Who needs goals from corner kicks when you have Albert Rusnak delivering off free kicks?
The Sounders midfielder had pinpoint service again Wednesday in what likely was a season-saving equalizer against Houston. The Dynamo had two chances to get a game-winner in the 75th minute, but Sounders keeper Stefan Frei saved both close-range shots and the team stole a 2-2 draw at Shell Energy Stadium.
Stole is an odd term for a draw. That’s how poorly the Sounders (5-7-7) played in the opening half.
“Why it was the worst half is because the body language wasn’t right,” Sounders coach Brian Schmetzer said of his team, which entered the match following a shutout win at home against Minnesota. “When things started to go sideways, when they couldn’t get a hold of the game, when they made bad passes — everybody was pointing fingers. That’s not how good teams operate.”
The sides expected a tropical storm that’s wreaking havoc around the Houston area to be the biggest problem. It appeared to impact attendance with a sparse crowd of 15,096 providing atmosphere.
Instead, for Seattle, it was Latif Blessing.
The midfielder capitalized on bad defending by Yeimar Gomez Andrade and Josh Atencio to give the Dynamo a 2-0 lead headed into halftime.
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Blessing’s first goal was chested over the line in the 30th minute. The play started with a giveaway by midfielder Obed Vargas high up the field. In the box, Atencio tried a toe-poke to disrupt Amine Bassi’s possession.
But the ball bounced behind Atencio, and Bassi was able to regain control to send a low cross toward Blessing. The latter had to get even lower to get a body part on the ball, his chest working to direct the ball into goal behind Frei.
For the second, Blessing went high.
Yeimar headed a pass right at Houston. With the gifted possession, winger Ibrahim Aliyu lofted a cross to Blessing at the near post, the midfielder leaping for a pretty header in the 40th minute.
Houston had 60% possession and outshot Seattle 8-2 overall in the half. The numbers nearly flipped after the break.
“They weren’t getting much on us until we gave away some costly turnovers,” Sounders midfielder Paul Rothrock said. “It’s a positive result for the team the way we bounced back. We showed a lot of grit and character. That’s a really hard thing to do in this type of weather and coming off a game over the weekend.”
Schmetzer subbed off Yeimar for Nouhou, and the team asserted themselves in the game.
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Rothrock provided the early spark. He followed up his blocked attempt to get past keeper Steve Clark in the 57th minute. Rothrock has back-to-back goals this season and scored his first career goal in Houston last year.
“These are things I’ve dreamed of since I was a little kid,” Rothrock said.
Rusnak found his moment in the 63rd minute. The Sounders won a free kick with a good angle 20 yards outside the box.
Houston (6-6-6) left Jackson Ragen unmarked. The Sounders defender used the outside of his right foot to karate kick the attempt into goal, surprising Clark. It’s Ragen’s first career MLS goal.
Rusnak has two assists and a goal off free kicks in three of his past four games. He has seven assists overall.
“I was trying to get anything on the end of it and put it on target,” Ragen said. “I didn’t actually see where it ended up until people came over and started celebrating. I’ll have to go back and watch it, but Albert put in a perfect ball.”
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Seattle improved to 5-2-2 in Houston under Schmetzer. The team returns to Lumen Field to host FC Dallas on Saturday.
“The halftime talk really helped us,” Rothrock said. “We came out firing.”
There were four lineup changes Wednesday due to the short turnaround after the win against Minnesota and the injury to defender Alex Roldan. A new-look left wing featured midfielder Reed Baker-Whiting and defender Jon Bell. On the right, Rothrock slotted in on the wing with Cristian Roldan replacing his brother at fullback.
Alex Roldan collided with Minnesota defender Devin Padelford in the opening minute of the match and is under concussion protocol. Rothrock subbed on and netted a goal in the eventual 2-0 win.
The Sounders aren’t expecting Alex Roldan to have long-term issues. Cristian Roldan suffered two concussions last season and, with a late-season groin injury, he missed 18 MLS matches overall.
“He’s in good spirits,” Cristian Roldan said Monday of his younger brother. “I think it’s something that will pass by pretty fast. … My case was very different. I wasn’t quite aware that I even had a concussion until the next morning. For him to be able to come out of the game and not be at any more risk makes me feel a lot better about how I perceive his concussion and concussions in general. They did the smart thing by pulling him out.”
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Bell made his fourth start of the season. He was called up by Jamaica’s national team for the Copa America tournament and joined the team after the Sounders match. Jamaica opens group play Saturday against Mexico.
Houston played without midfielder Adalberto Carrasquilla, who was called up by Panama’s national team for Copa America. Blessing slotted in as the only lineup change from their last match. He has three goals in his past two matches, scoring a late equalizer off the bench against Atlanta.
“The team has been playing better,” Schmetzer said. “Maybe our results haven’t been great. And this is just a draw. … But for them to come back in that second half as well as they did, it’s going to help us with Dallas.”
Jayda Evans: jevans@seattletimes.com; Jayda Evans covers the Sounders and Reign. She offers observations, critiques, and occasional offbeat tales. Evans also has written a book on the Storm and women's hoops titled, "Game On!"
