Velde has a goal and an assist, Pantemis has 5 saves as Timbers beat San Diego 3-1

Kristoffer Velde had a goal and an assist, Ariel Lassiter and David Da Costa each added a goal, and the Portland Timbers beat San Diego FC 3-1ByThe Associated PressAugust 20, 2026, 12:37 AMPORTLAND, Ore. -- Kristoffer Velde had a goal and an assist, Ariel Lassiter and David Da Costa each added a goal, and the Portland Timbers beat San Diego FC 3-1 on Saturday night. James Pantemis had five saves for the Timbers (8-9-3). On the counter-attack, Velde blasted a shot from 25 yards out that slipped past the outstretched fingers of diving goalkeeper CJ dos Santos and inside the back post to open the scoring in the 29th minute. San Diego (6-8-6) had its three-game unbeaten streak snapped. Gabriel Pirani, at the top of the box, cut back to evade a defender and casually rolled a shot inside the left post to make it 1-1 in first-half stoppage time. Jimer Fory, on the left side of the area, ran onto a ball-ahead from Velde and played a first-touch cross to a charging Lassiter for a rising finish from point-blank range that gave the Timbers a 2-1 lead in the 51st. Da Costa bent a shot from outside the area inside the back post that capped the scoring in the 68th minute. Popular ReadsDos Santos finished with two saves. Portland beat San Diego 2-1 on April 22 at Snapdragon Stadium. ___See AP’s full soccer coverage hereSponsored Content by Taboola