(May 28, 2021) — Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC picked up its first win of the 2021 season by defeating New York Red Bulls II, 3-0, in cold, heavy rain at MSU Soccer Park in Montclair, N.J. on Friday night.
Danny Griffin, Alex Dixon and Russell Cicerone scored for the Hounds (1-2-1), who also picked up their first shutout of the season behind a four-save performance by Danny Vitiello.
“We finished our chances. We had some good runs into he box that helped us get into a front position,” Riverhounds head coach Bob Lilley said. “The first goal, there was good movement that opened up space for Danny Griffin. We stretched them wider, and I think that was some of what we worked on this week, and we were able to execute it.”
The Hounds got the job done despite having just 38 percent of possession against a hard-pressing New York (1-3-2) team, but the offensive stats were largely even, including each team having four shots on goal and earning four corner kicks in the match.
The win is the 50th in all competitions for Lilley as the Hounds’ head coach, becoming the first in club history to hit that number, and the 301st win in his career.
“It does put us a little more at ease. We’re used to winning. The last two games could have turned out differently, and I don’t feel like this is the first game we showed up for. Some of the things you saw versus Hartford and versus Charlotte, we saw again today,” Lilley said.
First half
Neither team created much in the opening 10 minutes, but the Hounds began to establish a territorial edge that paid off in the 22nd minute.
Albert Dikwa sent a lofted cross into the box from the left side, and Griffin calmly passed the ball into the net with his first touch, a side-footed volley between a defender and the goalkeeper. The strike was Griffin’s third career goal and first of the season.
Only seven minutes later, Dixon doubled the lead with his first goal for the Riverhounds. Dani Rovira stuck with play as the Red Bulls tried to save the ball from going out for a corner. That turned out to be ill-advised, as Rovira intercepted the clearance attempt and found Dixon making a late run into the box.
Vitiello helped close the half with his biggest save of the match in the 35th minute. New York’s Omar Sowe received a cross-field pass alone on the right side, just 18 yards from goal, but Vitiello charged off his line to cut off the angle and make the one-on-one save.
Second half
The Hounds kept their momentum through halftime, and in the 50th minute had their third goal.
Dixon played the pivot man in a give-and-go, receiving the ball and sliding a no-look, backheel pass back to Cicerone. The clever touch had Cicerone alone with space to shoot, and he made no mistake driving home his second goal of the season.
The Hounds continued to look dangerous before grinding things out over the final 20 minutes.
The shutout survived by the slimmest of margins, as a bad turnover in the 80th minute gave New York’s Serge Ngoma a free run into the right side of the box. Ngoma whipped a dangerous ball across, but Mekeil Williams slid back to redirect the pass off the post before it could find a New York player across the face of the goal.
Hounds Man of the Match
It’s not often that a pass is the highlight of a three-goal game, but Alex Dixon’s no-look back heel to set up Russell Cicerone for the final goal sealed the deal. Dixon earlier picked up his first Riverhounds goal to make the game 2-0 when he placed the ball into the bottom corner of the net on his first touch.
What’s next
The Hounds have a short turnaround, as they travel to Leesburg, Va. to face Loudoun United on Wednesday at 7 p.m. Fortunately for the Hounds, Loudoun (0-2-0) has an even shorter rest period, as they play Saturday at New Mexico United.
Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC lineup (3-4-3) — Danny Vitiello; Jelani Peters, Shane Wiedt, Mekeil Williams; Dani Rovira (Todd Wharton 78’), Danny Griffin, Kenardo Forbes, Jordan Dover (Jalen Robinson 69’); Albert Dikwa (Preston Kilwien 69’), Alex Dixon (Anthony Velarde 86’), Russell Cicerone (Josh Gatt 86’)
New York Red Bulls II lineup (4-4-2) — Anthony Marcucci; Juan Castillo (Curtis Ofori 85’), Mandela Egbo, Emir Tombul, Joseph Zalinsky; Michael Knapp, Roald Mitchell, Jeremy Rafanello (Matthew Acosta 85’), Jake LaCava; Daniel Edelman (Austin Brummett 67’), Omar Sowe (Serge Ngoma 73’)
Scoring Summary
PIT — Danny Griffin 22’ (Albert Dikwa)
PIT — Alex Dixon 29’ (Dani Rovira)
PIT — Russell Cicerone 50’ (Alex Dixon)
Discipline Summary
NY — Joseph Zalinsky 13’ (caution – unsporting behavior)
NY — Daniel Edelman 61’ (caution – unsporting behavior)
PIT — Dani Rovira 75’ (caution – unsporting behavior)
NY — Emir Tombul 90+1’ (caution – unsporting behavior)
PIT — Preston Kilwien 90+2’ (caution – persistent infringement)
