The Portland Timbers fought back from an early defecit to take a 2-1 lead against their arch-rivals, the Seattle Sounders, in the first leg of the Conference Semifinals. Once again the Timbers managed a stout performance on the defensive end while letting the attacking triumvirate of Diego Valeri, Sebastian Blanco, and Jeremy Ebobisse take care of business in the attack.
In the early minutes of the match the Timbers looked to get forward and put the visitors under pressure, but after a few nervy moments the Sounders were able to break out.