SeaWolves Lose, Fall to 3-5

The North Sound SeaWolves held strong for 20 minutes before falling to the high-scoring Portland Timbers U-23 attack, falling 4-1 in a Premier Development League match Sunday at Sherwood High School Stadium in Oregon.

The loss was the second in a row for Edmonds-based soccer team, which fell to 3-5. Portland improved to 6-2-1.

"We knew their attack would be a challenge for us," SeaWolves coach Alex Silva said. "Our defense just has to get tougher. It's been a problem all season and we're still looking for answers."

The SeaWolves fell behind 2-0 at the half. Midfielder Clark Phillips opened the scoring in the 20th minute on an assist from Erik Hurtado. Hurtado then found the back of the net, chipping over SeaWolves keeper Claudio Lazar in the 25th minute.

Portland made it 3-0 in the 56th minute when Hurtado volleyed in a shot at the far post after a Cameron Vickers cross.

The SeaWolves closed to 3-1 in the 68th minute when defender Kevin Cook scored his first goal of the season. But Timbers forward Mark Sherrod scored his team's fourth goal three minutes later to complete the scoring.

"It's disappointing because I keep expecting us to pull together in the back," Silva said. "But when we get in the games we forget about the things we work on in practice."

The good news for the SeaWolves is that they play their next four matches at home, starting with a 7:30 p.m. Wednesday against the Washington Crossfire at Edmonds Stadium.

It's the third game of the season against the Crossfire, who have won the first two matchups.

"We have a good chance to get some points and move up in the standings," Silva said. "We've been good at home and it will be nice to be back there in front of our fans. But we need to start getting better, especially our defense, because we have a lot of tough games coming up."