PITTSBURGH (May 20, 2017) – The Pittsburgh Riverhounds (4-4-2) saw their winning streak come to an end at three, dropping a 1-0 decision to Louisville City FC (4-1-3) at Highmark Stadium.
Playing their third game in eight days, the Hounds paid for a slow start to the match, as Louisville netted the lone tally in the first 10 minutes. Taking advantage of a turnover at midfield by defender Connor Maloney, received on loan from Crew SC this past Friday, Louisville’s Brian Ownby took off down the right side of the pitch.
The former loanee for the Hounds sent a low cross into the box, finding its way past multiple defenders to forward Luke Spencer, who tapped it in past goalkeeper Trey Mitchell in the 7th minute.
Following the goal, Pittsburgh withstood a barrage of chances from Louisville in its defensive third, as the half saw the club outshot 4-0 in shots on goal in the first 45 minutes.
The second half appeared to start much of the same, as Louisville’s Mark-Anthony Kaye beat everyone but the post in the 46th minute, but the Hounds took control from there.
Unfortunately for Kevin Kerr though, the Hounds captain was also a victim of a post, as he put a shot on frame only minutes later, but saw his bid for an equalizer negated by the right post.
His partner up top, Corey Hertzog, tied a season-high for shots with six, but only saw two of them go on goal. The forward’s best chances came in the 69th and 71st minute, respectively, as twice Hertzog found himself with space in the box, though neither was pushed on net, both missing right.
Adding to the frustrations for the Hounds was Louisville goalkeeper Tim Dobrowolski putting in a spirited effort in goal as well. Dobrowolski made four saves, all in the second half, tying for the most stops against the Hounds by an opposing keeper this season.
The keeper’s biggest moments came in stops against Marshall Hollingsworth and Romeo Parkes. First, Hollingsworth sought for the tying tally in the 64th minute, getting free in close, but his strong shot on frame was met with a great save by Dobrowolski. Parkes, coming on as a second-half sub, had his opportunity come in the 73rd minute, as Hollingsworth worked a pretty ball to the forward at the top of the box. The forward fired a shot on net, but again, Dobrowolski was there to fight off the useful chance.
Further drama would be added to the match in the 87th minute after Louisville’s Paolo DelPiccolo was shown a red card for a foul on Parkes at midfield. Down a man for what amounted to five minutes total, Louisville was able to hold serve and secure the clean sheet.
The 1-0 defeat continued a stretch to start the season of all matches decided by a goal or less for the Hounds – the longest such stretch during the current version of USL beginning play in 2011.
On an individual note, goalkeeper Trey Mitchell continued his excellent play in 2017, making a season-high five saves in the defeat. The California native has conceded less goals (6) than number of starts this season (8).
The Hounds now face another quick turnaround, as they look to capture the Keystone Derby Cup, presented by K&L Gates and the Pennsylvania Lottery, with a second straight victory over the Harrisburg City Islanders (2-3-3) next Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at FNB Field. Further information on the club’s next match can be found by visiting www.riverhounds.com.
Lineups:
Riverhounds – Trey Mitchell – Taylor Washington, Joe Greenspan, Lalas Abubakar, Connor Maloney (Ben Fitzpatrick 61’) – Stephen Okai, Victor Souto, Jack Thompson (Romeo Parkes 63’), Marshall Hollingsworth – Kevin Kerr, Corey Hertzog
Subs not used: Keasel Broome, Jamal Jack, Abuchi Obinwa, Mike Green, Nick Thompson
Louisville City FC – Tim Dobrowolski – Kyle Smith, Paco Craig, Tarek Morad, Oscar Jimenez – Paolo DelPiccolo, Guy Abend, George Davis IV (Sean Totsch 84’), Brian Ownby (Niall McCabe 82’), Mark-Anthony Kaye (Richard Ballard 71’) – Luke Spencer
Subs not used: Greg Ranjitsingh, Ilija Ilic, Cameron Lancaster, Devon Williams
Scoring Summary:
LOU – Luke Spencer 7’ (Brian Ownby)
Misconduct Summary:
PGH – Lalas Abubakar 41’ (caution)
LOU – Mark-Anthony Kaye 45’ (caution)
LOU – Paco Craig 75’ (caution)
LOU – Paolo DelPiccolo 87’ (red card)
Cleveland Brother’s “Blue Collar Player of the Game”
Quote Sheet:
Dave Brandt
On playing on short rest…
“It was an odd week for us. The travel to Ottawa, the travel to Chicago – kind of a split group, but enough first team guys made the trip. You get back Thursday morning at 7:30 and you’re like ‘man, we’ve got Louisville City on Saturday.’ I just think it took a while for us to get our rhythm.”
On Pittsburgh’s scoring opportunities…
“Kevin had a chance or two. Corey had a bunch of chances and I think he and I are both scratching our heads, and the rest of our team. Almost always, one or two of those go in and he had some really good looks.”
On this year’s USL competition…
“It feels like everybody’s really good, really close, really talented. It’s a long season for us, a long season for everybody else, so it’s that grind factor in addition to the talent factor.”
Joe Greenspan
On the backline’s play….
“I think we’re pretty disappointed to be at home and not take points. Louisville’s a good team and credit them. They posed some decent threats against us, but the defense, I think we were fantastic.”
On Connor Maloney and Lalas Abubakar joining the defense…
“I think they’re both fantastic players and they deserve to play at this level. They’ve come into the group and done well. They’ve only been here yesterday, and today, so it’s always tough. I go back to my first couple days with the team and the result against Saint Louis. It’s hard to get integrated into the team immediately, right off the bat.”
On his stint with the Riverhounds…
“It’s been my best spell, overall, since I graduated from the Naval Academy. It’s been tough bouncing around between active duty and missing half of my first two seasons.”
