SEATTLE (AP) — Paul Rothrock scored an early goal and Stefan Frei made it stand up as the Seattle Sounders held off the Houston Dynamo 1-0 on Sunday night after both teams clinched playoff spots before the beginning of the match.
Seattle (14-9-8) punched its ticket to the playoffs after FC Dallas lost 3-0 to Orlando City earlier in the day and Austin FC tied Real Salt Lake 2-2. Houston qualified for the postseason after Dallas lost.
Rothrock scored the lone goal unassisted in the 22nd minute to give the Sounders the lead for good. It was his fourth goal of the season and the fifth of his two-year career covering 10 starts and 28 appearances.
Frei finished with one save to earn his 10th clean sheet of the season for the Sounders.
Steve Clark turned away three shots for Houston (13-9-9).
Seattle leapfrogs the Dynamo and pulls into a tie with the Colorado Rapids for fourth place in the Western Conference. The top four teams in each conference open the playoffs with a home match.
The Dynamo return home to host the New England Revolution on Wednesday. The Sounders travel to play the Vancouver Whitecaps on Wednesday.
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