PITTSBURGH (April 25, 2023) — Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC is through to the Fourth Round of the 2023 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup after defeating NISA team Maryland Bobcats FC, 2-0, in a Third Round match tonight at Highmark Stadium.
Edward Kizza broke the deadlock with an 81st-minute goal, and Burke Fahling added the insurance goal in stoppage time to put the Hounds into the final 32 of the nation’s oldest national soccer competition. Goalkeeper Christian Garner recorded his first pro shutout in his second career start.
Riverhounds Academy product Anders Bordoy, whose saved shot led to Fahling’s goal, entered the game in the 89th minute to become the second-youngest player ever to appear in a competitive match for the Hounds at 18 years, 4 months and 9 days.
First half
The Hounds entered the match with a handful of players making their first starts for the club, and the team put out a strong performance with 58 percent of possession and a 22-6 edge in shots.
The team struggled to hit the target with their first-half chances, however, as Fahling was the first to force saves by Bobcats goalie Alex Sutton with consecutive shots in the 36th and 38th minute.
Second half
The Bobcats threatened early in the second half, and their leading scorer, Darwin Espinal, weaved into the penalty area to force one of three saves by Garner in the 57th minute.
The Hounds then went to the bench with 20 minutes to play, and one of the fresh faces into the game was Kizza, whose last two goals for the club came as a substitute in last year’s playoff win over Birmingham.
Luke Biasi chipped a ball from the right side to the back post, where Tola Showunmi rose to head the ball back to the front of the goal for Kizza to power it into the net with nine minutes left to play.
As the game entered stoppage time, Bordoy found himself with room to shoot from the top of the box and drilled a low shot toward the back post. Sutton made the initial save, but Fahling was in the right spot to put home the rebound.
Hounds Man of the Match
Burke Fahling put in a strong 90-minute shift, racking up 25 touches in the opponents’ final third, putting 3 of 6 shots on goal and winning 11 of 20 duels playing his central midfield role.
What’s next?
The Hounds will find out their Fourth Round opponent in the draw scheduled for Thursday, but before the next cup match will be a return to USL Championship play when they visit Indy Eleven on Saturday, April 29 at 7 p.m.
Riverhounds SC lineup (4-2-3-1) — Christian Garner; Langston Blackstock (Anders Bordoy 89’), Mike DeShields, Pat Hogan, Luke Biasi; Trevor Zwetsloot, Robbie Mertz (Marc Ybarra 84’); Tony Lopez (Nate Dossantos 69’), Burke Fahling, DZ Harmon (Edward Kizza 69’); Tola Showunmi (Arturo Ordóñez 84’)
Maryland Bobcats FC lineup (4-4-2) — Alex Sutton; James Filerman, Abdul Kooistra (Karl Mbouombouo 89’), Abdellah Mansour, Phillip Brown (Nicolas Likulia 71’); Darwin Espinal, Manny Gonzales, Josselin Possian, Andrew Wivell (Mohamed Conteh 82’); Akingbolahan Akinkoye (Abdulrahmane Madad 82’), Caleb Pritchett (Samuel Solomon 82’)
Scoring summary
PIT — Edward Kizza 81’ (Tola Showunmi)
PIT — Burke Fahling 90+1’
Discipline summary
MD — Josselin Possian 39’ (caution – tactical foul)
MD — Manny Gonzalez 45’ (caution – dissent)
PIT — Langston Blackstock 57’ (caution – tactical foul)
