A Seattle Sounders FC support staff member who worked the March 7 at CenturyLink Field match against Columbus is in isolation after becoming the club's first confirmed case of COVID-19 from the novel coronavirus, the club said in a statement Sunday.

The person did not have access to the general public, the club said, and became ill four days after the match. No other cases within the club have been identified.

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Despite a smart, coherent, calm presentation Wednesday morning by Gov. Jay Inslee, executives of King, Pierce and Snohomish counties and Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan that was unique in civic history, my guess is there's still some skepticism about the drastic measures ordered to mitigate (not contain) COVID-19, the disease produced by novel coronavirus.

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My most recent pro sports locker-room media scrum came in January in the visitors' quarters at Green Bay's Lambeau Field. I was about eight feet from Marshawn Lynch when he offered prophecy worthy of the Oracle of Delphi.

As you may recall, following the 28-23 playoff loss to the Packers that ended the Seahawks season, Lynch ascended the altar and offered a rare, pithy encyclical directed primarily at younger NFL players.

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A longtime Sounders fan, Doug Dragovich sat at the bar with a beer in Swannie's next to Occidental Park Saturday afternoon, awaiting the March to the Match. He was fully aware that Seattle was the epicenter of the coronavirus crisis gripping the U.S., so much so that instead of taking the train from Shoreline, as he usually does, he drove with two friends to Pioneer Square. Germs, y'know?

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Unlike Italy, where sports and public health officials have banned spectators from all stadiums during matches until April 15 due to a more serious outbreak of novel coronavirus, the Seattle Sounders will carry on with a 7 p.m. Saturday match at the Clink against the Columbus Crew, based on updated guidelines from Seattle and King County health officials.

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At the moment, quiet apprehension fills the Seattle sports scene. Football is over, and so is Washington's college basketball's home seasons. The Mariners are away at spring training. But high school winter sports are building to their annual climaxes. The Sounders opened their MLS season Sunday with a win at the Clink in front of a typical crowd of 40,126.

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Much has made of the Seattle Sounders' desire to be "a big club," meaning a well-regarded powerhouse elevating beyond MLS into global soccer's pantheon of consistent excellence. Winning two MLS Cups and playing in three of the past four was a good start.

However, losing Thursday at home in the opening round of CONCACAF Champions League to an underdog outfit traveling from Honduras was a crappy follow-through. So, failure Sunday in the MLS regular-season opener against Chicago was not an option.

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Relative to the euphoria surrounding the Sounders when last they were seen publicly --  a November civic parade that followed the MLS Championship won in spectacular fashion on the home grounds -- Thursday and Friday held a heavy load of glumness.

Since the MLS season opener is noon Sunday against the Chicago Fire, Seattle has little time to ditch the pouty lower lip from Thursday night's clank at the Clink.

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After the Sounders were thoroughly outplayed in the first half Sunday, yet dodged and ducked to a scoreless draw, general manager Garth Lagerway looked over at his boss. Club owner Adrian Hanauer, a kid from Mercer Island who came to wealth and then to Major League Soccer with a passion to create a team with a global brand in a global sport, was tighter than yoga pants on Santa.

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After the press gaggle ended at the Sounders' Starfire training center in Tukwila Wednesday, Brian Schmetzer was walking back to the building when I suggested to him that what he has accomplished as Sounders coach -- Sunday is his third MLS Cup appearance in four years -- rates him mention among Don James, Lou Piniella, George Karl, Mike Holmgren and Pete Carroll in Seattle sports' top modern-era coaching achievers.

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The bi-coastal relationship continues to flourish: Toronto FC vs. the Sounders on a third date at the MLS Cup. This time it's at Seattle's place.

Toronto, the Eastern Conference's No. 4 seed, secured the tickets to the title match Wednesday with a 2-1 win over homestanding Atlanta United, the No. 2 seed and defending MLS champs.

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Good as Los Angeles FC was alleged to be, they were little match Tuesday night for the badasses from Seattle.

The Sounders didn't care about LAFC's 72-point regular season, an MLS record, or its record-tying 85 goals. Didn't matter that LA gave up only 37. The facts that the second-year club held a 3-0-1 advantage in the two-year head-to-head, or that Vegas bookies pronounced it 6-1 favorites, or even that the Western Conference final was at LA's sold-out Banc of California home field, were of little consequence.

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Against the Seattle Sounders in the MLS Western Conference semifinals Wednesday night, Real Salt Lake goalkeeper Nick Rimando turned in another legendary performance -- the final one of his 20-year career. It was undone, however, by a goal from Gustav Svensson to propel Seattle to a third conference final in four years.

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BY STEVEN AGEN

Sometimes it's the move you don't make.

Sounders coach Brian Schmetzer was ready to pull Jordan Morris for fresher legs. The fact that he didn't allowed Morris to complete a hat trick with the winning goal in extra time for a 4-3 triumph over FC Dallas Saturday. Seattle moves on to the Western Conference semifinals Wednesday at the Clink against Real Salt Lake, 2-1 winner over Portland Saturday.

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The Sounders making the postseason is as sure a sign that it’s October as seeing candy at the front of the local grocery, or witnessing Starbucks customers indulge in pumpkin spice. The club is back, hosting FC Dallas (13-12-9, 48 points) Saturday (12:30 p.m., FS1) as it begins its pursuit of a second MLS Cup.

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Far be it from me to tell Russell Wilson how to drop a dime on a receiver 40 yards downfield. But when Wilson steps off the the field and moves into the world of Seattle sports business, I'm a bit more comfortable in clearing my throat for a rousing, "Ahem . . . " when he throws into coverage.

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Garrulous and bombastic, Hollywood producer Joe Roth always wanted to win, always wanted to put on a show. As Seattle Sounders part-owner from the MLS beginnings, he could be a load to handle for his partner, the more reticent and self-effacing Adrian Hanauer. But at 71, Roth wanted to be bought out of his shares. So Hanauer found 11 Seattle wealthies eager to jump into pro sports ownership.

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Celebrating their 10th anniversary MLS season, the Sounders Saturday night got the band back together. Kasey Keller, Roger Levesque, Lamar Neagle, Steve Zakuani and Brad Evans drew the biggest hoo-rahs from those in the crowd of 39,011 who went back to the 2009 launch of the most successful expansion franchise in league history.

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One of the more dubious customs of Major League Soccer has been the length of the season, roughly the equivalent of three Russian winters. Moments after the final goal is scored in the MLS Cup, teams load equipment trucks and head south for next season's training.

The Sounders in November devised a workaround: Lose in the conference semifinals. Yes, a bit of a bad look. But after a pair of maximum seasons that reached consecutive MLS Cups, getting a few days away is working out OK.

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Sigi Schmid peered over his cards and eyed the two foes still at the table during what they had all agreed was going to be the last hand of the poker party.

The players across from him stared at their cards, then at Schmid, who had been winning for most of the last hour. If he was reading the situation right, he was about to win again. He thought his three sevens would hold up.

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