PORTLAND, Ore.
– The Portland Timbers play host to the Vancouver Whitecaps in USSF Division-2 Pro League play Saturday at PGE Park; kickoff is set for 7 p.m. The Timbers face their third match in seven days when they take on their Northwest rival Saturday.
In recognition of the Timbers’ long-standing log slab tradition, the first 2,000 fans through the gates receive a polyresin log slab, courtesy of SolarWorld. Tickets start at $12 in advance and are available through the PGE Park box office, area Ticketmaster locations, online at
www.ticketmaster.com
or by phone at (800) 745-3000.
The Timbers return to league action Saturday after closing out the month of June with a hard-fought loss to Seattle Sounders FC of Major League Soccer on penalty kicks in the third round of the 2010 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Wednesday. Portland has won its last two regular-season games, including a 1-0 win over the FC Tampa Bay Rowdies at PGE Park on June 27.
Portland (5-5-4, 19pts) sits in fourth place in the USL Conference, but is just three points back of the Rochester Rhinos in second with 22 points. Midfielder
Ryan Pore
continues to lead the USSF D-2 Pro League in scoring with nine goals and two assists on the campaign.
The Timbers and Whitecaps (6-2-6, 24pts) meet for the second and final time at PGE Park during the regular season. In their previous meeting this season on April 29, the Timbers used two goals from Pore to earn a 2-1 win in Portland. The Timbers have won three of the last five meetings with the Whitecaps, but are 11-22-9 all-time against Vancouver since 2001. The Northwest rivals play the final two games of the regular-season series in British Columbia on July 22 and Oct. 2.
A live broadcast will be available on 95.5 The Game, with a Spanish-language broadcast on 910AM+1390AM ESPN Deportes. A live video webstream will also be available online at
www.portlandtimbers.com/live
.
Saturday’s match will count towards the Cascadia Cup – an annual, fan-based derby played between Portland and Vancouver. All four regular-season matchups between the Whitecaps and Timbers will determine this year's winner; Portland won the cup for the first time in 2009. The Cascadia Cup originated back in 2004 between Portland, Vancouver and the Seattle Sounders’ United Soccer Leagues franchise.
ABOUT VANCOUVER WHITECAPS
The Whitecaps, who will join MLS alongside the Timbers in 2011, conclude a series of five straight road matches Saturday when they visit the Rose City to take on the Timbers. On Wednesday, defenders Greg Janicki and Luca Bellisomo scored to give the Whitecaps a 2-1 road win over the Montreal Impact. Vancouver owns the top spot in the NASL Conference with 24 points, seven points clear of the second-place Impact. In their recent road stretch, the Whitecaps have posted a 2-0-2 record, including a 2-1 win over the league-leading Austin Aztex on June 12. Vancouver went unbeaten in June (3-0-3).
