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SEATTLE – Houston Dynamo FC earned a road point in a scoreless draw versus Seattle Sounders FC tonight, as Houston secured their second clean sheet of the season.
Notably, goalkeeper Jimmy Maurer and midfielder Júnior Urso both made their first Dynamo league starts tonight.
Goalkeeper Blake Gillingham made his Dynamo and MLS debut in replacement of an injured Maurer in the 67th minute, marking the first time an MLS rookie has played in goal for the Dynamo since Nov. 3, 2021 when Kyle Morton stood between the framework.
Defender Erik Sviatchenko also made his 50th MLS regular season appearance this evening.
Additionally, midfielder Nico Lodeiro made his return to Seattle tonight. The Uruguayan international played a pivotal role in Seattle’s success over the past decade, winning three trophies, including the MLS Cup in 2016 and 2019, as well as the Concacaf Champions League in 2022. Houston signed Lodeiro international in February.
In game action, Urso had Houston’s first shot of the match in the 14th minute when the midfielder faked a Seattle defender to his right before firing a shot that missed high.
Maurer was called into action in the 15th minute when Paul Rothrock attacked the box from the left side, but the shot stopper got his hand up to Seattle’s tight angle shot to deflect the danger away.
Maurer stepped up again in the 39th minute, making a diving save to his right when Danny Leyva struck the ball from outside of the box.
Maurer stopped another shot in the 43rd minute, getting down to his near post to athletically kick away the shot of Alex Roldan and quell the danger to keep the match scoreless heading into halftime.
Lodeiro tried his luck in the 57th minute with an acrobatic shot in the middle of the box that missed just wide following an attempted clearance from the Sounders’ backline.
Gillingham was called into action in the 82nd minute when the rookie goalkeeper dove to his right to stop a shot from Georgi Minoungou.
Midfielder Sebastian Kowalczyk fired a shot in the 76th minute from the top of the box that went just wide of the right post.
The Dynamo had another dangerous chance in the 88th minute when midfielder Erik Dueñas forced a save from goalkeeper Stefan Frei.
Gillingham stepped up again in second half stoppage time, getting low to block Jesus Ferreira’s shot with his feet. Two minutes later, the goalkeeper prevented another scoring opportunity from Seattle with diving save to his left.
The Dynamo return to the Pacific Northwest next weekend for a Sunday Night Soccer matchup versus the Portland Timbers on March 30.
BOX SCORE
Seattle Sounders FC (1-2-2, 5 pts.) 0-0 Houston Dynamo FC (0-3-2, 2 pts.)
MLS Regular Season – Game 5
Lumen Field – Seattle, Washington
SCORING SUMMARY
TEAM | 1H | 2H | FT |
Seattle Sounders FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Houston Dynamo FC | 0 | 0 | 0
|
Seattle Sounders FC: Stefan Frei; Jonathan Bell, Jackson Ragen, Yeimar Gomez; Paul Rothrock, Joao Paulo (Danny Musovski 76’), Danny Leyva (Georgi Minoungou 60’), Alex Roldan; Albert Rusnak, Jesus Ferreira, Cristian Roldan
Unused substitutes: Travian Sousa, Andrew Thomas, Jacob Castro, Cody Baker, Stuart Hawkins, Kalani Kossa-Rienzi
Houston Dynamo FC: Jimmy Maurer (Blake Gillingham 67’); Franco Escobar, Femi Awodesu, Ethan Bartlow (Daniel Steres 21’), Griffin Dorsey; Artur, Amine Bassi (Erik Dueñas 84’), Júnior Urso; Sebastian Kowalczyk (Erik Sviatchenko 84’), Ezequiel Ponce, Nico Lodeiro (Aliyu Ibrahim 67’)
Unused substitutes: Gabe Segal, Michael Halliday, Diego Gonzalez, Andy Batioja
DISCIPLINE:
HOU: Amine Bassi (caution; foul) 69’
HOU: Júnior Urso (caution; foul) 71’
HOU: Daniel Steres (caution; foul) 78’
HOU: Franco Escobar (caution; dissent) 79’
OFFICIALS:
Referee: Allen Chapman
Assistant: Corey Rockwell
Assistant: Stefan Tanaka-Freundt
Fourth Official: Victor Rivas
VAR: Carol Anne Chenard
Weather: 50 degrees, overcast
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(Have a story suggestion for the Premier Media Group and the National Soccer Network regarding club/youth soccer, high school varsity, amateur soccer, collegiate soccer or professional soccer involving teams, players or coaches with ties to a particular state or states, contact Web and Content Editor/Director of News Dan Stickradt via email at dstickradt@thepremiermediagrp.com and news@nationalsoccernetwork.com, or call 248-525-2349. Dan Stickradt is a 32-year veteran of the Michigan and national media circles and recently joined the staff full time at PMG in March of 2024. Want to schedule a broadcast game or live show, contact PMG/NSN Director of Broadcasting Jonathan Turner for availability and pricing at jonathan@thepremiermediagrp.com.)
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