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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Sounders advance to CONCACAF quarterfinals

Seattle Times

SAN PEDRO SULA, Hondur as – Brad Evans scored the winning goal in the 78th minute as Sounders FC clinched a berth into the CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinals with 3-2 group-stage win Wednesday at CD Marathon of Honduras.

Seattle, which also got goals from forwards Sammy Ochoa and Eddie Johnson, improved to 3-0-0 in CCL’s Group 4, which ensured the MLS team a return trip to the knockout rounds of the competition.

Marathon fell to 0-1-1 and cannot catch the Sounders with two games to play. The third team in the group, Caledonia AIA of Trinidad and Tobago, has already been eliminated at 0-2-1.

Seattle has gone unbeaten in its past five road games in the CCL group stage (4-0-1) dating to last year. The team can now place its sole focus on the Supporters’ Shield race in the MLS regular season and setting up for a playoff run.

Evans broke a 2-2 tie for the winning goal with a nice header off a cross from midfielder Osvaldo Alonso on the right side, a combination between two second-half substitutes.

Unlike the Sounders’ previous two leads of the game, this one stuck.

The Sounders have conceded a penalty kick in all three of their CCL group games — four total.