(August 6, 2021) — Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC ran its season-best winning streak to four in a row by winning a tense 3-2 match over the Charleston Battery on Friday night at Patriots Point Soccer Complex in Mt. Pleasant, S.C.
Alex Dixon scored two goals for the second straight game, including the game winner in the 65th minute, and Russell Cicerone added his Hounds-leading eighth of the season from the penalty spot in the first half. Logan Gdula and Romario Piggott scored for Charleston, which lost at home for just the second time in eight matches this season.
The Hounds (10-4-3) maintain their hold on first place in the Atlantic Division with the win, just the fourth-ever win for the team at Charleston (6-6-3) in a series that dates back to 1999, the Hounds’ inaugural season.
First half
The action got started quickly, as the Hounds thought they deserved a penalty kick just five minutes into the match when Louis Pérez was pulled down before a pass arrived at the back post.
Hounds defender Tom Judge, who was making his professional debut out of James Madison University, had his night end early when he was replaced in the 17th minute after suffering a head injury. Things got worse for the Hounds three minutes later, when Gdula headed Charleston in front on the end of a Zeiko Lewis free kick.
The Hounds only trailed for four minutes, however, as Kenardo Forbes was tripped in the penalty area after a slick passing sequence got the ball into the box. Cicerone stepped up and scored the penalty kick off the hands of diving Charleston goalkeeper Paul Lewis.
Dixon put the Hounds in front 2-1 with a goal in first-half stoppage time, as Dani Rovira picked him out unmarked in the middle of the box after tracking down a pass from Forbes near the goal line.
Second half
The game was tied 2-2 just two minutes into the second half, as a wild scramble in the box ended with Piggott applying the final touch right at the goal line after the ball trickled behind Hounds goalie Danny Vitiello.
The Hounds pushed back quickly, as Pérez and Cicerone forced difficult saves of Paul Lewis. But in the 65th minute, it was Dixon who put the Hounds ahead for good, turning to carry the ball into the right side of the box and firing a shot high into the net. For Dixon, it was his sixth goal of the season and fifth in the past three games.
The Battery finished the game with 10 men after Stavros Zarokostas was issued a second yellow card in the 79th minute, but Charleston fought to the finish. Vitiello made a tough save on a Geobel Pérez header in the 86th minute, and the match ended after Vitiello was fouled by opposing keeper Lewis on a late corner kick, as the Battery threw all 11 players forward in the waning moments.
Hounds Man of the Match
Alex Dixon and Russell Cicerone share the honor in this match, Dixon with two goals and Cicerone with a goal and an assist. The duo excelled stringing passes together with the rest of the forward grouping, and they did so both playing slightly different positions than usual. Cicerone was tasked with leading the line and playing with his back to goal more than usual in this match, while Dixon played as the right midfielder in a 4-4-2 setup.
What’s next?
The Hounds return home for their second meeting of the season with Miami FC on Wednesday, Aug. 11. The first meeting was a 1-1 draw on June 12, which started the Hounds on their current run going 8-1-2 in the past 11 games.
Riverhounds SC lineup (4-4-2) — Danny Vitiello; Tom Judge (Dani Rovira 17’, Shane Wiedt 71’), Preston Kilwien, Mekeil Williams (Jelani Peters 76’), Jalen Robinson; Todd Wharton, Kenardo Forbes, Danny Griffin, Alex Dixon; Louis Pérez (Anthony Velarde 71’), Russell Cicerone (Ezra Armstrong 76’)
Charleston Battery lineup (4-4-2) — Paul Lewis; Temiloluwa Adesodun (Geobel Pérez 84’), Benjamin Di Rosa (MJ Petry 90+4’), Logan Gdula (Burke Fahling 84’), A.J. Paterson; Stavros Zarokostas (sent off 79’), Zeiko Lewis, Angelo Kelly-Rosales, Dionysius Harmon; Nicque Daley, Romario Piggott (Joshua Penn 65’)
Scoring summary
CHS — Logan Gdula 20’ (Zeiko Lewis)
PIT — Russell Cicerone 24’ (pen.)
PIT — Alex Dixon 45+1’ (Dani Rovira)
CHS — Romario Piggott 47’
PIT — Alex Dixon 65’ (Russell Cicerone)
Discipline summary
PIT — Dani Rovira 19’ (caution – unsporting behavior)
CHS — Stavros Zarokostas 31’ (caution – unsporting behavior)
CHS — Benjamin Di Rosa 66’ (caution – unsporting behavior)
CHS — Stavros Zarokostas 79’ (caution – persistent infringement)
CHS — Stavros Zarokostas 79’ (sent off – second cautionable offense)
PIT — Ezra Armstrong 83’ (caution – unsporting behavior)
PIT — Danny Griffin 90’ (caution – unsporting behavior)
CHS — Burke Fahling 90+2’ (caution – unsporting behavior)
