Key Performers in Defiance’s shootout win over The Town FC

Never accuse the Tacoma Defiance of being boring. Backed by a brace from Peter Kingston, the Defiance pulled a shootout win after their match against The Town FC ended 4-4 on Thursday. Along the way, the Defiance blew leads of 1-0, 2-1 and 3-2 before falling behind 4-3. Kingston then sent the game to a shootout with an equalizer in the 5th minute of second-half stoppage time, lacing a shot from about 20 yards out after Yu Tsukanome headed a long pass into his path.

Kingston opened the shootout by converting his attempt, Jacob Castro made one save and Tsukanome clinched it in the fifth round.

Highlights

Key performers

Peter Kingston: The midfielder came to Defiance this offseason with an unclear first-team path, but he’s already opened a lot of eyes within the organization. Performances like this one can only help his cause. Kingston’s opener was mostly a matter of him being at the right place at the right time, but he still had some work to do when he had to volley in the rebound. His late equalizer was an even better finish, as he got his feet right and then slammed in the shot with the clock ticking down. The assist he picked up on the Defiance’s second goal was more of an accidental deflection but he filled up the stat sheet with five successful tackles, seven recoveries and seven won duels.

Yu Tsukanome: Coming off the bench, the Japanese striker returned to his productive ways. His goal was a wonderfully taken first-time shot from a sharp angle off a Georgi Minoungou pass and his assist was just instincts, putting the ball into Kingston’s path. He also showed off some slick passing both in the form of switches and tighter-quarter moves. No matter when he comes on, Tsukanome excels at making an impact. If he continues to produce like this — he now has 13 goals and three assists in about 1,200 minutes across all competitions — he’ll effectively force the Sounders to give him a first-team contract. It’s not clear what position he’d play at the next level, but maybe it doesn’t matter.

Snyder Brunell: Fresh off a report that he’s signed a first-team contract, the 18-year-old scored in his second consecutive game. Brunell was his typical two-way self, filling up the stat sheet with three tackles won, eight recoveries and 12 duels contested. He also had a shot go off the post. On the downside, he was beaten pretty badly on a corner kick, losing his man at the back post. But it’s not hard to see why the Sounders se so much promise in him.

Stats