The clock never struck midnight for Brian Schmetzer and his Seattle Sounders. The coach never turned back into a pumpkin, the glass slipper fit perfectly and so did the crown after a penalty-kicks 5-4 win over Toronto FC in the MLS Cup final Saturday.
Do you believe in fairy tales? Because there’s no other way to describe the remarkable four-month drive Schmetzer directed to get the team its first title. Second-to-last in the Western Conference when Schmetzer took over last July, the Sounders finished the season No. 1 in the league.
In between came a frantic dash to the postseason in which Seattle lost just twice in its final 14 regular-season games, followed by playoff victories over Kansas City, Dallas and Colorado.