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<< Previous   of   Next >> Jennifer Buchanan / The Herald  (click to enlarge) Sounders goalkeeper Kasey Keller punches out a ball while Houston’s Brian Ching contests him in the first half.   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Report scores and results to 425-339-3470 or 1-866-6-SCORES (Call after 4:30 p.m.) E-mail information including items for Tuesday's Communities Sports Roundup and Thursday's Outdoor Calendar, to sports@heraldnet.com Kevin Brown, Sports Editor kbrown@heraldnet.com   Published: Friday, October 30, 2009 Sounders can’t convert chances Seattle’s semifinal playoff game with Houston ends in 0-0 tie By Mark Nelson Herald Writer SEATTLE — Seattle Sounders FC isn’t waiting until 2011, when Major League Soccer franchises open along Interstate-5 in Portland and Vancouver, to create fierce rivalries. Seattle and the Houston Dynamo wrote the fourth chapter in the team’s log of heated contests with a 0-0 tie in the opener of the MLS Western Conference semifinal playoffs Thursday night at Qwest Field. The draw means the Sounders and two-time MLS champion Houston play Sunday, Nov. 8 in a winner-advances tilt in Houston, but Seattle head coach Sigi Schmid and his squad aren’t worried about taking on a Dynamo team that is 4-1 all-time in home playoff games. “Obviously getting a draw on the road is good for them, but we’ve been a good road team,” Schmid said. “We’ve just got to go into Houston so its 0-0 at halftime and they’re going to be under pressure to try and do more things at home.” The way the MLS playoff format is set, the conference semifinal round is decided by aggregate goals scored, meaning whichever team wins in Houston advances to the Western Conference finals against either Chivas USA or the Los Angeles Galaxy. The Sounders couldn’t capitalize on a number of close chances throughout the contest, including a Patrick Ianni header off the bar in the 43rd minute and one earlier that was cleared off the goal line by Houston’s Brian Mullan. Still, the Sounders didn’t seem to view this game as a missed opportunity, rather as a chance to grab the series win in Houston. “We’ve won in D.C., we’ve won in Columbus, we tied in Houston, we’ve won some good games on the road. I think we ended the season well on the road,” Sounders rookie forward Steve Zakuani said. “... This is what we wanted to play for. We’re going to Houston, it’s a must win game. We’ve got 10 (road games this season) to prepare and we’ll be ready for it.” Schmid expressed some displeasure with how the officials chose to let the game develop, with Seattle earning three yellow cards on six fouls and the Dynamo seeing yellow three times on 18 fouls. “Every other foul we commit we get a yellow card and they basically get six (fouls) for one (card),” Schmid said. “... I think we’re aware of it and I think we stood up for it (the game’s physical nature).” In the 77th minute, Sounders midfielder Freddie Ljungberg sent a ball from the right wing to midfielder Nate Jaqua at the top of the Houston box. Jaqua — whose head was bloodied by Ricardo Clark’s boot in the first half — maneuvered around a defender and shot on Houston goalkeeper Pat Onstad, only to have the attack quelled by a foul call on Ljungberg’s pass. The call brought the ball back up field for a Seattle free kick and effectively killed the Sounders’ attack. The game’s fierce nature started in the 16th minute when Onstad chest-bumped Seattle forward Fredy Montero to the turf and created a melee around the Houston goal. Once the dust cleared, Montero and Onstad were both booked, much to the displeasure of the MLS conference semifinal record 35,807 fans in attendance. “The referee let a lot go tonight,” Seattle’s Ianni said. Ianni, a former Dynamo player and the game-winning goal scorer for the Sounders in a 2-1 home win July 11 over Houston, had the chance to be the hero once again after being a late addition to the lineup for starting defender Tyrone Marshall. Marshall was out with a mild ligament strain in his right knee and his prognosis for the second-leg match up in Houston is still in question. Ianni, however, made the most of his rare start with stellar defense and dangerous headed balls on offense. “The one that hit the post, I didn’t think that would get down,” Ianni said of his 43rd minute header. “But the first one (in the 14th minute) Mullan cleared off the line I thought had a good chance.” Sounders technical director and Cascade High School graduate Chris Henderson received honors prior to the game. After graduating from Cascade, Henderson took his game to the University of California Los Angeles and eventually the MLS and the U.S. National team. Henderson earned 79 caps as part of the U.S. squad. Seattle has won three of its past four road games and aims for the franchise’s first playoff win on the road in Houston. “We’ve been good on the road, we’re confident going down to Houston and getting a win down there,” Jaqua said. READER COMMENTS Be the first to comment. 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