PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Brian White scored twice and the Vancouver Whitecaps defeated the rival Portland Timbers 4-1 in a Cascadia Cup rivalry game Saturday night.
Sebastian Berhalter and Tristan Blackmon also scored for Vancouver, which won all its opening three games.
Eric Izoita, an 18-year-old called up from Timbers II earlier in the day, scored in his debut for Portland.
The Whitecaps, who reached the MLS Cup final last season but lost to Inter Miami, took the lead in the 21st minute when White scored from a superb pass from Sebastian Berhalter.
Blackmon extended Vancouver’s lead to two points with a header off a Berhalter free kick in the 49th minute, and added another goal in the 63rd minute to make it 3-0.
The Timbers narrowed the lead with a goal from Izoita in the 72nd minute. The Whitecaps conceded a goal for the first time this season.
White added his second goal in the 87th minute.
Alexander Aravena started in his debut for the Timbers (1-2-0). The Chilean forward was loaned to the Timbers from Brazilian club Gremio this season. The Timbers were without several players due to injury, including Diego Chara and Cole Bassett.
The Cascadia Cup was created by supporters of the Timbers, Whitecaps, and Seattle Sounders before the teams joined MLS. The trophy is awarded to the team with the most points in head-to-head competition at the end of the regular season.
___
AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/soccer
