At least in an unofficial sense, you can close the book on the 2017 Seattle Sounders preseason.
Seattle wrapped up a trio of games in Charleston, S.C., on Saturday with a 1-0 loss to Columbus Crew SC. The game looked destined for a scoreless draw until 2017 draft pick Niko Hansen found space in the box and beat Stefan Frei to his right with about 10 minutes left. The Sounders generated a few chances of note, but the goal wouldn’t come. Crew SC ultimately won the Carolina Challenge Cup.
The subtext to the game, aside from the fact that it was a meaningless preseason match, was that it brought a close to the Sounders’ games before the start of the season.