COMMERCE CITY, Colo. — Albert Rusnák pounced on a loose ball four minutes into the second half Saturday night, and the Colorado Rapids lost 1-0 to Seattle in their final home match of the season, ending a 13-match unbeaten run at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park that had stretched from July into September.
The goal came out of a scramble. Zack Steffen pushed away a Jordan Morris shot, Andreas Maxsø got a boot to the rebound but couldn’t clear it, and Rusnák drove the second ball home in the 48th minute for his 10th league goal of the year.
Colorado had chances before that and worse luck after it. The Rapids put 15 shots up and got three on target, four of them from Rafael Navarro. Chris Armas sent on Omir Fernandez and Kimani Stewart-Baynes to chase the equalizer and the Sounders kept them at arm’s length, closing out the 13th clean sheet of their season, the most in MLS.
The loss was Colorado’s third straight and its fourth in five matches, a run that has dropped a team once as high as second in the Western Conference to sixth at 15-13-5 and 50 points. The playoff spot itself is safe. The Rapids clinched it Sept. 21 against Toronto. Seattle moved to 56 points and third, locking up a top-four seed and a home game in the first round.
“Our fans came out in a big way again; the building was full,” Armas said of the crowd of 18,096, adding that his only regret was failing to deliver the points for them. Colorado closes the regular season Oct. 19 at Austin, where a win moves the Rapids up a seed if Houston drops points against the LA Galaxy.
