Sounders club president Alan Hinton, as expected, names himself head coach. Hinton, 51, previously coached both the NASL Sounders (1980-82) and Tacoma Stars (1986-88 and 1988-90).

Eight Seattle men, ages 23-24 and most graduates of Garfield High School, reach Chicago for the World Cup's opening match. They have refitted a retired school bus with bunk beds, a kitchen and bathroom with a portable toilet. They will drive an estimated 10,000 miles, stopping at each of the nine tournament venues over six weeks before returning home. The bus, with 147,000 miles on its odometer, cost $2000 and another $2000 was invested in improvements.

Jason Dunn is named A-League Rookie of the Year after scoring 10 goals in his first season out of Seattle Pacific, and Alan Hinton is voted Coach of the Year for guiding the Sounders to the regular season title.

Washington names Lesle Gallimore, women's coach at San Diego State for four seasons, as Huskies' new coach. Gallimore, 30, replaces Dang Pibulvech, who had started the program and guided it to a No. 19 national ranking after three years.

Gina Cassella is among six assistants named to Sounders head coach Alan Hinton’s staff. Cassella, 28, becomes the first known female coach for a U.S. professional men’s team. She is a former U.S. National Team member who coaches the girls’ and boys’ teams at Bothell High School. Joining her are former NASL Sounders Tony Chursky, Tommy Jenkins, Frank Barton, Bernie James, plus Dale Baskett.

Keely Hartsough scores all three goals in Seattle University’s 3-0 win over perennial power Pacific Lutheran at East Field. Hartsough, pushed up from defense to midfield, nets goals in the 38th, 70th and 89th minutes. She had scored just once coming into the game.

Second-ranked Portland, reloaded with more top Washington recruits, opens its season by beating No. 14 Washington State, 5-1, at Pullman. The Pilots added state player of the year Tia Sharpe from Bainbridge Island and U20 national team member Wynne McIntosh to a cast which already features Justi Baumgardt, Jody Dutra and Michelle Voiland. McIntosh scores the third UP goal at WSU.

Emily Thompson scores one goal and assists another, and No. 18 Washington comes away from No. 8 Santa Clara with a 2-2 draw. Melinda Torre gets the first Huskies goal in the 35th minute. Thompson finds the game-tying goal in the 61st minute on a rebound after Kathleen Juergens's initial shot is blocked by the Broncos keeper.

Despite beating Colorado 4-1 in the second game of the semifinal, the Sounders' playoff run ends in a series-determining shootout, 0-0 (2-1) in front of 8,448 fans at Memorial Stadium. Dick McCormick and Jason Dunn each score twice to tie the series with a 4-1 regulation victory. David Hoggan has three assists. The Foxes had won the first game at home, 2-0. Following a scoreless, sudden death 30-minute game, the Foxes got two shootout goals while only Gary Heale replied, and Dunn's final attempt hit the post.

Chris Henderson makes his debut for newly-promoted FSV Frankfurt in a 2 Bundesliga match versus Meppen. Henderson has been without a team since being cut by the national team prior to the World Cup.

Bowing to the Seattle City Parks superintendent's decision to revoke field permits and bar 7,000 young soccer players from Seattle's playgrounds, the Seattle Youth Soccer Association agrees to let Eve Russell, 12, rejoin the Laurelhurst-View Ridge Stars boys' team. Russell had played on the team the past two years but had been blocked this year by the SYSA. The Russell family wanted a one-year exception for Eve. Seattle Parks policy requires organizations using parks to allow exceptions to rules barring participants from playing on the basis of gender, race, age or disability.

Seattle submits its bid for an MLS club backed by 1,300 season ticket deposits. However, the area lacks a suitable long-term stadium option.

Dang Pibulvech resigns as Washington women's coach to take the same position at Texas. Pibulvech (27-21-6) leaves the Huskies three years after becoming the school's first women's soccer coach. He built the program into a national power, achieving top 20 rankings each season. He reportedly becomes frustrated with UW's inability to build a permanent stadium.

Before the game's largest Washington audience in nearly 14 years–43,651–the United States battles Russia to a friendly 1-1 draw, kickstarting a late bid for a Major League Soccer franchise. Everett's Chris Henderson starts for the USMNT.

The established American Professional Soccer League, invited to join forces with MLS, says no thanks. Owners, including Seattle's Scott Oki, are opposed to the single-entity concept where MLS would own all teams and player contracts and local owners/operators would run the teams. MLS proposed making APSL franchise holders join for a fee of $5 million per team.

Resurgent Washington posts its fifth consecutive shutout with a 1-0 victory over Seattle Pacific at Husky Soccer Field. Erik Penner volleys in John Cowmey's lofted free kick in the 19th minute for the Huskies' first win over SPU since 1989. Freshman Bill May needs only one save. UW is 7-1-1 over its last nine matches. Three of the 3rd-ranked Falcons' (11-4-3) four losses are to Div. I programs.

In a battle of unbeatens, Bellarmine completes a perfect (20-0-0) season by beating Kennewick's Kamiakin, 2-0, for the state AAA girls' crown at Shoreline Stadium. Katey Ward clears a Kamiakin game-tying attempt off the goal line in the 58th minutes and assists on the Lions' clincher by Mary Boerner two minutes later. Jennifer Daniels gives Bellarmine the lead after 11 minutes, and Anne Browning makes four saves to deny the Braves (21-1-0). Coach Mary Rink played up front for Bellarmine's last championship team (1987-88).

Seattle officially joins the American Professional Soccer League, otherwise known as the A-League, and takes the name of the former NASL club, the Sounders. Fellow expansion clubs Houston and Toronto bring the league to eight franchises. Colorado, Fort Lauderdale, Los Angeles, Montreal and Vancouver are existing members of the APSL, a Division II league which originally included FC Seattle. Houston's franchise is terminated for financial reasons after just two matches.

Defending champion Seattle Pacific, beginning the season ranked No. 1 in NCAA Division II, blasts Chico State, 5-1, at Newport High School behind the hat trick of converted defender Phil Bullard and Ricci Greenwood's brace. The Falcons proceed to beat No. 9 Regis, 3-0, Sept. 6 for their third straight Far West Classic title and 10th overall. SPU then plays the next seven away.

For the first time in 19 years a Sounders league match is played at Memorial Stadium as the new APSL club hosts Fort Lauderdale before the largest home crowd to date, 6,624. However, the Strikers spoil the homecoming with a 3-2 overtime win, giving Seattle consecutive defeats for the first time. The club's first six home matches had been moved to Tacoma following the Kingdome's closure due to falling ceiling tiles. The NASL Sounders played at Memorial from 1974-75 before moving to the Kingdome.

After being lobbied by Major League Soccer leaders, local soccer leaders vote 26-1 to form a committee that will go forward with selling season ticket deposits and scouting suitable playing venues for a charter MLS club. Alan Rothenberg, chairman and CEO of World Cup USA and president of the U.S. Soccer Federation and Major League Soccer, is accompanied by Bill Sage, former FC Seattle GM and now MLS official. The Sports and Events Council of Seattle/King County hosts the meeting. Seattle Sounders president Alan Hinton is the dissenting vote, asking that the ticket drive be delayed until after the team's inaugural season.

Seattle's Bernadette Noonan, a native of Ireland, is honored as one of 24 foreign-born U.S. residents who made outstanding contributions to the growth of soccer prior to the Italy-Ireland World Cup match at East Rutherford, N.J. Earlier in the week, she met soccer legend Pelé at a reception, and Noonan, the only woman honored as a "soccer ambassador," received the most applause.

The Sports and Events Council of Seattle/King County organizes a "soccer summit" and notifies Major League Soccer it will begin the process of bidding for a charter franchise, including studies on feasibility of building 20,000-30,000-seat stadium in Seattle area which be home to an MLS team. Meanwhile, the Sounders report orders for 1,500 season tickets, despite not having a home or schedule.

A sellout crowd of 11,874 in Memorial Stadium cheers Seattle to a 3-0 victory over Vancouver. The Sounders finish 14-6-0 (9-1-0 at home) and finish 15 points clear of the Los Angeles Salsa. Nineteen of the 25 roster players came through Washington Youth Soccer Association. Bellevue's Chance Fry scores twice, both on assists from Issaquah's Shawn Medved. Fry finishes second in APSL goals with 11 and Medved is the co-leader in assists (11).

Seattle’s MLS bid committee admits its objective of securing a charter franchise has run its course and will be unsuccessful unless a proper stadium, preferably with grass, is built. Instead, the group leaders throw their support behind the APSL Sounders and forms a committee to explore future stadium options.

A tradition begins in the aftermath of Seattle's 4-1 victory over Vancouver at Swangard Stadium in Burnaby, B.C. Following the A-League win over the arch-rival 86ers and snapping a string of four road losses in a row, Sounders captain Neil Megson throws open the locker room door and leads the players and coaches in banging the walls and singing a raucous rendition of Jingle Bells to celebrate.

After playing their first four away, the Sounders make their APSL home debut in the Tacoma Dome, before 5,614. David Hoggan and Gary Heale, who once both starred in the same building for the Tacoma Stars, score in a 2-0 victory over the defending champion Colorado Foxes. Hoggan's winner in the 75th minute is a free kick hooked over the wall and past Mark Dodd. Heale adds insurance three minutes later. Seattle's first six matches will be played in Tacoma due to the Kingdome's closure because of failing ceiling tiles.

Jason Dunn fires home his 10th goal, sending the Sounders on their way to a 3-1 win over Colorado and clinching the APSL regular season title in the club's first year. David Hoggan and Chance Fry score second-half goals for Seattle's (13-6-0) third win in a row. Dunn, second in league scoring, strips the Foxes' Robin Fraser and beats Mark Dodd in the 31st minute.

Jamie Bloomstine continues his rich vein of form with a hat trick in Pacific Lutheran's NAIA regional semifinal win over Concordia, 4-3. Bloomstine takes his season total to 13 goals, and Dennis Hillius gets what proves to be deciding goal. PLU succumbs to Simon Fraser in the regional final, 1-0.

Portland becomes the first Northwest school to reach the NCAA Division I semifinals as Bellevue's Michelle Voiland makes eight saves in the 8th-ranked Pilots' 2-1 overtime win over No. 4 Stanford for the West Regional championship. Voiland parries a Melinda Minstrell header in the second overtime and moments later Tiffeny Milbrett nets the winner. Jody Dutra and Wynne McIntosh also play in the Pilots' victory.

Before a record crowd of 3,155 at Husky Soccer Field, 8-time defending NCAA champion North Carolina ends Washington's 15-game home win streak, 2-0. Debbie Keller scores 15 minutes into the game, and Jane Byers doubles the lead with five minutes remaining to lead the No. 2 Tar Heels past No. 15 UW. "We had our chances," UW coach Lesle Gallimore says. "We weren't nervous or intimidated. We didn't panic. The best thing about this match is that is shows us we can play with the best of them."

Seattle Pacific University receives a $2 million gift for construction of a soccer/track facility from the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust. The gift equals the largest ever given by the trust and the largest single cash gift ever received by SPU. Since starting in 1968, SPU men's soccer has never had a home field.

Washington makes a smashing NCAA women's tournament debut by blanking No. 15 Oregon State, 3-0, in rainy Corvallis. The No. 18 Huskies get Emily Thompson's record 10th goal just before halftime. Thompson had missed a 1-0 loss to the Beavers three weeks earlier. Melanie Brennan scores in the 58th minute, then Jeanie Rain tacks on another in the 74th.

Jefferson's Mike Francis scores two minutes into the first overtime to give the Raiders their sixth state title, 2-1 over three-time defending champion Mountain View, at Puyallup. TJ dominates the first half, taking the lead on Jay Dillon's header from Francis in the 21st minute. Mountain View draws level with 12 minutes left when Ben Huong's free kick finds a diving Danny Trinh. A long crossing pass from Josh McCarty is head home by Francis for the Raiders' first championship since 1988. The Thunder was bidding to equal TJ's run of four straight titles from 1983-86.

Lisa Gozley is hired as women's coach at Washington State, replacing Lisa Fraser, who resigned to start Arizona's program. Gozley, 28, was assistant coach at Minnesota.

Stanford staves off Washington's upset bid in the West Region semifinals in Portland, but not before the Huskies nearly beat the No. 3 and unbeaten Cardinal. Samantha Obara's shot slams off the post in the 32nd minute, the closest call to a goal over 120 minutes of regulation and overtime. Stanford advances, 0-0 (6-5) when Suzie Boots converts and UW's Sanya Trandum hits the crossbar with her penalty attempt.

Fernando Clavijo is introduced as head coach of Seattle's expansion entry in the Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL). Clavijo, 38, brings championship playing experience from the indoor game, with five NASL and MISL titles in New York and San Diego. Earlier in the summer he concluded his career by representing the U.S. in the World Cup, earning his 61st and final cap.

Seattle's new indoor team unveils plans for its first season, due to start in June 1995. The CISL expansion club, operated by Full House Sports and Entertainment along with the NBA SuperSonics, will play its first season in the 4,100-seat Center Arena. General admission tickets will start at $5. Eight of the 15 CISL teams are owned by NBA or NHL owners, who use them as an inexpensive way to fill empty arenas during the summer months. Full House president John Dresel say he expects the team to sell out all of its 14 home games at the Arena.

Major League Soccer's debut is pushed back a year, to 1996, says Alan Rothenberg, U.S. Soccer president and head of the proposed new Division I league. Up to 12 teams are expected to play the first season. Yogi Hutsen, co-chairman of the local MLS bid committee, says it does not appear Seattle will be chosen for a charter franchise unless an adequate grass-field facility is identified. The bid committee effectively disbands after 10 months.

Big Ten champion and 11th-ranked Wisconsin is sent out of the NCAA tournament in the first round by No. 19 Washington State, 3-1 in Madison. The Cougars pounce early, scoring three times in the first 15 minutes. Jody Payne, Kristy Olson and Shalli DeWitt put the visitors up in the program's first postseason contest.

Kasey Keller is informed by head coach Bora Milutinovic that he will not be considered for the U.S. World Cup team. Keller, voted MVP of Millwall in the English League First Division, had been a back-up to Tony Meola in the 1990 World Cup. Instead, Milutinovic decides to go with Meola, Brad Friedel and Juergen Sommer as the three keepers on his squad, to be finalized June 3.

Seattle Pacific sets a school postseason scoring record in routing Cal State L.A. from the second round of the NCAA Division II tournament. Freshman Geoff Martin scores two of his three goals to break open the game in the second half of a 7-0 victory at Newport High School. Martin gets team's first postseason hat trick in 11 years, and Phil Bullard adds two goals. The SPU home unbeaten run reaches 32 games, dating to 1989.

Chance Fry scores twice in the final 15 minutes, his second brace in as many nights, and the table-topping Sounders win their fifth in a row, 2-1 over the Los Angeles Salsa before 5,160 in the Tacoma Dome. Fry's first goal, a header off Shawn Medved's corner kick, gives Seattle a 1-0 lead in the 76th minute. Jason Farrell finds Fry in the 86th minute for a 2-nil lead. Fry also scored two second-half goals in a 3-1 home win over Toronto the night before. The Sounders (10-4-0) finish their Tacoma stint with a 6-0-0 mark.

Federal Way's Darren Sawatzky assists on two goals and scores another in Portland's 7-1 pounding of Washington at Merlo Field. It's the Huskies worst loss since the 1979 season. After Jason Boyce puts UW up at 7:36, the 7th-ranked Pilots pour it on to lead 5-1 at halftime. Linus Rhode leas UP with three goals.

Seattle University's first cross-continent trip commences in Fort Lauderdale with a 4-1 victory over Nova Southeastern. George Czarnowski puts the Chieftains on the board first with a blast at the five-minute mark. Nathan Calvin adds two goals and Brad Swanson gets Seattle's fourth. It's the fifth straight win, but the streak ends two days later with a 4-0 loss to Lynn in Boca Raton.

For the first time in 10 years the Seattle University-Seattle Pacific men's rivalry returns to First Hill, but despite the Chieftains' best efforts, the outcome is unchanged. Dominic Dickerson's goal 11 minutes into overtime gives SPU its 21st straight win in the series, 2-1 at East Field. It's heated match with 56 total fouls, five cautions and three red cards issued.

Seattle High School Memorial Stadium’s 10-year-old turf is replaced, and the crown removed to create a much-improved surface for soccer. The $1.6M renovation features a removable flat panelized artificial surface. The crown is leveled and soil added to even the surface, and the field is also widened in advance of the Sounders' return. The floor can be removed during the summer to protect it from damaging sun exposure. The stadium goes offline for Seattle Center use, including concerts, until late August.

The start of an outdoor professional league in the United States is postponed for a year until 1996. Investors are announced for franchises in New Jersey, Washington D.C., Los Angeles and a venue still to be determined. Chicago and Tampa have been awarded franchises and Long Island has been removed as a selection. Three slots remain but without either a suitable home venue or league investor, Seattle's chances are all but dashed.

Rookie Jason Dunn from Seattle Pacific scores both goals as the Seattle Sounders get a 2-1 preseason exhibition win over Mexico's UNAM Pumas at the Tacoma Dome. The Sounders, who earlier dropped 1-nil friendlies to Pumas and the Canadian National Team (twice), are strengthening their roster as the July 6 APSL opener approaches, with Shawn Medved joining other veteran signings Neil Megson, Bill Crook and Bernie James since May.

Pacific Lutheran wins the NCIC championship by defeating Pacific away, 2-1, in Forest Grove, Ore. Jamie Bloomstine gets the Lutes' first goal , and Laef Eggan converts a rebound off a goalkeeper save for the winner.

Bora Milutinovic informs Kasey Keller that he will not be considered for a spot on the U.S. World Cup team. The decision leaves Tony Meola, Brad Friedel and Juergen Sommer on the roster. Keller, a member of the 1990 World Cup team, has not played for the USMNT since 1992, when U.S. Soccer officials were upset with him wearing Umbro gloves rather than team sponsor adidas gloves.

Kicking off the MLS bid campaign in earnest, local organizers mail some 70,000 ticket sales brochures to Seattle soccer fans in hopes of gaining their support. If they can reach the goal of 10,000 ticket deposits by May 15, they will be eligible to gain one of 12 charter franchises in the new league.

Andy Schmetzer scores twice and set-up the NPSL championship-clinching goal for the Cleveland Crunch's 17-15 Game 4 win over St. Louis. Schmetzer, who also supplied two goals in the Game 2 win, plays a ball off the boards to Hector Marino for the deciding goal in the second overtime.

Major League Soccer announces seven of the 12 cities that will receive teams to begin play in spring of 1995, but Seattle is not among them. MLS Chairman Alan Rothenberg says the city will remain under consideration in the coming months for one of the final five spots. The areas selected are: New Jersey, New York/Long Island, Boston, San Jose, Los Angeles, Columbus and Washington, D.C.

Washington claims its first Apple Cup victory in four tries by beating Washington State, 1-0, at Husky Soccer Field. Samantha Obara scores her third straight goal for the 12th-ranked Huskies while Tina Thompson and the defense post their seventh shutout. Obara curls her corner kick directly into the net in the 49th minute and UW extends its home unbeaten run to 14 games. WSU was 2-0-1 in the first three Apple Cup meetings.

Eight private schools comprising the Northwest Conference of Independent Colleges, currently affiliated with the NAIA, vote to change affiliation to NCAA Division III. Pacific Lutheran, Whitman and Whitworth are NCIC members, along with five Oregon schools.

Seattle's Bernadette Noonan, an Irish-born Capitol Hill resident, and Issaquah's Maj Surowiecki, a Swedish native living in Issaquah, are among 90 national finalists as "ambassadors of soccer" - foreign-born contributors to the game's development in the United States. Noonan has played and worked for the of the Washington State Women's Soccer Association at every administrative level, including president, during the association's expansion to the present 155 teams, making the nation's largest. In addition to playing for four teams, Surowiecki is also commissioner and treasurer of the WSWSA.

Michelle Akers-Stahl notches two goals and two assists as the the United States routs Jamaica, 10-0, in qualifying for the second FIFA Women's World Championship at the CONCACAF qualifying tournament in Montreal. Akers-Stahl scores again in the 6-0 tournament final win over Canada. She finishes with six goals and is named tournament MVP.

Throughout the state, fans of all ages begin flocking to TV screens as World Cup USA begins. Anticipating increased interest, ethnic restaurants, taverns and clubs extend hours and upgrade their big screens. The July 17 final rates a 9.5 rating in Seattle.

The University of Washington suspends plans to build a soccer facility for its men's and women's teams because the project is too expensive, says athletic director Barbara Hedges. The 3,000-seat facility was expected to be used for practices and games for 1994. Originally slated to open for the 1994 men's and women's seasons, construction estimates climbed to $3 million. The budget was $1.2M. Instead, the Huskies will again borrow a field from intramural athletics.

Bellevue's Michelle and Amy Voiland start at opposite ends of the field as goalkeepers San Francisco plays a WCC match at Portland. Michelle, a senior, gets the shutout as the Pilots clinch the conference title with a 6-0 win. Younger sister Amy, a USF freshman, is the victim of a hat trick and two assists from Tiffeny Milbrett.

Jason Dunn and Marcus Hahnemann, former teammates at Seattle Pacific and fellow rookies for the Sounders, earn call-ins for the national team. Bellevue's Hahnemann starts and Olympia's Dunn comes off the bench in a 1-0 friendly win at Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago.

Second-half goals from Ian Russell and Erik Penner snap at halftime tie and propel Washington past Oregon State, 3-1, in Corvallis to earn a share of the MPSF Mountain Division title with Fresno State. The Bulldogs own the tiebreaker, however, and proceed to take the MPSF championship. The Huskies, whose first goal came from John Cowmey, go in front on Russell’s goal in the 66th minute, and Penner clinches it in the 86th. The Beavers end Washington's defensive scoreless streak at 501 minutes.

The Northwest Collegiate Soccer Conference disbands after 23 seasons. Since starting with a collection of varsity and club teams from seven schools in 1972, the NCSC featured divisional alignments for Division I, II, III and NAIA men's, women's and club programs in Washington, Oregon and British Columbia, including a promotion/relegation format.

Two-time defending champion Shorecrest, the nation's hottest girls' team, is stopped by Kennedy, 2-1, in the state AA quarterfinals at Highline Stadium. The Scots were unbeaten in 57 games (55-0-2), the longest streak in the nation. Shorecrest (17-1-0) had outscored its opponents 114-2 with 15 shutouts. The Lancers come from behind in the second half on goals by Robyn Perkins and Melissa Budde, the latter with 14:25 remaining.

Millwall goalkeeper Kasey Keller starts the new year as he ended 1993, earning his fourth straight clean sheet. The Lions defeat Crystal Palace in a First Division match. Keller also gets shutouts in the next two league matches, versus Bolton and West Bromwich, but Arsenal ends the home skein Jan. 11 with an FA Cup win (1-0).

Chance Fry, one of four NASL Sounders who have joined the new APSL namesake, scores with two minutes remaining as Seattle starts the new era with a 1-0 victory over the Montreal Impact at Robillard Stadium. Fry's free kicks curls around a six-man wall to beat Pat Harrington. Marcus Hahnemann comes up with four saves behind a stout back line of Neil Megson, Wade Webber, Bill Crook and James Dunn. It's the first of four straight road matches for Seattle. Crook and Fry had played in the final NASL Sounders game in 1983.

Seattle University reaches the PNWAC men's championship game with a 3-0 win over 10-man Evergreen at East Field. Brad Swanson puts the Chieftains up in the 32nd minute, then George Czarnowski and Jed Woodward put it away in the second period for a program record 13th win. Simon Fraser takes the PNWAC crown, 4-0, in Burnaby, B.C.

A year after an epic comeback at the NCAA semifinal stage, Seattle Pacific collapses to lose a late two-goal lead as well as the Div. II crown to Oakland (Mi.). The Pioneers rally from 4-2 down to force overtime and go on to prevail, 6-4 at Tampa. Phil Bullard's third goal (and seventh of the postseason) makes it 4-2 at 59' for the Falcons, Oakland scores twice in 83 seconds. In extra time Eli Tiomkin get the go-ahead goal in the 107th minute, and an empty-net score comes in the final five minutes.

Shoreline's Michelle Akers-Stahl produces what proves to be the winning goal in the 29th minute as the United States beats Germany 2-1 in the opening match of the Chiquita Cup tournament in Fairfax, Va. Akers-Stahl connects on a free kick for her 63rd goal in 68 international appearances. She also adds a goal off the bench in the tournament final, a 4-1 win over Norway on Aug. 7.

Major League Soccer representative Bill Sage tours several potential interim sites for a proposed Seattle charter franchise. Local organizers list Memorial Stadium, West Seattle's Sealth Stadium and Husky Stadium as candidates. Memorial Stadium’s 10-year-old turf is being replaced with a $1.6M removable flat panelized surface. The crown will be leveled and soil added to even the surface. The surface will also be widened.

The reborn Seattle Sounders move their July 30 home opener from the Kingdome as a result of the emergency replacement of the stadium's 40,000 ceiling tiles requiring replacement as a public safety precaution. The Sounders will instead play Vancouver at the Tacoma Dome. The Kingdome remains closed until at least Aug. 22 because four ceiling tile panels fell prior to the July 19 Mariners game. The Mariners are forced to play their remaining home games on the road.

Erik Hildebrand’s two goals fuel Central Washington to a 3-0 home win over rival Western Washington and completes a series sweep of the Vikings in in Ellensburg. Hildebrand scores in eighth minute and again in the 59th, taking his goal to total to 11. He finishes the year with 12 and a Wildcats record 29 for his career.

Emily Thompson comes off the bench to supply instant offense in Washington's 8-0 demolition of Gonzaga at Husky Soccer Field. Thompson enters the match in the 29th minutes and proceeds to score the first of her record four goals in the 35th. She assists Amy Hamamoto, then scores her second goal just 26 seconds apart in the 42nd minute. Thompson's hat trick is achieved in the 47th and her fourth is in the 74th minute. Tara Bilanski scores three first-half goals for the No. 17 Huskies.

A 40-acre piece of real estate in Kent appears to be the most likely site of a 25,000-seat stadium for a Seattle-area Major League Soccer team. Vince Coluccio, owner of the Seattle Sounders during their last gasp in the now defunct North American Soccer League, owns the Kent property and is the prospective developer. The site is just east of Interstate-5 and south of Sea-Tac Airport. Memorial Stadium and Husky Stadium are being explored as potential interim sites for a charter MLS team in Seattle. The primary drawback to Seattle's MLS bid has been the lack of a suitable stadium.

Second-ranked Portland holds off the No. 14 Washington when Tiffeny Milbrett scores the decisive goal 15 seconds into overtime at Merlo Field. Shannon MacMillan put the Pilots in front, but Samantha Obara latches onto Sanya Trandum's pass to equalize on the half-hour. MacMillan's long ball to start the overtime find Milbrett for a 12-yard drive inside the left post.

Undefeated Kennedy wins its fourth state championship, 2-0 over previously unbeaten Gig Harbor for the AA girls' title at Shoreline Stadium. Jennifer Lewis assists on the opener and scores the Lancers' clincher, in the 58th minute. Michelle French earns her 30th assist on Robyn Perkins's goal, and Alicia Phillips gets the shutout. Kennedy (20-0-1) won AAA in 1988 and back-to-back AAs in 1990-91.

Former Tacoma Stars forward Roy Wegerle sends the USMNT into the World Cup on a positive note by scoring the winner in a 1-0 friendly win over Mexico before 91,123 in the Rose Bowl. The U.S. opens group play June 18 vs. Switzerland in Pontiac, Mich. Wegerle, 30, comes on as a second-half sub and scores in the 52nd minute. He is the only Washington connection on the roster and plays in all four USMNT games during the tournament.

Washington State stuns 9th-ranked Connecticut, 2-1, to start the season in Pleasanton, Ca. After UConn strikes first, the Cougars' Shalli DeWitt ties it late in first half. Tina Walsh nabs the winner in the 83rd minute. The Huskies would go on to reach the NCAA semifinals.

Seattle's Michelle Akers scores two and assists on two other goals as the defending champion USWNT secure passage to Sweden '95 by drubbing Jamaica, 10-0, in a CONCACAF semifinal in Montreal. Akers is later named tournament MVP following a 6-0 victory over Canada in the final.

Chris Henderson, 23, of Everett is one of three final cuts to the U.S. roster for the World Cup. Also released are Brian Bliss and Dominic Kinnear. Henderson was the youngest member of the 1990 World Cup squad.