TUKWILA, WASHINGTON – Marco Bustos recorded his second consecutive brace and Andre Lewis added another tally to lead Whitecaps FC 2 (8W-10L-5D) to a 3-0 win over Seattle Sounders FC 2 (11W-8L-3D) at Starfire Sports Stadium on Saturday.
The offensive outburst caps off a productive week for the Winnipeg-born Bustos, who was selected to the USL Team of the Week on Tuesday for his two-goal performance against Tulsa Roughnecks FC before making his 2015 debut with the first team in the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League (SCCL) opener versus Seattle Sounders FC on Wednesday.
Defence was the story to start the match as WFC2 defenders Jackson Farmer, Craig Nitti and Sahil Sandhu each made early stops and timely clearances versus the Sounders FC 2 attack.
On the other end, the 'Caps attempted to catch Sounders FC 2 on counter-attacks but Caleb Clarke and Bustos were blanketed by the S2 backline and were unable to score off their half-chances.
The first real opportunity for WFC2 came off a set piece in the 32nd minute when Sam Adekugbe, making his WFC2 debut, released along the right side of the net to redirect a free kick but the effort was wide by a foot.
S2 forward Sam Garza gave the home side their best chance in the first half in the 38th minute on a breakaway but Farmer was there to bother him just enough for the shot to bounce off the near post as the two sides went into the halftime without a score.
It did not remain scoreless for too long after the break. In the 47th minute, WFC2 broke on a counter-attack and Clarke played the ball through to a speeding Bustos, who calmly chipped the ball over the extended arms of S2 goalkeeper Charlie Lyon.
Bustos was not through for the evening. Less than 10 minutes after his first goal, Bustos manuevered his way through traffic and played a crafty give-and-go exchange with Victor Blasco to shake free from defenders and once again converted on a chip shot for his second goal of the match.
S2 did not go away silently however. In the 71st minute, Pablo Rossi tested the 'Caps with a shot from distance but Spencer Richey made a flying leap to get his fingertips on the ball. The former University of Washington goalkeeper finished the match with two saves en route to his second clean sheet for the year.
Andre Lewis put the exclamation point on a brilliant second-half performance for WFC2 when he slotted in a rebound off a Blasco miss to make the score 3-0.
The win completes an undefeated week for the club versus their Seattle-based rivals, after Whitecaps FC defeated Sounders FC 3-0 in MLS action last week and the two sides drew 1-1 at the SCCL match four days after.
It was the second straight road win for Whitecaps FC 2, who are now just four points behind Orange County Blues FC for the sixth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. WFC2 now look ahead to a visit to another Cascadia rival in Timbers 2 next week at Merlo Field.
Whitecaps FC 2 are back home on Sunday, September 6 when they host defending USL champion Sacramento Republic FC at Thunderbird Stadium. For more ticket information, visit whitecapsfc2.com.
Scoring Summary
47' – VAN – Marco Bustos (Caleb Clarke)
56' – VAN – Marco Bustos (Victor Blasco)
77' – VAN – Andre Lewis
Stats
Shots: SEA 12 – VAN 10
Saves: SEA 2 – VAN 2
Fouls: SEA 16 – VAN 8
Corners: SEA 6 – VAN 4
Cautions
32’ – SEA – Sergio Mota
61’ – VAN – Craig Nitti
79’ – SEA – Sam Garza
86’ – VAN – Will Seymore
90’+1' – VAN – Spencer Richey
Seattle Sounders FC 2
22.Charlie Lyon; 45.Giuliano Frano (54.Diego Silvas 75'), 44.Nick Miele, 21.Jimmy Ockford, 13.Andres Correa (36.Choongsil Lim 81'); 25.Aaron Long, 89.Sergio Mota, 32.Duncan McCormick (39.Oalex Anderson 60'), 52.Lorenzo Ramos (77.Ashani Fairclough 60'); 55.Pablo Rossi, 88.Sam Garza (51.Kasey French 81')
Substitutes not used
47.Saif Kerawala
Whitecaps FC 2
39.Spencer Richey; 50.Sahil Sandhu, 41.Jackson Farmer, 54.Craig Nitti, 3.Sam Adekugbe; 58.Will Seymore, 45.Tyler Rosenlund; 32.Marco Bustos, 25.Andre Lewis (47.Jovan Blagojevic 90'), 48.Victor Blasco (42.Jordan Haynes 82'); 34.Caleb Clarke (49.Mackenzie Pridham 86')
Substitutes not used
24.Marco Carducci, 51.Billy Schuler, 61.Terran Campbell
