An Ode to Diego Valeri

Growing up as a sports fan in the Pacific Northwest, I’ve become somewhat accustomed to experiencing gut-wrenching, season-defining moments. Russell Wilson’s interception at the end of Super Bowl XLIX, a strong Trail Blazers squad losing Jusuf Nurkic to a broken leg weeks before they looked primed to make a deep playoff run, and the Timbers falling to Atlanta United in the 2018 MLS Cup.

But as terrible as all of those moments were, none of them made me quite as sad as watching the Portland Timbers lose MLS Cup at home last weekend. That’s partially because I was fortunate enough to actually be at Providence Park for the game, and it’s partially due to the fact that they lost on penalties…