MATCH PREVIEW
On Sunday, Sounders FC 2 (3-7-4, 13 points) hosts the Swope Park Rangers (4-7-2, 14 points) at Starfire Stadium at 5:00 p.m. S2 heads into Sunday’s matchup on a high note, as Ezra Hendrickson’s side is currently riding a season-best two-game-winning streak. Both victories came against Cascadian rivals, with a 3-2 home win over Whitecaps FC 2 and a 2-1 road win against Timbers 2 at Providence Park. In that last match at Portland, forward Myron Samuel scored in the first half, while Sounders FC Academy player John Magnus scored in the second half. Swope Park Rangers visit Starfire Stadium on Sunday after suffering backto-back losses. On June 12, the Rangers fell 3-2 at Whitecaps FC 2, before losing 3-1 to OKC Energy FC at home on June 18. With 18 goals scored and 23 goals allowed, Swope Park heads into the match with a minus-five goal differential.
MATCHDAY · #OWNTHE2 | 1
EVERY GAME LIVE, FREE AND IN HD ON www.uslsoccer.com ©2016 UNITED SOCCER LEAGUE, LLC, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
S2 Returns Home on Season-Best Winning Streak By Cameron Rizzardini For the first time this season, Seattle Sounders FC 2 have claimed back-toback victories. Fresh off of wins over both Cascadia rivals Portland Timbers 2 and Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2, S2 now welcome Sporting KC affiliate Swope Park Rangers to Starfire Stadium on Sunday, June 26 (5 p.m. PT, livestream on SoundersFC.com). S2 is coming off a nearly two-week break, the longest stretch between games so far this season. “Two wins like that, especially against those two teams, makes our confidence really high,” said head coach Ezra Hendrickson. “We joked last week that it was a shame we didn’t have a game
4 | MATCHDAY · #OWNTHE2
on the weekend because we didn’t want that momentum to stop, but we’ve had our break now, it gave us a chance to refresh, we’ve had a great week of training and we’re looking forward to Sunday.” After a rough start to the season in which they only claimed one victory in their first 12 matches, S2 now seem to be hitting a stride with consecutive wins and Hendrickson spoke to media at Wednesday’s training session about what has been going right for his team. “I think we’re playing a little quicker,” he said. “I think before we were holding onto the ball too long. We focused in training on one or two touches and then switching the field. That’s what helps you open teams up, and then you
can look for that penetrating pass.” Led by manager Marc Dos Santos, Swope Park Rangers are just one point ahead of S2 in the USL’s Western Conference of the USL standings. Contrary to S2, the Rangers had a more promising start to the season but are now on a two game losing skid. Despite their recent run of form, Hendrickson is preparing for a battle.
Sunday is also Movie on the Pitch Night at Starfire Stadium. Fans who stick around after the match will be able to enjoy the movie Minions from the grandstand.
“Any team that comes here is going to be a difficult match,” he said. “They’re very good at possession… We know it’s going to be a very good game.” With a win, S2 could vault themselves up two spots in the conference, beginning what would be a long, but promising, climb to the top.
MATCHDAY · #OWNTHE2 | 5
MAKING THE JUMP At his introductory press conference in January 2015, Sounders FC General Manager & President of Soccer Garth Lagerwey identified a clear mission for the organization: “You have to vertically integrate the clubs,” Lagerwey said. “You have your First Team, and you have to push strategically to grow the Sounders, but you have to, below that, integrate S2 and the Academy.”
TYLER MILLER
Essentially, Lagerwey wanted a pipeline. Before reaching the First Team and playing in front of the biggest crowds in MLS, players would develop necessary skills and attributes that translate to the next level, all while representing the Sounders FC crest. Last season, Sounders FC 2 strung together a successful inaugural campaign. This success lies deeper than qualifying for the postseason and reaching the fourth round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, though. In 2015, Sounders FC 2 produced three players who were signed to First Team contracts: Andy Craven, Tyler Miller and Oalex Anderson. In June, Craven became the first S2 player to make the leap. He started 12 of his 14 appearances in the USL regular season, scoring five goals and adding a team-high five assists. The University of North Carolina product went on to appear in three MLS matches before suffering an MLC sprain in training. “One of the reasons S2 was created was to develop talent and reward players for their hard work and standout
6 | MATCHDAY · #OWNTHE2
the limited time we had to work with him last season,” said Head Coach Sigi Schmid. “We’re excited to continue that development in 2016 as he works further with our staff and the rest of the goalkeeper group.” Earlier this month, Anderson became the most recent S2 player to be signed to a First Team contract. Anderson started seven of 16 appearances for S2 during the 2015 USL season after signing on April 11. The speedy striker scored four goals in just 758 minutes. Internationally, Anderson has 20 caps for the St. Vincent and the Grenadines National Team since his debut in February of 2014, scoring 10 international goals.
ANDY CRAVEN Miller became the second player to join the MLS side after signing with S2 last July, following a stint with SVN Zweibrücken of the German Fourth Division. He made one appearance for S2, a 4-0 shutout victory over Arizona United SC on July 12, before undergoing successful thumb surgery on his right hand on July 28. Miller was a Second Round selection for Seattle in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft after a record-setting career at Northwestern University.
OALEX ANDERSON
play, and Andy is a true example of that concept,” Lagerwey said in June.
“It’s exciting to see our development system at work in signing one of our standout S2 players to the First Team,” said Lagerwey. “Oalex has a lot of potential, which he showed last season, and we’re happy to have him join the senior squad.”
“Tyler has great potential as a goalkeeper and showed promise in
MATCHDAY · #OWNTHE2 | 7
2016 SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC PLAYERS NAME AGE Emir Alihodzic* 22 Tony Alfaro 23 Osvaldo Alonso 30 Oalex Anderson 20 Matt Bersano* 23 Andy Craven 24 Jordy Delem 23 Clint Dempsey 33 Brad Evans 31 Michael Farfan 28 Devon Fisher* 22 Oniel Fisher 24 Stefan Frei 30 Erik Friberg 30 Herculez Gomez 34 Andreas Ivanschitz 32 Brandon John* 21 Darwin Jones 24 Joevin Jones 24 Willy Kapawa* 24 Aaron Kovar 22 Damion Lowe 24 Charlie Lyon 24 Victor Mansaray 19 Chad Marshall 31 Zach Mathers* 21 Tyrone Mears 33 Tyler Miller 23 Jordan Morris 21 Michael Nelson* 21 Mark O’Ojong* 19 Jimmy Ockford 23 Carlos Patino* 20 Dylan Remick 26 Cristian Roldan 20 Myron Samuel 23 Amadou Sanyang* 24 Jordan Schweitzer* 21 Zach Scott 35 Nathan Sturgis 28 Nouhou Tolo 19 Román Torres 30 Nelson Valdez 32
General Manager & President of Soccer: Garth Lagerwey Head Coach: Sigi Schmid Sporting Director: Chris Henderson Assistant Coaches: Brian Schmetzer, Tom Dutra, Ante Razov, Djimi Traore, Kurt Schmid S2 General Manager: Andrew Opatkiewicz S2 Head Coach: Ezra Hendrickson
BIRTHPLACE Tulza, Bosnia Michoacan, Mexico San Cristobal, Cuba St. Vincent & Grenadines Chandler, AZ St. Simons Island, GA Fort-de-France, Martinique Nacogdoches, TX Phoenix, AZ San Diego, CA Chesapeake, VA Portmore, Jamaica Altstaetten, Switzerland Lindome, Sweden Oxnard, CA Eisenstadt, Austria Kingstown, St. Vincent Chicago, IL Carenage, Trinidad & Tobago Douala, Cameroon Seattle, WA Kingston, Jamaica St. Charles, IL Freetown, Sierra Leone Riverside, CA Ft. Worth, TX Stockport, England Woodbury, NJ Seattle, WA Austin, TX Douala, Cameroon Yardley, PA Tulua, Colombia Inverness, IL Artesia, CA Layou, St. Vincent Bakau, Gambia Dallas, TX Wailuku, HI Boca Raton, FL Douala, Cameroon Panama City, Panama Caaguazœ, Paraguay
S2 Assistant Coach: Junior Gonzalez Team Administration Director: Grant Clark Team Services Director: Vince Johnson Team Services Coordinator: Kate Norton Manager of Sports Science & Performance: Dave Tenney
8 | MATCHDAY · #OWNTHE2
PREVIOUS CLUB Nebraska Omaha Mavericks (NCAA) Cal State – Dominguez Hills Charleston Battery (USL) System 3 FC (St. Vincent & Grenadines) Penn State Nittany Lions (NCAA) North Carolina Tar Heels (NCAA) Club Franciscain (MAR) Tottenham Hotspur (England) Columbus Crew SC D.C. United Timbers 2 (USL) New Mexico Lobos (NCAA) Toronto FC Esbjerg fB (Denmark) Toronto FC Levante (Spain) FC Erzgebirge Aue U-23’s (GER) Washington Huskies (NCAA) Chicago Fire Lion Blesse (CMR) Stanford Cardinal (NCAA) Hartford Hawks (NCAA) Marquette Golden Eagles (NCAA) Sounders FC Academy Columbus Crew SC Duke Blue Devils (NCAA) Bolton Wanderers (England) Northwestern Wildcats (NCAA) Stanford Cardinal (NCAA) Old Dominion Monarchs (NCAA) Rainbow FC (CMR) Louisville Cardinals (NCAA) Kitsap Pumas (PDL) Brown Bears (NCAA) Washington Huskies (NCAA) Rendezvous FC (BRB) Charleston Battery (USL) Denver Pioneers (NCAA) Gonzaga Bulldogs (NCAA) Houston Dynamo Rainbow FC Millonarios (Colombia) Eintracht Frankfurt (Germany)
Strength and Conditioning Coach: Chad Kolarcik S2 Performance and Strength Coach: Jarryd Phillips Sports Science Data Analyst: Ravi Ramineni Director of Sports Medicine: Randy Noteboom Head Athletic Trainer: Chris Cornish
Assistant Athletic Trainers: Paul Lombardo, Aki Tajima S2 Athletic Trainer: Joe Montgomery Head Equipment Manager: Nolan Myer Assistant Equipment Managers: Brett Johnson, Scott Tranilla
*Signed to a S2 Contract
NO. 88 25 6 39 98 99 77 2 3 12 81 91 24 8 9 23 70 17 33 92 11 31 22 80 14 32 4 1 13 36 90 5 95 15 7 97 30 34 20 18 35 29 16
2016 SOUNDERS FC 2 USL REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE DAY
DATE
OPPONENT
KICKOFF (PT) LOCATION
Fri.
March 25
Sacramento Republic FC
7:30 p.m.
Starfire Stadium
Wed. March 30
Arizona United
7:30 p.m.
Starfire Stadium
Sun. April 3
San Antonio
5:00 p.m.
Starfire Stadium
Tues. April 12
Rio Grande Valley FC
7:30 p.m.
Starfire Stadium
Sun. April 17
Colorado Springs
7:00 p.m.
Starfire Stadium
Tues. April 26
Real Monarchs
6:00 p.m.
Rio Tinto Stadium
Sun. May 1
Oklahoma City Energy FC 7:00 p.m.
Starfire Stadium
Sun. May 8
Tulsa Roughnecks FC
7:00 p.m.
Starfire Stadium
Sat. May 14
Sacramento Republic FC
7:30 p.m.
Bonney Field
Sun. May 22
LA Galaxy II
5:00 p.m.
Starfire Stadium
Thurs. May 26
Portland Timbers 2
7:00 p.m.
Providence Park
Sat. June 4
Orange County Blues FC
7:00 p.m.
Anteater Stadium
Thurs. June 9
Whitecaps FC 2
7:30 p.m.
Starfire Stadium
Tues. June 14
Portland Timbers 2
7:00 p.m.
Merlo Field
Sun. June 26
Swope Park Rangers FC
5:00 p.m.
Starfire Stadium
Sat. July 2
Sacramento Republic FC
8:00 p.m.
Bonney Field
Wed. July 6
St. Louis FC
5:00 p.m.
World Wide Technology Soccer Park
Sun. July 10
Colorado Springs
5:00 p.m.
Starfire Stadium
Sat. July 16
Arizona United
7:30 p.m.
Peoria Sports Complex
Sun. July 24
Portland Timbers 2
5:00 p.m.
Starfire Stadium
Mon. August 1
Real Monarchs
7:30 p.m.
Starfire Stadium
Sat. August 6
Whitecaps FC 2
3:00 p.m.
Thunderbird Stadium
Sat. August 13
Rio Grande Valley FC
5:30 p.m.
RGVFC Stadium
Sat. August 20
San Antonio
5:30 p.m.
Toyota Field
Mon. August 29
Portland Timbers 2
7:30 p.m.
Starfire Stadium
Fri.
Sept. 2
Whitecaps FC 2
7:30 p.m.
Starfire Stadium
Mon. Sept. 5
Whitecaps FC 2
TBD
TBD
Sun. Sept. 11
Oklahoma City Energy FC 4:00 p.m.
Taft Stadium
Sat. Sept. 17
Colorado Springs
6:00 p.m.
Switchbacks Stadium
Sat. Sept. 24
Swope Park Rangers FC
5:00 p.m.
Children’s Mercy Victory Field
MATCHDAY · #OWNTHE2 | 9
HUNGER GAMES Looking for nutritious, protein-rich meals and quick snacks for your kid-on-the-move?
Protein Challenge 30-Day Plan Change the way you eat protein daily
HUNGRY FOR MORE? Visit wabeef.org/fuelforfitness for more tips, tricks and shortcuts to help your family stay active and thrive! 10 | MATCHDAY · #OWNTHE210
2016 USL TEAM STATS UNF Player
GP MIN G A PTS SHT SOG FC YC RC OG 80 Victor Mansaray 13 976 3 0 6 12 4 23 3 0 0 99 Andy Craven 9 750 3 0 6 19 9 13 0 0 0 97 Myron Samuel 9 660 1 3 5 15 6 7 0 0 0 90 Mark O’Ojong 14 952 1 0 2 13 4 18 3 0 0 25 Tony Alfaro 10 900 1 0 2 5 2 9 2 0 0 41 Lorenzo Ramos 9 278 1 0 2 1 1 2 0 0 0 11 Aaron Kovar 3 148 1 0 2 5 3 2 0 0 0 39 Oalex Anderson 3 120 1 0 2 4 2 0 0 0 0 44 John Magnus 2 105 1 1 3 2 2 0 0 0 36 Michael Nelson 10 900 0 1 1 2 0 5 0 0 0 91 Oniel Fisher 6 532 0 1 1 5 2 8 0 1 0 35 Nouhou Tolo 10 862 0 0 0 8 3 13 2 0 0 81 Devon Fisher 12 643 0 0 0 3 1 5 1 0 0 34 Jordan Schweitzer 9 560 0 0 0 2 0 8 2 1 0 50 Tobi Jnohope 6 436 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 17 Darwin Jones 6 435 0 0 0 7 1 4 0 0 0 95 Carlos Patino 9 397 0 0 0 1 0 4 0 0 0 18 Nathan Sturgis 5 373 0 0 0 2 1 6 1 0 0 70 Brandon John 5 368 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 88 Emir Alihodzic 9 213 0 0 0 3 1 5 0 0 0 77 Jordy Delem 3 207 0 0 0 2 0 5 0 0 0 15 Dylan Remick 2 180 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 42 Handwalla Bwana 5 160 0 0 0 2 1 1 0 0 0 40 Nick Hinds 2 150 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 92 Willy Kapawa 5 110 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 12 Michael Farfan 4 104 0 0 0 1 0 2 1 0 0 45 Harrison Kurtz 4 92 0 0 0 3 1 2 0 0 0 53 Kei Tomozawa 4 41 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 Team totals 14 1260 13 8 34 140 56 176 19 2 0 Opponent totals 14 1260 23 7 53 186 69 189 27 1 0
GP-games played; GS-games started; MIN-minutes; G-goals;A-assists; P-points; SHT-shots; SOG-shots on goal; FC/FS-fouls committed/fouls suffered; CK-corner kicks; OFF-offsides; C/E-cautions/ejections
UNF 1 22
Player GP Tyler Miller 7 Charlie Lyon 7 Team totals 13 Opponent totals 13
MIN 630 630 1170 1170
GA 9 14 22 11
SV 32 14 45 43
SV% .780 .500 .672 .796
GAA 1.29 2.00 1.69 0.85
W-L-D 2-2-3 1-5-1 2-7-4 7-2-4
SO 2 0 2 6
MATCHDAY · #OWNTHE2 | 11
HEAD COACH EZRA HENDRICKSON
Ezra Hendrickson initially joined Sounders FC as an Assistant Coach on January 20, 2009, after completing a 14-year professional career, including 12 seasons in Major League Soccer. He is now the Head Coach of Sounders FC 2, the club’s USL PRO team. Hendrickson played parts of eight seasons for Sigi Schmid, including three in Columbus prior to his retirement. Hendrickson appeared in 266 regular season matches with 225 starts. Playing defense, he scored 23 goals and added 30 assists. He also played in 32 postseason games with five goals and three assists. Hendrickson was a member of three MLS Cup championship teams, winning two with Schmid. Together, they won the 2002 MLS Cup with the Los Angeles Galaxy and the 2008 MLS Cup in Columbus. Hendrickson was also with the champion D.C. United team in 2004. A native of the island of St. Vincent in the Caribbean, Hendrickson began his career in 1997 with the New York MetroStars, before joining the Galaxy
12 | MATCHDAY · #OWNTHE2
later that season. He totaled six seasons in Los Angeles, where he won the 2000 CONCACAF Champions Cup, scoring two goals in a 3-2 victory, and the 2001 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, scoring one goal in a 2-1 victory. He was named Galaxy’s Most Valuable Player for the 2001 season. Hendrickson went to Dallas in 2003 and began the next season with the A-League’s Charleston Battery before joining D.C. United for its run to the 2004 MLS Cup. After starting all 31 appearances in 2005 for Chivas USA, Hendrickson was acquired by Columbus in early 2006. An All-American and business administration major at Drake University, Hendrickson first played professionally with New Orleans of the USISL Select League (1995-96). After earning his first international cap in 1995, he served 12 years as captain of the St. Vincent and the Grenadines national team. Hendrickson earned his U.S. Soccer “A” Coaching License in December of 2008. He is a resident of Layou, St. Vincent, and has two daughters, Xavia and McKenzie.