Sounders Women fall short of reaching the W-League final four for the second year in a row, bowing out in the Western Conference title game at Burnaby, B.C. The Whitecaps Women win at home, 1-0, snapping Seattle's five-game win streak but not without a scare. Rachel Rodrick fires a 22-yard blast off goalkeeper Erin McLeod's hands and the crossbar in the 75th minute. Top scorer (10 goals) Brenda Mueller has another chance in the 77th minute but hits the post. Vancouver proceeds to win the W-League championship.

Bellarmine overwhelms Narrows League rival Stadium, 5-1, with four goals in the second half for the 4A state girls’ championship at Lakewood. Megan Sweeney scores in the 234th and 44th minutes to put the Lions in front for good. It’s Bellarmine’s third win over Stadium and 11th straight going back to 1999. It’s the Lions fifth state crown. Stadium scores first on Lauren Robertson’s ball that bounces over the keeper in the 30th minute.

Federal Way's Karl Grosch Field is dedicated during ceremonies attended by Grosch and his wife Helga. The new turf field at Steel Lake Park celebrates the former state youth association president and co-author, along with Don Greer, of the USYSA bylaws and rules.

Seattle's unlikely postseason run continues as Jason Farrell, in the penultimate match of his career, strikes for the deciding aggregate goal in the Western Conference finals. The Sounders draw 1-1 at Swangard Stadium after winning the first leg, 1-0, two nights earlier at home. They now advance to the A-League final against Montreal. Farrell's goal, only his third of the season, comes just before halftime. Whitecaps keeper Mike Franks's attempted clearance of Ben Somoza's cross falls to the feet of Farrell. The Sounders play the final 19 minutes a man down after Welton is ejected for drawing a second yellow card in three minutes.

With just three seconds remaining in regulation, Alex Chursky scores to send Seattle University through to the NCAA Division II semifinals with a 1-0 victory over Incarnate Word before a record crowd of 953 at Championship Field. Seemingly heading for overtime, Andy Stromberg makes a quick throw to Bobby McAlister, who then beats his man on the right. McAlister crosses to a diving Chursky who rockets his header inside the near post. at 89:57. Jeremiah Doyle makes five saves for his record-tying 13th shutout.

Whitworth goes out of the NCAA Division III men's tournament but not before the Pirates mount a second-half rally. In the end, St. Norbert College jumps out to a 3-0 lead and hold on to post a 3-2 win in the second-round match at De Pere, Wis. The Bucs pull a goal back at 54:30 through Austin Washington. In the final 10 minutes they pour it on. Skye Henderson scores at 82:06 and Whitworth seems on the verge of tying when time expires. At 16-3-1, Sean Bushey's squad has the most wins since 1989. Nicolas Varlamos, a sophomore from Edmonds, earns third-team All-America after scoring 13 goals.

John Hall scores twice and Erik Storkson adds a goal and two assists as the Hibernian Saints win the USASA over-30 national title, 3-1 over Chicago United, in Orlando. It's the fourth adult amateur championship brought back to Washington over the summer. The other National Veterans Cup trophies were taken in June 26-27 in Honolulu. Shear Power beat Vaiete (Hawaii), 2-1 in overtime, in the women's over-50 final. Northwest Connection rout Imua Wahine, 5-0, in the women's over-40 division, and Cascade Avalanche edge Seattle Sounders Select, 1-0, in the women's over-55s.

Bellarmine Prep completes an undefeated season by winning the state 4A trophy, 2-1 versus Juanita, at Camas. The Lions (20-0-2), ranked No. 4 nationally, get goals from Chase Tangney in the 37th minute and Adam West in the 69th. Juanita cuts into the lead on Scott Rychard's goal with nine minutes to go. It's Bellarmine's first crown after twice falling in past championship games.

Seattle's Shear Power wins its third straight U.S. Veterans Cup women's over-50 championship, beating Vaiete of Hawai'i, 2-1, in overtime. Two other Washington women's teams – Northwest Connection (O40) and Cascade Avalanche (O55) – also win U.S. adult titles in Honolulu.

Evergreen upsets No. 2 seed and defending NAIA champion Rio Grande, ending its 63-game winning streak, 2-1, in the final pool play match at Olathe, Kansas. Nate Ford finishes from 18 yards out in the seventh minute of overtime to advance No. 18 Geoducks to the quarterfinal round. Evergreen strikes first through Jason Gjertsen's free kick just before halftime. Ohio's Rio Grande answers in the 70th minute. Two days later Evergreen is eliminated by Georgia's Berry, 4-2.

Two well-known Eastside youth coaches are marketing a new product, Insta-Bench, a lightweight, collapsible, fold-out bench made mainly of aluminum that seats up to six people on the sidelines. It's the creation of Chance Fry, former Sounder and FC Seattle forward and now coaching director at Eastside FC, and Tom Bunnell, who coaches at both Eastside FC and Issaquah High School. A third partner, Rob Green, joins later in the year to help build the business plan. At the 2005 USYSA Convention, Insta-Bench is recognized as the best new product.

Seattle University coach Peter Fewing earns his 200th career win as the undefeated Redhawks (15-0-1) beat Simon Fraser, 1-0, in Burnaby, B.C. Jeremiah Doyle gets his eighth straight shutout for Seattle U, ranked No. 1 in Division II. Alex Chursky's goal in the 71st minute decides it. Fewing is 200-119-26 since taking the helm in 1988.

Two Washington teams emerge as winners from 16 Region IV championship matches at Spokane's Plantes Ferry Park. For U-12 girls, Kathryn Bennett scores in the 32nd minute, leading Crossfire Premier McCormick past Cal South’s Blues, 1-0. FC United claims the boys U16 title as Nikolas Besagno scores in the 53rd minute against Arizona's Sereno White, 2-1. All regional winners advance to the USYSA Championships July 20-25 near Orlando.

No officials show for the South Puget Sound League boys championship match at Curtis Stadium. So, after players fill time by kicking balls amongst themselves and off walls, the two coaches - Decatur's Jim McAlister and Tahoma's Lance Fischbach - decide the teams will split the title, and that the Bears would assume the league's No. 1 seed to the West Central District.

World Vision’s third annual soccer camp at Decatur High School draws over 125 kids ages 6-14 whose families are economically challenged. All of the youth attend on scholarships and lodging provided by Run to Win Outreach and several local Federal Way area sponsors. In addition, throughout July World Vision and partner Washington Recreation and Park Association collect balls and small hand pumps for shipment you youth in Africa. Since July 2002 "Get a Kick Out of Sharing" has collected about 70,000 balls from corporate and private donors.

Fourth-ranked Washington tallies two put-back goals to defeat the No. 6 Portland, 2-0, in front of 2,130 fans at Merlo Field. It's only the Huskies' second win over the Pilots in 18 meetings (2-15-1). Backstopping the UW shutout is goalkeeper, Kelsey Rasmussen, who finishes with 10 saves. The Huskies' first goal comes just 4:43 into the contest when Kelley Schweighart collects her own rebound and drills it into the net from 11 yards. Adding insurance at 70:43 is Dani Bridges, whose first shot is deflected back to her to finish from 12 yards. Washington has started the season 8-0-1 and is four games into 10 straight on the road.

A header from Lauren Maris two minutes into overtime secures Issaquah's first 3A girls' title, 1-0 over Yakima's previously undefeated West Valley at Harry E. Lang Stadium. Issaquah dominates, (25-7 in shots), and has five close scoring opportunities in the final 15 minutes of regulation and before Kate Deines finds Maris running in behind the Rams’ defense for the score. Strong goalkeeping keeps it scoreless through regulation. Amanda Tshauner holds the Eagles at bay while Lauren Davis tips a drive by Amanda Brusic over the bar.

The USYSA Region IV Championships come to Spokane and begin with 7,350 attending the opening ceremonies at Joe Albi Stadium. The event matches 240 youth teams in eight age categories, U12-U19, from 14 Western states, including Alaska and Hawaii.

Washington State scores three times in the first 16 minutes and goes on to upset No. 6 Washington, 3-2, at Pullman. Cailan McCutchan gets a goal and an assist for the Cougars, who have denied their rivals a win in the last four visits (0-3-1) to the Palouse. Alix Rustrum opened the scoring just 96 seconds into the game. Less than six minutes later when McCutchan makes it 2-nil on a header, and at 15:44 WSU is in front, 3-0, following a goal by Haley Miller from McCutchan. The Huskies trim the deficit to 3-2 on a pair of first-half goals by Tina Frimpong.

Todd Sabrowski’s goal in the 83rd minute clinches the Northwest Conference crown for Whitworth with a 2-1 decision at Puget Sound. The Bucs' Chris Johnson and Loggers' Tyler Niemack score to make it 1-1 entering the final 10 minutes. Whitworth goes on win its final two regular season games, finishing with the highest win total (16) since 1993. The Pirates return to the NCAA Division III tournament for the first time in three years.

Everett's Chris Henderson is named MLS Humanitarian of the Year, an award given out to the MLS player who makes the most positive contributions to his local community over the course of the season. Henderson is selected the winner as a result of his extensive charitable work with the Colorado Rapids and his own new Chris Henderson Foundation, a charitable organization that grants to aid underprivileged kids. He serves as the club's spokesperson for Rapids Car Seat Safety, Special Olympics, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and Pro Active Pro Athletes against Domestic Violence.

Cameron Weaver's goal 7:13 into overtime enables No. 1 Seattle University to down arch-rival and No. 18 Seattle Pacific, 2-1, as well as repeat as GNAC champion at Championship Field. SPU, which only lost to SU since August, snaps the Redhawks' string of eight consecutive shutouts, when Nick Letts ties the game in the 60th minute. Weaver collects a pass from Pat Doran to register his fourth goal in four games. Five of the past six meetings between the Redhawks and Falcons have gone to overtime. Bobby McAlister initiates the scoring with his record-breaking 18th goal SU captain Nick McClusky sustains a fractured right leg in the 39th minute and will miss the remainder of the year.

Some 600 players from 25 teams begin play during the weeklong Ethiopian Sports Federation in North America tournament at Qwest Field. Teams are primarily are composed of Ethiopian-American players representing cities and states across the United States. The tournament is a fund-raiser for Ethiopian education and famine relief projects. "There are so many problems back home," said Tameriat Mamo, the tournament coordinator. "We try to help those people." Seattle also hosted the festival in 1991.

A pair of late goals from Joe Gjertsen delivers Evergreen State College to the NAIA national tournament for the first time following a 2-0 victory over Warner Pacific at Portland's Delta Park. In the 75th minute of a scoreless stalemate, Gjertsen is taken down in the box and scores on the resulting penalty kick. He then seals a trip to the finals in the 88th minute. Geoducks goalkeeper Tommy Kneeshaw get the shutout.

Welton Melo's overtime goal pushes the Sounders on to the Western Conference finals with an aggregate goals victory over Portland. The Timbers entered the postseason as the A-League's top seed and had won four of the five previous meetings, including a 2-1 first-leg win at PGE Park. Welton scores in the 10th minute of overtime at Qwest Field after his 5th-minute opener had leveled the series score, 2-2. Extra time substitute Darren Sawatzky puts Welton behind the defense, and the Brazilian beats Josh Saunders with a shot off the underside of the crossbar and into the right corner. It's his 12th goal in all competitions.

Following WUSA's folding, Hope Solo signs with Kopparbergs/Goteborg FC of Sweden's Damallsvenskan. Solo posts three shutouts in her first four games and finishes the spring season with six shutouts.

Kasey Keller registers his 38th international victory as the United States defeats Grenada, 3-0, in a World Cup qualifying match at Columbus. Keller surpasses Tony Meola for the all-time lead among U.S. goalkeepers. The USMNT dominates, finishes with advantages of 34-6 in shots and 17-1 in corner kicks.

Richland native and Washington alum Hope Solo, 23, is named an alternate on the U.S. Women's National Team for the Athens Summer Games. Solo, now playing in Sweden, will train with the team in Greece and serve as the third goalkeeper. She is the starter for Kopparsbergs/Goteborg FC, where she has six shutouts to lead the league. Spokane native Amy LePeilbet is trimmed from the Olympic squad in the next-to-last cut. LePeilbet broke into the USWNT this year four starts and six appearances.

In the biggest game in either program's history, Seattle University sends shockwaves through the NCAA Division II tournament by upsetting unbeaten and No. 1-rated Seattle Pacific, 2-0, to claim the Far West Regional championship at Interbay Stadium. GNAC Freshman of the Year Leah Wymer accounts for both goals. Wymer strikes in the 4th and 60th minutes for the 15th-ranked Redhawks. It's the first SPU home loss in 27 games. The Falcons, who out-shot their rivals, 17-9, gave up just four goals in the regular season but allow four in their two tournament games.

A golden goal from Bobby McAlister in the 95th minute defeats Dowling (N.Y.), 2-1, and sends top-ranked and undefeated Seattle University to the NCAA Division II final at Wichita Falls, Texas. Alex Chursky finds McAlister fires successfully to the far post. Dowling's Chris Kenney scores less than five minutes into the game and SU trails for the first time in 20 games. The Redhawks could not find the tying goal until the 87th minute when Cameron Weaver's pass is misplayed by Dowling keeper Neal Kitson, allowing Adam Jensen to score.

Alex Chursky scores one goal and assists on another by Adam Jensen as Seattle University consolidates its top ranking in the Division II Far West by winning at Cal State Bakersfield, 2-0. It's the fifth straight shutout for the Redhawks, who remain undefeated (12-0-1). It's only the fourth Roadrunners home loss in three years. Jensen's goal opens the scoring in the 25th minute and Chursky supplies an insurance score in the 67th minute off from Pat Doran.

Shoreline's Michelle Akers headlines the inductees to the National Soccer Hall of Fame in Oneonta, N.Y. Akers, who received a near-unanimous 70 of 73 votes in her first year of eligibility, becomes the fourth female among 110 members. She led the USWNT to World Cup victories in 1991 and 1999 and the first women's Olympic gold in 1996. Akers retired in 2000 as the program's No. 2 scorer (105 goals) in 153 appearances since 1985. In 2002 she was named FIFA Co-Player of the Century. Also inducted are Eric Wynalda, Mike Windischmann and Paul Caligiuri.

Lightning strikes a mother at a Spokane Valley soccer tournament in Plantes Ferry Park, less than an hour after she questioned tournament officials about the safety of playing during an electrical storm. Monica Phillipy was standing beneath some power lines when the strike occurred at 10 a.m. The lines apparently took the brunt of the bolt, but a bright flash jumped from the wires, hitting the Phllipy in the head. She survives and spends the next six hours at Spokane Valley Hospital. To the mother’s dismay, the soccer teams continue playing through the storm after she was hit.

Tacoma native Brent Goulet is promoted to manager of Germany's SV Elversberg, becoming the first American-born coach at this level in German professional soccer. Goulet, who played from 1998-2000 for Elversberg, replaces Gerd Schwickert after serving three years as his assistant. Goulet, who played for both FC Seattle and the Stars, moved to Germany in 1991 and played for a number of clubs. He goes on to He went on to acquire the German Fusball Lehrer License (UEFA-Pro).

Washington remains atop the Pac-10 standings after Jeff Hoover's goal in the 89th minute beats Stanford away, 1-0. The Huskies enter the week ranked No. 5 nationally while the Cardinal are No. 17. Hoover's goal, his first of the season, comes at 88:12 . Defender Will Flanagan sends a cross from the right side to Hoover, who shoots past goalkeeper Andrew Kartunen. UW, now 4-01 in conference play, is unbeaten (5-0-1) is six games with all five wins being shutouts by Chris Eylander.

Puget Sound's bid for an NCAA Division III women's championship goes all the way to penalty kicks, where the Loggers are denied by Wheaton. The Thunder make all five penalty attempts to prevail, 1-1 (5-4), at Greensboro, N.C. Elizabeth Pitman puts UPS (22-2) ahead by scoring her sixth goal of the season on a header from Cortney Kjar in the 36th minute. Wheaton, which had never trailed in regulation this season, ties it with in the 61st minute. It is Kjar's record 14th assist of the season.

United Soccer Leagues announces changes that will affect the Seattle Sounders in 2005, including renaming the A-League and moving from a two-conference system to a single-table format. The two tiers of the USL will be called the USL First Division and USL Second Division. The Sounders, A-League members since 1994, will be one of 12 teams in the First Division.

University of Puget Sound senior defender Bridget Stolee scores two goals, the first coming during the first minute of play, and the Loggers proceed to beat Messiah College (Pa.), 3-0, in the NCAA Division III semifinal at Greensboro, N.C. Stolee first strikes at 41 seconds, heading in Katie Wullbrandt's long free kick into the box. Freshman Adrienne Folsom gets her 12th goal of the season in the 26th minute, and another Stolee header makes it 3-nil at 30:46. Erin Williams notches her record 15th shutout of the year.

Preston Burpo makes three impressive saves and assists on Roger Levesque's clinching second goal for the Sounders' 2-0 victory at Portland. Seattle earns only its second win in seven matches and avenges a home defeat to the Timbers a week earlier. Levesque puts the visitors on the board in the 42nd minute, following a corner kick from Jonathan Bolanos. Burpo's long distribution in the 80th minute catches Portland keeper Josh Saunders out of position, and Levesque calmly chips over his head and into the empty net.

Without their top scorer, the Sounders cannot must much of an attack and fall to Montreal, 2-0, in the A-League final before 13,648 at Claude Robillard Sports Complex. Welton Melo serves his suspension after being sent off in the semifinal second leg at Vancouver. He had scored 12 goals, inclduing five as the sounders went 7-2-1 since August 2. Seattle manages just seven shots and is held scoreless for the first time in 11 matches. Mauricio Vincello put the Impact in front in the 33rd minute, but substitute Craig Tomlinson nearly equalizes in the 74th. Tomlinson tries loft softly over Greg Sutton but the Montreal keeper deflects it off the bar. Frederick Commodore seals the verdict with a goal four minutes later. It marks the final match for Jason Farrell (career assist leader with 30) and Darren Sawatzky. Both are retiring after lengthy careers with the Sounders and MLS.

Bobby McAlister’s goal in the 70th minute lifts Seattle University to the NCAA Division II championship, 2-1 over Southern Illinois-Edwardsville at Wichita Falls, Texas. McAlister scores his second game-winning goal in three days, taking Jeff Fishbaugher's cross into a congested box and shooting home. It's his record 22nd goal and fourth of the postseason. Jeremiah Doyle withstands a series of shots and makes a leaping save off John Matthews from the top of the box, deflecting it off the crossbar. The Redhawks take advantage of a restart in the 43rd minute to to go in front initially. Santa Maria Rivera's free kick into the box is flicked on by Cameron Weaver to Adam Jensen for his third tournament goal. SIUE's Victor Pacheco nets the equalizer in the 49th minute. Seattle U wins its 15th straight and finishes unbeaten (22-0-1). It's the second national title after taking the NAIA in 1997.

Tina Frimpong converts a teammate's shot that caromed off the Maryland goalkeeper, scoring the lone goal in the 19th minute of Washington's 1-0 victory in the third-round of the NCAA tournament at Husky Soccer Field. The 15th-seeded Huskies advance to the Elite Eight for the first time in their 14-year history. They will visit No. 7 seed Princeton. Freshman Colby Branham created the scoring situation with a 20-yard blast from the left side that deflected off keeper Nikki Resnick. Frimpong controls the rebound and scores from five yards at 18:48. Kelsey Rasmussen notches her school-record 10th shutout of the season while making just one save. Princeton would prevail in the quarterfinal, 3-1, with Frimpong completing her season with a 16th goal and record 43 for her career.

Meadowdale rallies from a two-goal deficit to take the 3A boys state title, 3-2 over Mount Rainier at Doc Harris Stadium in Camas. Aaron Roberts's golden goal with 10.9 seconds left in the first overtime leaves the Rams stunned. The Mavericks (20-2-1) battle back to tie on two goals from Solly Gold, who also assists on the Roberts winner from 12 yards. Mount Rainier's Steve Pirotte tallies his team-high 17th goal of the season on a 54th-minute penalty kick for a 1-0 lead. Jordan Duke doubled that lead on a rebound in the 56th minute.

Kelley Schweighart nets the game-winner 14 minutes into the second half as No. 15 Washington topples the third straight nationally-ranked opponent, 2-1 over No. 8 Tennessee, at Husky Soccer Field. It's a first-time feat for the Huskies (3-0-0), who opened the season a week earlier by defeating No. 8 Penn State and No. 18 Ohio State. Tina Frimpong races down the sideline and sends a pass into the center of the box, finding Schweighart, who lofts a 12-yard shot into the upper right corner at 59:02.

Seattle University strikes late, scoring two in the final five minutes to rally for a 2-1 comeback victory over Western Washington at Championship Field. Tafara Pulse’s shot is redirected into the net by Maureen Wishkoski in the 86th minute for the equalizer. Ashley Porter then caps a run from midfield for the winner just 2 minutes, 19 seconds later. Western had held the lead since Amanda Font’s 35th minute opener. Pulse’s assist was the record 37th of her career.

Sean Lambrecht scores both goals in Whitworth’s 2-1 NCAA Division III tournament victory over Colorado College in Spokane. Lambrecht's winner comes in the 73rd minute. Tied at 1-1, the Bucs' Todd Sabrowski serves a cross that is misjudged by the Colorado keeper. The ball scoots through to Lambrecht, who heads it cleanly into the net. Lambrecht's first goal comes seconds after a missed CC penalty kick, with Skye Henderson finding him on the counterattack for a far-post header. CC’s Patrick McGinnis scores his Div. III-record 39th goal of the season to bring the visitors level.

Under blistering hot midday sun, Chelsea tops Celtic, 4-2, before a Qwest Field crowd of 30,504. It's the first match for the Blues under new manager Jose Mourinho, who comes to the Premier League from Porto. Another key piece in Russian oil billionaire Roman Abramovich's makeover is Serbian striker Mateja Kezman, who scores twice during his second-half shift. His first goal comes in the 59th minute, making it 3-1. After Craig Beattie answer for the Bhoys, Kezman unleashes a 18-yard rocket in the 87th minute. Temperatures reach 88 degrees on the temporary grass surface.

Tom Kneeshaw saves 17 Chico State shots as Evergreen wins, 2-1, at Olympia. Joe Gjertsen put the Geoducks in front in the 27th minute. Four minutes after Chris Wondolowski ties it, Greg Preciado restores the lead and Kneeshaw's record performance preserves it.

John Duggan, who helped start the youth soccer movement in Tacoma and greater Pierce County, dies at age 76. Duggan founded the area's first select soccer program in 1969 - the Norpoint Royals, a boys team comprised of several players who would eventually play at the college and professional levels. Duggan was also the men's soccer coach at the University of Puget Sound from 1979-87. But the Irish immigrant was best known for his work with youth soccer. He didn't have much soccer or coaching experience when he started the Royals in 1967 yet that team, which included Stadium High graduates Jeff Durgan and Jeff Stock and Wilson's Mark Peterson, stayed together for 10 years and won numerous state and regional tournaments.

Seattle's Paul Holocher guides UC Santa Cruz into the NCAA Division III championship game with a 3-1 semifinal win over Geneseo State in Greensboro, N.C. Holocher took the Banana Slugs' reins after retiring from MLS play in 1999. They win 14 straight to reach the D3 final, where they fall to Messiah, 4-0.

Washington Youth Soccer Association suspends and will expel Lake Washington Youth Soccer Association, effective Dec. 7, leaving the future of 6,500 young player from Kirkland, Redmond and Sammamish in question. The move by the state association comes after Crossfire Premier president Jim Harnasch questioned LWYSA finances and the LWYSA board retaliated by suspending Harnasch’s 15-year-old son. WSYSA seeks to assure parents that "every one of our members will continue to play on their teams as we replace the previous association with a new one."

Washington senior midfielder C.J. Klaas shares Pac-10 Player of the Year, becoming the first Husky to do so. Klaas, who has five goals and six assists, is also a Hermann trophy semifinalist. He shares the Pac-10 award with UCLA's Patrick Ianni. Dean Wurzberger of UW and the Bruins' Hugo Salcedo share coach of the year honors.

Tina Frimpong, with her back to the goal, scores on a header in the 28th minute, giving No. 17 Washington a 1-0 victory over No. 13 California in the regular-season finale at Husky Soccer Field. A crowd of 1,551 watches as the Huskies complete a sweep of the Bay Area schools. Frimpong assisted Kim Taylor when UW defeated Stanford, 1-0, in overtime two nights earlier. Washington reaches the NCAA tournament for the fourth time in five seasons. It's the sixth win in seven tries against top-20 opponents.

Eastern Washington, getting goals from four different players, earns a share of the Big Sky women's championship with a 4-0 win at Sacramento State. The Eagles, who had never finished higher than fourth in their six previous seasons, tie for the title with Portland State (4-1-1) despite being 7-8-2 overall. Beth Russell, Jennie Summers, Traci Jellison and Emily Mues all score.

Salt Lake City lands the next MLS expansion franchise, with Seattle among the unsuccessful bidders for a team to begin play in 2005. Salt Lake and Chivas USA of Los Angeles will give the league 12 teams, and two more are expected to be added by 2006. A-League Sounders owner Adrian Hanauer's investor group expects to compete against Cleveland, Houston and Philadelphia in that round.

On the same day Tina Frimpong scores twice in a Washington postseason win over Birmingham Southern, she is named Pac-10 Player of the Year for the second consecutive season. Frimpong, a senior from Vancouver, is the first player to achieve the latter. She and Nikki Gamble each score a brace in the NCAA tournament opening 5-0 win.

Welton Melo scores out of an overtime goalmouth scramble as the Sounders avert a costly home loss to the lowly Calgary Mustangs, 2-1 at Qwest Field. It's the fourth goal for Welton, the Brazilian signed two months earlier, in the last five games. Seattle finally gets above .500 (4-3-1) after starting the year 0-2-1. A Kyle Smith header finds Welton waiting at the far post in the 101st minute. Smith's penalty in the 74th minute had drawn Seattle even.

United States secures passage to the Concacaf Hexagonal as Kasey Keller posts his 36th career shutout in 74 appearances in 6-0 rout of Panama in Washington, D.C. Four days earlier in San Salvador, Keller and the USMNT blanked El Salvador, 2-0.

Kelley Schweighart scores early in the first half, lifting 15th-ranked Washington to a 1-0 second-round victory over host and No. 22 Auburn in the NCAA tournament. The Huskies had routed Birmingham Southern, 5-0, in the first round. Tina Frimpong sets-up the UW scoring play, getting open in the right corner before feeding a pass to the top of the box. There, Schweighart calmly controls the pass and scores to the upper-left corner at 7:04. Auburn's most dangerous opportunity comes with 12 minutes left, when Courtney Crandall's 20-yard free kick glances off the crossbar. Frimpong and Nikki Gamble each each scored two goals versus Birmingham-Southern.

Six months since returning to her home state, Michelle French is named to the W-League Best XI after leading the Sounders Women back to the playoffs. A former U.S. international, French led the league with 13 assists. She took an instructor role at Starfire Sports in February and trains five girls' and boys' teams. The Kent native had played professionally for three seasons in WUSA before that league's demise. French will also serve as a color analyst for NBC Olympic soccer broadcasts from Athens.

Ken Covell becomes the first soccer representative in Seattle Pacific's Falcon Legends Hall of Fame, inducted with the second of three charter classes. The Falcons had won just one soccer game when Covell arrived from Denver. By the time he left, they had made four straight NCAA West Regional appearances and earned a berth in the national championship game during his senior season of 1974. Covell scored a record 21 goals as a junior. and graduated as career leader in goals (57) and assists (26).

Less than a minute after the Sounders' goalpost saves them, Chad Brown beats Vancouver with the first goal of his professional career, 2-1 at Qwest Field. It's Seattle's fourth consecutive win and all but ensures a playoff berth. Brown perfectly times his run to meet Darren Sawatzky's cross and buries his header in the net with 54 seconds left in double-overtime. Both Brown and Sawatzky are second-half substitutes by Brian Schmetzer. The Whitecaps tie with a penalty in the 90th minute after Welton's opener. Moments before Brown's winner, the visitors' Jason Jordan beat Preston Burpo only to hit the left post.

A once-promising season for Washington ends abruptly as Portland rallies from behind for a 5-3 win in the NCAA tournament's first round at Husky Soccer Field. The Huskies build a 2-0 lead 27 minutes into the game and control the game's tempo. Portland only manages nine shots but pulls even by halftime, then Alejandro Salazar gives the visitors the lead at 53:03. In the 62nd minute Sean Babcock skips a low line drive free kick from 28 yards out. Kevin Forrest scores both UW goals, in the 17th and 26th minutes. Washington, which launched 24 shots, loses its final four games after starting 11-3-2.