Morgan Whittaker Scores Twice, but Caden Clark's Late Strike Earns Sounders 3-3 Draw at Rapids

Caden Clark had been a Seattle Sounder for about 10 minutes of game time when he wound up from outside the box in the third minute of stoppage time. A second later, a game that Colorado had controlled for long stretches was level.

Clark's strike into the bottom left corner capped a comeback from 3-1 down, and the Seattle Sounders and Colorado Rapids drew 3-3 on Saturday night at Dick's Sporting Goods Park, after a kickoff the Sounders said was delayed an hour by inclement weather. Morgan Whittaker scored twice in his first MLS start and Donavan Phillip added a goal for Colorado. Cristian Roldan, Dejan Joveljic and Clark answered for Seattle. Six goals, a point apiece, and two very different moods afterward.

Whittaker Arrives

Colorado looked sharp early, and Whittaker was at the center of it. Andrew Thomas had to save his shot from the right side of the box in the seventh minute. Seattle's best first-half moment came in the 18th, when Jordan Morris met a Joveljic cross at the far post and headed it off the left post.

In the 28th minute, Colorado broke through. Loïc Williams found Paxten Aaronson, Aaronson raced down the left and curled a cross into the middle, and Whittaker redirected a left-footed finish into the bottom right corner. Per the Rapids, it was the Englishman's first goal for the club, set up by a fellow Designated Player.

Colorado kept probing. Donavan Phillip just missed in the 33rd minute, and Thomas stopped Sayed Abu Farhi from distance in the 41st. Nico Hansen kept out a Joveljic attempt in stoppage time, and the Rapids took a 1-0 lead into the break.

The Back-and-Forth Begins

Seattle came out flying. Sebastian Gomez replaced Peter Kingston at halftime, and in the 49th minute Roldan glanced an Albert Rusnák free kick into the bottom right corner to make it 1-1. Per the Sounders, it was Roldan's fourth goal of the season and his first since April 18.

Colorado answered in the 55th minute. Thomas made a reaction save on a Williams header from a Whittaker cross, and Phillip pounced from very close range, lashing the rebound high into the net for his first goal as a Rapid. Three minutes later, Abu Farhi headed off the crossbar from point-blank range. Colorado was flooding forward, and Thomas had to save from Wayne Frederick in the 65th minute.

Then came the goal that looked like it had decided the night. In the 76th minute, Whittaker fed Aaronson on the right, controlled the return with a lifted first touch and lashed a half-volley in off the underside of the bar. That made it 3-1, and the Rapids' site called it one of their best goals of the season.

Seattle Refuses to Leave

Joveljic thought he had pulled one back in the 78th minute, but he was flagged offside. One minute later, it did not matter. He drove a right-footed shot from outside the box into the top right corner, and suddenly it was 3-2. Per the Sounders, it was his third goal in four matches since joining as a Designated Player from Sporting Kansas City.

Seattle kept pressing. Hansen saved from Gomez and Kalani Kossa-Rienzi in the 85th minute, and Rusnák and Paul Arriola had shots blocked. Brian Schmetzer had sent on Clark, acquired from D.C. United earlier in the month per the club, for Morris in the 83rd minute. In the third minute of seven added, Rusnák laid the ball off and Clark ripped a right-footed shot from distance into the bottom left corner.

Whittaker, Aaronson and the Bench Hero

Whittaker was the best player on the field. Seven shots, three on target, two goals, and his delivery set up the scramble that produced Phillip's goal. MLS named him to its Team of the Matchday, calling him a club-record signing. Aaronson assisted both of his goals and, per the club, has four goal contributions in his last three MLS appearances.

For Seattle, Rusnák assisted two goals and was named to the Team of the Matchday bench. Joveljic took four shots, two on target. And Clark needed one swing.

Clark admitted he could have taken the cautious route. "Coming on in those last 10 minutes, I could have tried to play it safe and not make a mistake," he said.

Schmetzer liked what he saw. "Great impact," he said. "He's a talented kid."

Three Minutes That Changed Everything

The turning point was the three-minute window from the 76th to the 79th. Colorado had just scored a highlight-reel third and should have been cruising. Instead, Joveljic had Seattle back within one almost immediately, and the visitors played the rest of the match like they believed. From the 79th minute on, Seattle put four shots on target and scored with two of them. That is how a two-goal lead becomes a draw.

The Numbers

• Shots: Colorado 18, Seattle 16. On target: Colorado 7, Seattle 6.
• Saves: Thomas 4, Hansen 3.
• Possession: Seattle 53 percent, Colorado 47 percent.
• Long balls: Colorado completed 35 of 58, Seattle 16 of 36.
• Blocked shots: Seattle had six attempts blocked, Colorado four.

What It Means

Colorado moved to 11-3-12 with 36 points, and the club listed the Rapids seventh in the West. Colorado had won its previous three home league matches, against LAFC, Real Salt Lake and CF Montréal, so dropping two points at home after leading 3-1 will hurt. The Rapids visit the LA Galaxy on Sept. 26.

Seattle moved to 7-8-9 with 29 points. It was a fifth straight league draw for the Sounders, who sat 14th in the West after the match, four points outside the final postseason place with two games in hand, according to the club. Seattle opens a three-match homestand against Real Salt Lake on Wednesday. The Sounders won the first meeting with Colorado 2-0 back in February.

Plot Twist in the Final Scene

Clark summed up his approach: "I'm going to do anything I can to help the team get a draw here, if that's defending, tackling, taking someone on or shooting the ball." He chose the last option, and it worked. Colorado had the better of this movie for most of 80 minutes. Seattle wrote the ending, and in a playoff race, endings are all anybody remembers.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Postgame quotes and match notes as reported by the Seattle Sounders (soundersfc.com), the Colorado Rapids (coloradorapids.com) and MLSsoccer.com.