TUKWILA, Wash. – One down, five to go.
Head coach Ezra Hendrickson called this final stretch a “six-game season” prior to the Portland Timbers 2 game on Monday. A six-game season from which they must claim at least 10 points if they are to have a shot at USL playoffs. Three of those points are now in the bag thanks to some late-game heroics from midfielder Jordan Schweitzer, but they face a tough challenge against Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 on Friday (7:30 p.m. PT, livestream on SoundersFC.com) in the last home game of S2’s season. Tickets are still available here.
“It’s always a good game,” said Hendrickson. “We’ve played Vancouver twice now and both matches have been very competitive. Whenever we play second teams of MLS teams, it’s an even matchup.”
Vancouver 2 have been electric this season, commanding one of the top three spots in the West for the entire year. If S2 are fortunate enough to claim three points on Friday, they then have to travel to Vancouver's turf to play them again on Monday. With that challenge looming, Hendrickson stressed the importance of taking it one game at a time.
“Right now, we’re not thinking about Monday; we’re focusing on the first game at home on Friday night,” Hendrickson said. “After that we’ll start dealing with Monday’s game. After this game on Friday, which is our last home game, it’s four games to end the season on the road, so we know we have to get full three points here.”
The message was not lost on Schweitzer, who spoke similarly of the team’s current attention.
“All focus is on Friday…and we’ll go from there,” he said. “That’s all we’re thinking about now.”
