Pittsburgh, PA - The Riverhounds (4-4-6) played host to the City Islanders (4-6-5) for the second meeting of the Keystone Derby; ending with the same result as the first, a 1-1 draw. Despite a passing afternoon thunderstorm, 761 faithful followers came out to witness the physical rivalry filled with multiple nail-biting moments on both ends of the pitch.

From the opening whistle, a physical blue-collar player was needed to make an impact on the outcome of the match. Players on both Clubs were leaving their foot in tackles, challenging for headers and jumping passing lanes to disrupt the rhythm of the play.

For most of the first half the Riverhounds and City Islanders played very direct focusing on breaking the game open with simple combinations in the middle third and finding the third runner moving off the ball. Neither side could complete the final penetrating pass to the feet of the third attacker, resulting in an easy pick up for goalkeepers, Hunter Gilstrap and Danny Cepero.

A shoulder to shoulder battle down the left flank between Riverhound, Louie Rolko and City Islander, Kai Kasiguran led to the first conversion of the match. Rolko and Kasiguran were tangled for 20 yards fighting to win possession before the end line. The ball nearly rolled off for a goal kick, but Rolko lost his balance in the tussle and Kasiguran slotted Jason Hotchkin alone in front of the Riverhounds goal. Hotchkin calmly tuck it past Gilstrap in the 44^th minute and put the Islanders up one at the half.

Knowing that playoffs are less than a month away and every point is crucial, the Riverhounds came out in the second half with heart and desire to equalize and convert the game winner. From the second half tap, the Riverhounds applied pressure all over the field.

In the 58^th minute, Chad Severs converted on a Travis MacKenzie service to knot the score at one. A defensive miscue by the Islanders resulted with MacKenzie deep in the right corner and delivering a bending service into the penalty area. Severs, slashing through the box, struck the aerial service on goal and past the diving Cepero into the bottom left corner for the Riverhounds first goal.

Riverhounds, Lee Kouadio-Tobey’s pass to Severs led to a penalty in the 66^th minute. Kouadio-Tobey took on the City Islanders right defender and slotted a pass to Severs just inside the eighteen. Severs first touch took him past his pursuing defender and tripped inside the box. The referee pointed to the spot, but Cepero was on ready for the penalty. Severs struck a low right-footed shot to the right of Cepero only to see a diving Cepero parry the ball wide of the goal and smother the rebound.

The remainder of the match was wide open for both Clubs, as each side attacked with speed and fury, but neither Gilstrap or Cepero would allow the game winning goal.

The Riverhounds travel to south for a back-to-back weekend against the Charlotte Eagles (5-6-5) and the Richmond Kickers (6-5-5).