That dramatic sequence in the 67th minute — which ended with Wicks screaming at the linesman after the delayed call and being held back by teammates and coaches as he departed — put Seattle in control.

The Sounders added a late goal on a tap-in by substitute Roger Levesque. D.C. answered when Clyde Simms scored on a deflected free kick. But it was too late as a furious final push during five minutes of injury time went unrewarded in the 2-1 loss.

“To his credit, Josh kept us in there. But then Josh makes a mistake that costs us the game,” said United coach Tom Soehn. “I didn’t see it. But some of our guys said that they saw it. Whatever. The player doesn’t come in front of the team. You’ve got to be smarter than that. And any time you’re shorthanded you’re not setting yourself up to be successful.”

When the match ended, the Sounders sprinted to the far corner of the RFK field to salute about 150 of their green-and-blue clad supporters who made the trip from the Pacific Northwest and were sitting in the upper deck. The players and fans celebrated a remarkable accomplishment — winning a major trophy in the MLS expansion team’s first year of existence. It is a feeling D.C. knows well. United, the defending Open Cup champion, also won the tournament during its first season in 1996.

This year’s championship match had more of an edge than last year’s contest when United beat first-division club Charleston Battery. Seattle was unhappy that the U.S. Soccer Federation again chose RFK as the site for the final and general manager Adrian Hanauer made his displeasure public. Last year a crowd of just 8,200 watched United win the tournament. The Sounders, meanwhile, have averaged close to 30,000 fans per game in their first MLS season.

That public spat between Hanauer and D.C. team president Kevin Payne led to an aggressive marketing campaign by United to fill seats for the championship. Call that one a draw with the final total 17,329 — probably shy of what the Sounders would have drawn in Seattle, but certainly enough to create a lively atmosphere on a beautiful late-summer night in the District.

In the end, the result was just. Turnovers plagued United in the first half and played into the hands of the Sounders, a counterattacking team that makes opponents pay for sloppy play. Wicks kept the game close with five quality saves, including blocking a header by Montero and using his legs to deflect a close shot by Seattle midfielder Freddie Ljungberg.

But all that was a distant memory when Wicks lost his composure after Montero’s goal. He accepted responsibility afterwards — but that was little consolation in the D.C. locker room.

“I made a mistake and it cost us a player and it cost us the game, eventually,” Wicks said.

Levesque’s goal appeared to end things in the 86th minute. But because of the lengthy delay after Wick’s ejection, there were five minutes of injury time left after regulation. Simms scored in the 89th minute when a free kick deflected off teammate Rodney Wallace and came to him to the right of Seattle keeper Kasey Keller (six saves). United drew two corner kicks during injury time to give itself a chance, but couldn’t convert.

It was the 96th edition of the Open Cup, a knock-out tournament that includes any USSF-affiliated team in the country — from the biggest clubs in MLS to amateur sides. D.C. won’t have much time to shake off the loss. It returns to MLS action this Saturday with a game at FC Dallas and is just one point ahead of Toronto for the final Eastern Conference playoff spot with seven league games to play.

“We can cry in our beers tonight, as they say,” United midfielder Ben Olsen said. “But tomorrow we have to get moving again. With the game against Dallas, we don’t have a choice.”