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Sounders, Rapids clash at CenturyLink

Aug 29, 2014 - 11:50 PM Seattle, WA (SportsNetwork.com) - A pair of Western Conference rivals will lock horns on Saturday as Seattle Sounders FC welcomes the Colorado Rapids to CenturyLink Field.

Seattle has been rolling along all season with only minor bumps along the way as the club enters the match in first place in the West with 45 points and also on top of the Supporters' Shield race.

Last time out, the Sounders rolled to a comfortable 4-2 thrashing of Cascadia rivals the Portland Timbers at Providence Park behind a pair of goals from Obafemi Martins.

Seattle opened the scoring in the 17th minute through Martins, who got on the end of a low cross from Brad Evans and fired it home at the near post for the early lead.

Seattle extended the lead to 2-0 in the 34th minute through a goal from Clint Dempsey and the visiting side made it a three-goal margin with 20 minutes to play as Chad Barrett found the ball lingering on the left side of the box. and struck the ball near post for his seventh goal of the season.

Portland pulled one back in the 73rd minute through a fantastic header from Fanendo Adi, but Martins completed his double three minutes later to restore his team's three goal lead,

"Our team went out there with an attitude. We wanted to make this a statement game. This was not last year. It's not deja vu," Sounders FC head coach Sigi Schmid said. "I'm very pleased with our attitude and the result today."

Colorado, meanwhile, will look to get back on the winning track after suffering a 4-3 defeat to the Los Angeles Galaxy on Aug. 20.

Colorado opened the scoring after 14 minutes through Marlon Hairston and Edson Buddle made it 2-0 three minutes later.

Robbie Keane pulled the Galaxy within one, but the Rapids restored their two- goal advantage in the 30th minute when Marc Burch ripped a free kick off the underside of the crossbar.

The Rapids, however, were unable to hold their lead as the Galaxy roared back to net three second-half goals to claim all three points in stunning fashion.

"I thought it was a really hard-fought match. I think the guys absolutely left everything on the field, created a bunch of opportunities. On the day, we were beat by quite a few class players," said Rapids head coach Pablo Mastroeni. "That's why they are who they are.

"I don't think the score's a reflection of the way the game was played. I think we deserved more out of the game but I think we're finding ways to shoot ourselves in the foot. I can't say anything but how proud I am of the effort. Now it's just preparation and on to the next match."

Saturday's clash will be the second meeting of the season between the sides, which last met on April 26 as the Sounders eased to a 4-1 win at CenturyLink.