Wednesday night in Spokane, the Vancouver Whitecaps attempted to mount a Champions Cup comeback, but ultimately fell short, losing the match 2-1 and the tie 5-1.

The final scoreline feels unkind given how the Whitecaps played on the night. The Sounders started brightly, with a golden Albert Rusnák chance inside the first minute, but after that, it was largely one-way traffic in Vancouver’s favour.

The Whitecaps were rewarded for their start in the 24th minute, when early-season standout Jeevan Badwal fired a long-distance effort into the top corner past Stefan Frei. If the comeback was going to happen, that first goal was vital, and at that point the Whitecaps looked poised to give the Sounders a real scare.

However, the match levelled out a bit for the rest of the first half, with the Sounders content to sit in their low block and Vancouver unable to find much incisive play in the opposition box.

The match went to halftime level, and though there was still a mountain to climb for the Whitecaps, it felt like the tie was still alive. Jesper Sørensen had been forced into a late first-half substitution, replacing Andrés Cubas with Emmanuel Sabbi due to a...