SEATTLE — Zach Scott couldn’t remember the last time he scored a goal. It’s safe to say, that he won’t forget this one in a hurry.
The right back, who started the season as a backup and was only playing because Adam Johansson continues to heal from a hamstring strain, scored his first career MLS goal to give the Seattle Sounders a 1-0 victory over the Colorado Rapids on Saturday.
GOAL: Scott heads home game-winner
“My wife and mom have been on my case lately about putting one of those away, hopefully I made them proud,” said Scott, who narrowly missed the goal with another header in the 13th minute. “We work on it a lot, swinging in good balls and (Alex) Caskey put it right in my path. I didn’t have to do much other than run in the right area and get the tiniest bit of deflection on it.”
Scott estimated that it had been at least five years since he last scored a goal, meaning it would have come while he was playing in the USL. In any case, it ended a personal MLS goal-less drought that had stretched to more than 2,000 minutes, spanning four seasons.
“It would be a relief if I knew that stat,” Scott said.
That it was Caskey setting up the goal was only fitting. Caskey, who had previously been cut by the Sounders before spending last season with the USL-Pro’s Charleston Battery, became the 19th different player to start for Seattle this season. The Sounders have now used a different starting lineup in all five league matches.
Caskey was starting in place of Alvaro Fernandez, who suffered a quadricep injury during training on Friday. Caskey only found out that he’d get his first career start when he arrived to the stadium.
It was also his first MLS assist, although he had only played 16 minutes prior to this game.
“Really excited,” Caskey said when asked how he was feeling. “It’s the culmination of a lot of hard work I’ve put in. It makes me feel that much better for me to do it at home and get the win just before a break.”
Despite all the lineup juggling, the Sounders head into their bye week having secured 10 points through five matches. It’s the best start through five games in their four-year MLS history.
The shutout was Seattle’s third of the season and they have now given up just one non-penalty goal. The team that led the league in goals scored a year ago is suddenly one of the best on the defensive side.
So, of course it would be a defender that would get the winner in this one.
“We said we were going to get a goal off a set piece,” Sounders midfielder Brad Evans said. “For it to come from (Scott), I couldn’t be happier.”
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Jeremiah Oshan covers the Seattle Sounders for MLSsoccer.com and SB Nation.
