Sounders vs. Peñarol, recap: Reserves handle themselves well in 1-0 loss

The Seattle Sounders got their first taste of game action, facing off with Uruguay’s Peñarol in a closed-door preseason friendly on Wednesday at Cal State University Long Beach. Many of the Sounders starters were absent, but the reserves showed well in a 1-0 loss.

Already missing Cristian Roldan and Jordan Morris due to national team duty; Nicolas Lodeiro and Xavier Arreaga were apparently given the day off; and Raúl Ruidíaz was a last-minute scratch from the starting lineup after suffering a minor injury the day before. That left a make-shift lineup that looked like this:

That group played well enough to get to the first 30-minute break tied 0-0. Defiance midfielder Shandon Hopeau was apparently one of the standouts, putting in a couple dangerous crosses that resulted in shots from inside the box and earning a dangerous free kick after dribbling through several defenders.

The second 30-minutes saw the Sounders install a complete line change.

Peñarol took advantage, scoring on a free kick in the 37th minute, but the Sounders were able to recover and get it the final break still 1-0.

Another significant lineup change followed.

From the sound of it, the Sounders created some good chances. Academy player Chris Hegardt put a couple runners in behind on long diagonals and Alex Villanueva apparently had a solid nutmeg.