| PREGAME SUMMARY: |
|---|
| 2019 MLS Preseason presented by Advocare |
| Portland Timbers vs. Seattle Sounders |
| Kino North Stadium | Tucson, Arizona |
| Wednesday, Feb. 13 - 9 PM ET |
| Stream: Timbers.com, YouTube |
Seattle-Portland, the most bitter chapter of the famed Cascadia Cup, will be renewed under the desert skies of southern Arizona as the Mobile Mini Sun Cup kicks off in earnest on Wednesday night. This is the second half of a twin bill at Kino North Stadium, with Sporting KC-Houston Dynamo the opening act; these matches are the first which will count towards the standings of this Preseason presented by Advocare invitational tournament.
Seattle Sounders
Seattle opened their stint in Tucson with a 3-2 loss to Houston on Saturday and spoke positively of the performance, in which the Sounders' first team led 2-0 early before the Dynamo scored three late goals against a lineup of mostly reserves and Tacoma Defiance players. Even in preseason, however, meetings with the Timbers carry a different weight.
"Whoever we put on the field, it's a preseason match, it always means something," said coach Brian Schmetzer of Wednesday's clash. "It does mean something. It's a fierce rivalry. It should be an entertaining game."
Portland Timbers
Wednesday's affair marks the first game against MLS competition for the Timbers thus far this preseason, largely because their opening trip of 2019 was a camp in Costa Rica, where they faced Deportivo Saprissaand CS Herediano in scrimmage play.
Citing the beneficial holdover effects of their run to the 2018 MLS Cup final, players and staff have suggested that they're ahead of their usual pace at this point in preseason, which could up the intensity a bit against their hated adversaries from Seattle.
