trophy
The Seattle Sounders had not been in Major League Soccer for even a full year before they captured their first piece of hardware.
Seattle defeated D.C. United at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C., to win the 2009 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup trophy, the first in franchise history. Fredy Montero scored the opener in the 67th minute on a play which ended with referee Alex Prus ejecting D.C. goalkeeper Josh Wicks for intentionally stepping on Montero after he scored.
With United reduced to 10, Roger Levesque produced the eventual game-winning goal in the 86th minute. After stealing the ball near United’s 18-yard-box, Sebastien Le Toux picked out a wide-open Levesque on the far post for the easy tap-in.
United wasn’t done yet, though. Clyde Simms answered just three minutes later, slotting home a deflected ball off a free kick that caught Sounders goalkeeper Kasey Keller out of position. Following an eventful five minutes of stoppage time, Seattle hung on for one of its biggest wins in franchise history.
“It means an awful lot for this club, for this organization for the fans — all the support we’ve gotten all season,” said then-Sounders head coach Sigi Schmid. “To win our first trophy in our first year … qualifies us for [CONCACAF] Champions League, which is another big thing for our fans. I’m really happy about that.”
The 2009 win set the stage for what would become three consecutive U.S. Open Cup titles. The Sounders took down the Columbus Crew and the Chicago Fire the next two years, respectively, and then defeated the Philadelphia Union in 2014 to win their fourth championship, tied for second-most in the tournament’s 103-year history.
