Features

As the native son among the Riverhounds for the better part of seven seasons, Robbie Mertz has been one of the marquee players in the side even before helping bring the Players’ Shield and USL Championship title home to Pittsburgh.

But after becoming only the third player in history with 200 appearances for the Hounds last week — and scoring on his double century night, on top of it — there’s no doubt Mertz has staked out an important corner of the team’s history for himself.

Already this season, Mertz surpassed two Hounds Hall of Famers, Kevin Kerr and David Flavius, to move into the third spot on the appearances list. Now at 201, he sits 25 behind the club record held by Kenardo Forbes. That said, his longtime teammate Danny Griffin is likely to beat him to the top spot with 219 appearance, just seven behind the record of 226.

The trio in the 200 club does share a special connection, however. Not only did they provide the impetus behind the team’s first two official trophies, Mertz, Griffin and Forbes shared the field in 89 matches during their overlapping tenure in 2020 and 2022-24, and the newest player at 200 doesn’t see that as a coincidence.

“I think it shows Pittsburgh is a place that people want to be, and also that the club has shown trust and put a lot of faith in the three of us during that time, bringing us back, year after year,” Mertz said.

“It also says a lot about the league and where the league is going. When we were going through the bargaining with the Players’ Association and the league, what we’re try to do as a collective ecosystem is move this along and make it a place people want to be, whether that’s at the league level or for individual clubs in the league. You’re going to see more people hitting 200, 300 games for clubs around the league, but certainly this is one of the quintessential USL towns and communities, and we’re deeply ingrained in the culture now.”

But while Mertz sees 200 appearances as a feat that will become more common in years to come, with a longer season and more games on the schedule also playing a part, he also hopes to continue to build on his own total in Pittsburgh.

“I didn’t think about it beforehand, but I’ve definitely done some reflecting on it the last four or five days. It’s funny, I was talking to (goalkeepers coach) Jon Busch, who logged over 300 games in MLS, and I think he said his most was 150 with San Jose,” Mertz said. “We were kind of messing around with whether I’ll reach his marks, but then I saw that Manuel Neuer hit 600 for Bayern Munich recently. Believe it or not, that had the opposite effect of what you might think. I thought, ‘Wow, I made it a third of the way to what Neuer did,’ because it feels like he’s been there forever.”

Of course, Mertz’s tenure has been the majority of the most successful run of team results in Hounds history, and his other recent milestones show why.

By scoring in the match against El Paso, Mertz now has 24 goals in all competitions for the Hounds, tying him with José Angulo and entering the club’s all-time top 10 in that category. Earlier in the season, in the nationally televised 3-1 win over Louisville, Mertz also recorded his 25th assist as a member of the Hounds, which places him fifth in that category.

With those numbers, Mertz is one of only three players to record 20 goals and 20 assists for the club — the aforementioned Hounds Hall of Fame duo of Flavius and Kerr being the other two — and he floated the thought of trying to become the club’s first 30-30 player. His position on the appearances, goals and assists lists also makes Mertz the highest-ranking Pittsburgh native in each of those three categories, a title he claimed earlier in 2026 when he passed Gary DePalma and Justin Evans, two other Hounds Hall of Famers on the assists list.

But for all of those achievements, Mertz made it clear that he wants his Hounds tenure defined by lifting the Players’ Shield at Tampa Bay, scoring to win an Eastern Conference title in front of the home crowd, and most of all, claiming the team’s first league title in Tulsa.

“I’m proud to have played such a consistent role over that period of time and to have contributed to this period of the club’s history,” Mertz said.

“When you’re in the top three for games, then being in the top 10 for goals and assists doesn’t say quite as much,” Mertz continued with a chuckle. “But I’ve never been someone who hung my hat on goals and assists. What I’m most proud of is the number of games that we’ve won here and the significant accomplishments the team has had in that time.”

Nine matches into the USL Championship regular season, more than a quarter of the team’s league matches are in the book. And with some up-and-down results leading to a 4-4-1 record, it’s difficult to say exactly how the 2026 season will shape up.

That’s not surprising, however. Take a trip back to May 2023, and no one would’ve guessed the Hounds would lift the Players’ Shield.

And in May 2025? You likely would have been met with laughter and some sideways looks if you were predicting the Hounds’ first Championship trophy lift come November.

Early returns have rarely been indicative of the final outcome of Riverhounds’ seasons over the past decade-plus, and as shown by the team’s two official honors — the 2023 Players’ Shield and 2025 Championship title — the way a team finishes the year is far more important than how it starts.

First off, the raw numbers, and the caveat that all rankings exclude the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. This year’s Hounds are on 13 points through nine matches, which is the fifth-most by a Hounds team since 2014, the year the league expanded to a 28-game schedule. By comparison, the 2025 team had only eight points (2-5-2), and the 2023 team sat at 11 (2-2-5) at the same point.

The best start during that time? That would be the 2022 season when the team had 19 points (6-2-1). That season was only the second time in club history the Hounds had won at least five of their first nine league matches, but the end result was a fifth-place finish in the East and a second-round exit from the USL Championship Playoffs.

The reverse also can be true. The 2017 Hounds began the year with a 4-3-2 record for 14 points after nine games, the third-best start from 2014 to today. Twenty-three games later, those Hounds had gained only 22 more points to end the season in 13th place in what would be the last year before the start of their current eight-year postseason streak.

That begs the question, what is it that flips the switch for a team and propels them to late-season and end of season success?

In 2019, the team’s only other season finishing atop the Eastern Conference, the Hounds showed from the outset they would be a tough out, but defensive lapses and missed opportunities led to a 2-1-6 start. With minor tweaks and steady improvement, those draws began to turn into wins on the way to a 19-4-11 record.

But in both 2023 and last year, there were clear, galvanizing moments when fortunes turned.

The 2023 season saw the team make a major move in May, bringing back Danny Griffin from his short stint in the Nashville SC/Huntsville City organization in MLS and MLS Next Pro. The future Hounds captain then scored in his second game back, the team’s 1-0 win over the New England Revolution in the U.S. Open Cup that continued their run to the quarterfinals.

That Open Cup run, which also included a 1-0 win over the Columbus Crew, injected confidence into the Hounds and helped them rattle off a 13-match league unbeaten streak, despite losing eventual Golden Boot winner Albert Dikwa for a month to a broken collarbone. The team was in position at that point, and an eight-match unbeaten run to end the regular season ensured the Shield came to Pittsburgh.

Last season, the turning point came later — a tumultuous 20-day span from which the team emerged united and seemingly more relaxed. A controversial finish to a vital 2-1 road win at Hartford last September was followed by a home match against Las Vegas that was postponed less than 24 hours before kickoff.

The Hounds got the win over Vegas, but obstacles continued to come their way with a lopsided loss at Miami before the surprising coaching move that thrust assistant coach Rob Vincent into the acting head coach role. The players managed to put all of the drama of those three weeks behind them to finish the regular season with two wins and a draw, and the resilience continued through three penalty shootouts in four playoff matches on the way to the title.

Is there a moment like that in the works for the 2026 team? The Hounds would prefer to do without the drama, and maybe the sparks they need are already in the room.

Injuries and a condensed schedule have piled the minutes onto the Hounds, who played 12 matches in an eight-week span between the league, Open Cup and Prinx Tires USL Cup. The Hounds traveled with one fewer player than allowed on the bench for last Saturday’s match at Charlotte with a half-dozen players ruled out with a range of ailments from minor knocks to post-surgery recovery.

The team having 15 days between matches until their next league outing May 30 against Miami FC couldn’t have come at a better time. Griffin, Bradley Sample, Eliot Goldthorp and others have benefitted from the extra time to rest, while the team will be boosted in the coming weeks with the return of Guillaume Vacter and Beto Ydrach, with Vacter poised to be the first of the two back on the field.

That isn’t to say there won’t be an adjustment period as players return to the lineup and the group has to develop new chemistry as a collective group. But if there’s one thing Hounds teams have shown in recent seasons: It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.

The last time the Riverhounds stepped off a field, they did so as newly crowned champions.

But apart from a star above the team’s logo, that historic result has minimal bearing on what will transpire when the team steps back onto the field this weekend.

The 27th season of Riverhounds soccer is the team’s first as the reigning USL Championship title holders, but every team is back to zero in the standings as the 2026 season kicks off at 6 p.m. Saturday on the road against the Charleston Battery.

While last year’s victory in now in the past, the Hounds return 12 players from that team, which provides a solid foundation for head coach Rob Vincent, who shed the “acting” designation from his title during the offseason.

“I feel like we kept the group together overall, and we have some new players,” veteran wing back Junior Etou said. “(Albert) Dikwa is back, which is a big attacking piece for us, and we have some new guys who have played in the league, like Trevor (Amann) and Eliot (Goldthorp), and then we have some good rookies. I think it’s a good mix, and we just have work as a team, and I think it’s going to be a good season.”

Maintaining continuity from a season ago is important after reaching the top of the mountain in 2025. And while the Hounds don’t expect to have a radically different identity — both in formation and tactics — from the formula that worked so well last November, the players know the perception of the Hounds has changed with a trophy in hand.

“We know that we’re defending the title, and we want to do it again. We know we’re going to get every team’s best shot, but that’s a good thing. As a competitor, that’s what you want every game, game-in and game-out, you know you have to be better than the other team to get three points. It’s a challenge we certainly look forward to,” said Danny Griffin, now entering his seventh season in the midfield and his third as captain.

Griffin has seen the highs and lows for the team during the current decade as he closes in on being only the second player to suit up 200 times for the Hounds — a mark he could reach as soon as this summer. During that time, an expectation for success has been set within the team, and the pressure to maintain that level has only increased with the team’s first championship.

“I think the guys we brought in are learning exactly what the coaches want. When you have that many returners, there’s a lot of guys who can give the example and help explain what the coaches want,” Griffin said. “There’s obviously things to work on, and that’s what preseason is for, to iron out some of those glitches and get ready for this game.”

Griffin is certainly one of the players who can set that example, but he’s far from the only one able to set a tone.

Robbie Mertz, who like Griffin is in his seventh season with the Hounds, has been a constant presence on the training ground even as he recovers from an injury that has kept him out of preseason. Players such as Bradley Sample, Jackson Walti and Illal Osumanu — all on their second contract with the Hounds — also have a track record to draw from.

Younger players, such as second-year Hounds Beto Ydrach, Perrin Barnes and Guillaume Vacter, are seasoned beyond their years after navigating a high-stress playoff run. And even players who were not part of the title team come to the squad with impressive resumés; Dikwa and Amann both were 2023 Golden Boot winners — Dikwa in the Championship and Amann in USL League One.

Etou is another of those seasoned veterans, and his first appearance of 2026 will make him the 19th player to log 100 appearances with the Hounds. While the personal milestone is special, it’s the accomplishments of the team as he reached that number which are most meaningful to him.

“I’m so happy for that. My first year, in 2023, I was saying to the staff that I’m here for the long time. I want to play so many games for this team, because I like this club, I like the badge,” Etou said. “I’m so excited, but hopefully we can win the first game and make my 100th game even better.”

Etou’s comments underline the attitude shared across the team with the start of the season only days away. The star above the logo represents wonderful memories and a historic first, but what matters to the Hounds now is the 2026 season.

Note: This is the final article of our annual series looking back on the Top 5 moments of the year. The previous entries in the series are linked at the bottom of the page.

Forget the Top 5 of 2025. This year’s No. 1 moment takes the undisputed top spot for 26 years of Riverhounds history.

When late club founder Paul Heasley saw his Hounds step onto a high school field for their first A-League match in 1999, he never would have imagined the scene this Nov. 22 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. With nearly 10,000 fans in attendance and a national audience of more than a half million between national broadcasts on CBS, TUDN and SiriusXM FC, the Hounds played for their first-ever league title in this year’s USL Championship Final.

After 120 minutes of high drama, chances for both sides and outstanding defensive play and goalkeeping, it would be kicks from the penalty mark that settled the final. And that led to this moment that will live forever in club lore:

Beto Ydrach held his nerve and drove his penalty kick straight down the middle to cap a perfect 5-for-5 shootout by the Hounds, who lifted the trophy as 5-3 victors in the shootout after a 0-0 draw.

The shootout alone had its share of heart-stopping moments, from Eric Dick‘s save to deny Stefan Lukic — the only missed kick of the shootout — to the bar-down finish on the third kick by Chase Boone, the only player in the Hounds five who had not taken a penalty kick for the club.

And all that came after 120 minutes that included Luke Biasi nearly opening the scoring with a long-range wonder goal that instead hit the bar, while Dick summoned the bravery to make this extra time stop on Lukic, arguably the best save of the match by the MVP of the Final:

The victory was a monumental triumph in the club’s history and, for the first time, enabled the Hounds to claim a part of Pittsburgh’s history as the City of Champions. With attention from national and local media like never before after their win, as well as a celebration on Grant Street in front of the City-County Building on Dec. 4, the Hounds were able to bask in their achievement with a fan base and a city eager to cheer them on.

2026 is looming around the corner already, and the club’s sporting staff is plotting how best to launch the team’s title defense in the coming season. But because of the season-long effort and nerves of steel shown by the Hounds, nothing will be able to take away the moments that made 2025 the greatest year in Riverhounds history.

Previous entries in the Best of 2025:

#5 — Beto conquers NYC
#4 — The King hangs up his crown
#3 — Building for the future
#2 — Beasts of the East

Note: This is the fourth article of our annual series looking back on the best moments of the year. The previous entries in the series are linked at the bottom of the page.

In truth, an entire Top 5 — and then some — could have been compiled strictly from the Hounds’ November playoff run. But having to narrow it down, the moment that involved a record 6,745 elated fans at Highmark Stadium claims an obvious spot in the countdown.

An excellent piece of individual skill by Robbie Mertz provided the only goal of the match after a good team build-up play, and that singular goal put the Hounds into the first league final of their 26-year history with a 1-0 win over Rhode Island FC in the USL Championship Eastern Conference Final on Nov. 15.

The back-and-forth match featured plenty of tense moments, from some early Rhode Island chances to a near miss by Danny Griffin in the first half on a ball chipped through by Mertz. But it was Mertz who set the stadium-record crowd into a fervor in the 55th minute, thanks in part to a good diagonal ball by Luke Biasi, aggressive forward running by Perrin Barnes and Augi Williams to occupy the defense, and lastly, a good second-ball layoff by Griffin.

The match took another turn on the hour mark when former Hounds man Marc Ybarra was sent off for a second yellow card, reducing the visitors to 10 men. But even shorthanded, Rhode Island pressed forward, and it took an excellent save by Eric Dick to deny JJ Williams an equalizer.

But the Hounds would hold on to their one-goal lead, and history was made. Only twice before had the Hounds been a single win away from a league final — those coming in 2004 and 2010 in third-division leagues — but this year the team smashed open the door to reach the USL Championship Final, despite having to advance on penalties in each of the previous two rounds.

That win set up a meeting with FC Tulsa for the USL Championship title, which — and this barely rates as a spoiler — sets up the forthcoming final feature in this year’s “Best of” series.

Previous entries in the Best of 2025:

#5 — Beto conquers NYC
#4 — The King hangs up his crown
#3 — Building for the future

Note: This is the third article of our annual series looking back on the best moments of the year. The previous entries in the series are linked at the bottom of the page.

Much of what the Hounds achieved in 2025 — on and off the field — was largely set up by work done months, if not years, in advance.

So when team owner Tuffy Shallenberger stepped front and center on Aug. 19 at Highmark Stadium, it was to describe the vision of the next steps into a bright future for both the club and the stadium.

The announcement that day of the plan to expand Highmark Stadium to a facility with a capacity of 15,000 laid out concrete steps and provided a first glimpse of what the next phase of growth would look like. With an eye toward hosting concerts, larger events and, most importantly, having the stadium prepared for the Hounds to join the planned USL Division One league by 2028, the day served to announce the future is closer than many realized.

Joined by staff, players and government officials, Shallenberger spoke about how the project will be a public-private partnership that will be a cornerstone of South Shore revitalization that will boost the city, county and club. The day also offered a first look at visuals detailing what Highmark Stadium 2.0 might look like:

The scope of the announcement might have come as a surprise to some and, naturally, questions arose ranging from how to fit the larger stadium into that location to will it block the view of the Pittsburgh skyline. (It won’t.)

But for a club that has aspirations of reaching — and winning — at the highest level, this year’s stadium announcement signaled that the Hounds are full-speed ahead when thinking about the future.

Previous entries in the Best of 2025:

#5 — Beto conquers NYC
#4 — The King hangs up his crown