Timbers U-23s wrap up road trip with loss to Vancouver

VANCOUVER, B.C. – The Vancouver Whitecaps Residency received a game-winning goal from forward Caleb Clarke in the second half to defeat the Portland Timbers U-23s 2-1 at Empire Field on Sunday afternoon.

The Timbers U-23s pulled level early in the second half on header by defender Ryan Kawulok in the 48th minute. Six minutes after entering the match as a sub, Clarke delivered the eventual game-winning tally in the 67th minute to lead the Whitecaps Residency to its first win over Portland.

The Timbers U-23s wrapped up their stretch of three road matches in five days. With a loss to the Abbotsford Mariners on Saturday, the Timbers U-23s suffered back-to-back losses for the first time since joining the Premier Development League (PDL) in 2009.

Kawulok recorded his first goal of the season, midfielder Sean Morris logged his first assist and forwards Brent Richards and Erik Hurtado combined for eight shots for the Timbers U-23s (4-4-1, 13pts).

Forward Long Tan and Clarke each scored their second goals of the season, while defender Wes Knight and midfielder Ben Fisk each logged assists and goalkeeper Callum Irving recorded six saves for the Whitecaps Residency (4-1-2, 14pts). With the win, Vancouver jumps into second place in the Northwest Division.

The Whitecaps Residency took a 1-0 lead into halftime with a goal from Tan in the 29th minute. Portland responded in the opening minutes of the second half to tie the score at 1-1 as Kawulok headed home a corner kick by Morris.

The Timbers U-23s return home for their next four games, starting Saturday, June 18, as they play host to the Tacoma Tide at Kiggins Bowl in Vancouver, Wash., at 7 p.m. Portland owns a 2-0-0 record in the 2011 season series with the Tide.

Notes: The Timbers U-23s lost their first game to the Whitecaps Residency since joining the PDL in 2009. Portland is 4-1-0 in the all-time series … Vancouver’s Tan, Knight, midfielder Russell Teibert and defender Blake Wagner are also members of the club’s Major League Soccer squad … On its three-game road swing, the Timbers U-23s traveled a total of 933 miles round trip to Tacoma, Abbotsford and Vancouver in the last five days.

Scoring Summary:
VAN: Tan (Knight), 29
POR: Kawulok (Morris), 48
VAN: Clark (Fisk), 67

Lineups:
POR: GK Staples, D Matte, D Tucker (Bowen, 77), D Kawulok, D Gonzalez (Iyoha, 74), M Evans, M Morris (Dorrego, 73, M Esteves (Abrego, 65), F Farfan (Vizcaino, 56), F Hurtado (Byass, 65), F Richards

VAN: GK Irving, D Bassi, D Hickson, D Wagner, D Knight, M Fisk (DeBoice, 83), M McKendry, M Teibert, M Rowley, F Tan (Stewart, 73), F Marquez (Clarke, 61)