Seattle Sounders 0, Colorado Rapids 1 | 2016 MLS Match Recap

Franco Panizo

The Colorado Rapids were under siege for much of the 90 minutes in Seattle, but their defensive players delivered on both sides of the ball as the Rapids maintained the best record in MLS with a slim 1-0 road win.

The Rapids combined an Axel Sjoberg goal late in the first half with another stingy performance at the back to shock the Seattle Sounders on Saturday night. Sjoberg scored the winner off a corner kick in the 43rd minute, and Colorado held on at CenturyLink Field despite waves and waves of attacks from the home team.

Sigi Schmid's men nearly pulled level on a few occasions, however. Rookie Jordan Morris had a pair of good looks in the second half from the right side of the penalty area that he sent wide of the frame, and Clint Dempsey saw a 73rd-minute header cleared off the line by Rapids defender Marc Burch.

The win pushed the Western Conference-leading Rapids to 27 points on the year via an 8-2-3 record. The Sounders, meanwhile, stay at 13 points after going 4-6-1 to this point in the season.

Box Score

43' – COL – Axel Sjoberg (Marc Burch)
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Three Things

BIG-TIME BURCH: While Sjoberg will get plenty of attention for scoring the winner and coming up with several timely interventions, Burch also did plenty to ensure that Colorado picked up three more points. Not only did the left back deliver a gorgeous corner kick that allowed Sjoberg to nod home for the winner, but he also came up with the timeliest of interventions when he denied Dempsey at the door step in the second half.
DAY TO FORGET: Hours after it was revealed that he was one of the surprise omissions from the US national team's Copa America Centenario roster, Morris had a rough day at the office for Seattle. Two plays in a span of four minutes in the second half marked his performance, as the talented rookie curled a shot wide left in the 65th minute and then failing to finish another promising play three minutes later.
DEFENSIVE ACES: Pablo Mastroeni's back four led the way again in Saturday's Western Conference triumph, adding to the impressive numbers the Rapids have racked up in 2016. The club is now unbeaten in eight straight matches dating back to April 13 and has posted five shutouts this season.