News

It may be the first season of a new era, but head coach Bob Lilley has built a team that fits the mold of a city that prides itself on toughness.

It is accurate to say Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC is on pace to shatter club records on the defensive side of the ball and leads the league in multiple defensive statistics, but it still does not paint the whole picture of how dominant its defense has been throughout the first half of the 2018 campaign.

As Pittsburgh (8-1-7) prepares for its 17th game of the season, it will again strive to smother its opposition during a road battle against Ottawa Fury FC (6-7-3) at 1 p.m. on Sunday at TD Place Stadium. In their first meeting this year, the Hounds shut out Fury FC and held it to only three total shots.

“Everyone defends,” defender Todd Pratzner said. “Everyone does their job. All 11 guys are doing their thing and when you have that – that’s why we’re doing well defensively. It’s not just the back four. It’s not just the goalkeeper. It’s everyone locking in, everyone doing their job, everyone tracking back. I think that’s why we’ve done well so far.”

Currently, the Hounds have shut out adversaries in their last four games and have not allowed a goal in the past 397 minutes of gameplay. Furthermore, the club has more clean sheets (11) than goals allowed (seven) for the entire season.

Digging deeper into the defensive numbers, Pittsburgh is the only team in the USL to have allowed less than 10 goals in 2018. As for shots allowed, the Black and Gold have conceded 130 total shots this season, which would be the least shots of all USL teams if there were a squad named “Riverhounds SC opponents.”

“I think now everyone knows their job and knows what everyone else has to do,” Pratzner said. “Now it’s just about executing, so I think we’ve done a good job of that.”

Pratzner said the key to their defensive success has been communication and a willingness to work hard in practice and during games day after day.

This tireless work ethic has the club on pace to shatter a team record that has stood since its 2004 season. Currently allowing just 0.44 goals per game this year, it is nearly half as much as its ’04 mark of 0.85 goals allowed per match.

Whether the Hounds will continue to lower their 2018 goals-against average is to be seen, but they have had past success against Ottawa. In three all-time meetings, Pittsburgh has posted a 0.33 goals-against average versus Fury FC.

“We know we have a bit of a break after this game, so it’s an important game for us,” Lilley said. “Whenever you have a break, you want to go into that break with a good result.”

Following Sunday, Riverhounds SC will not be in action until a July 21 home date against the Charleston Battery – 13 days after its showdown with Ottawa. As the team looks to finish the first half of the 2018 campaign on a high note, it will aim higher for this season’s second act.

“Every day, we just got to keep getting better,” Pratzner said. “We’re not just going to sit on it because we’ve done well. We need to keep improving. We need to come every day and keep getting better, keep learning, keep growing, and go at it every game and defend as a team.”

Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC (8-1-7) will carry a two-game winning streak into its match against Ottawa Fury FC (6-7-3) at 1 p.m. on Sunday at TD Place. This will be their second meeting this season, as the Hounds won the first match, 1-0. Pittsburgh holds a 2-0-1 all-time record against Ottawa.

Road Warriors

Thus far this season, the Hounds hold an undefeated road record (3-0-4). In club history, it has posted just two seasons in which it had a winning away record, the last time occurring in 2004 with a mark of 8-2-0. The squad will try to earn more points on the road this weekend.

Heart of the Defense

This year, the Hounds have largely used a center back rotation including Joe Greenspan, Todd Pratzner, Tobi Adewole and Hugh Roberts. All four of these players have recorded at least 50 clearances this season, and Roberts and Adewole pace the club with 55 clearances. While the Hounds continue to shut down opposing offenses, look for these four to continue to be at the center of the backline.

From the Outside

Last time out, Christiano François and Kevin Kerr both notched their second tallies of the season. The two attacking wingers also tied for the team lead with three shots against North Carolina FC. As they both sit inside the top four on the team in shots recorded this season, the Hounds will continue to rely on them moving forward for added goal scoring help.

Starting the Hounds’ last match against North Carolina FC, Kenardo Forbes recorded his 100th career appearance at the USL level.

Riverhounds SC has now gone four straight matches without winning the possession battle. Despite not holding the ball more often than its opponents over this stretch, Pittsburgh is 3-0-1 during this period. The Hounds could end this streak come Sunday, as Ottawa has only possessed the ball on average 41 percent of the time this year. The Black and Gold will aim to take back the possession battle this weekend, especially in the road environment.

Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC (8-1-7) extended its winning streak to two games with a 2-0 victory against North Carolina FC (5-8-3) on Wednesday at Highmark Stadium. In the first-ever meeting between the two sides, the Hounds’ offense demonstrated balance and consistence throughout the match. Here’s how Pittsburgh notched its two tallies en route to earning three points at home.

45’ Christiano François assisted by Ray Lee

Ray Lee hit Christiano François with a pass, but it wasn’t one that would typically lead to an assist, especially when both of Lee’s feet were planted on Pittsburgh’s side of the field.

After receiving Lee’s one-timed touch, François (yellow arrow) bolted up the left flank. Once he approached the penalty area, he sped directly at two North Carolina FC defenders (red arrows) and drove them back toward their goal. Neither opposing defender stepped in to stop the Cabaret, Haiti native’s run, and François found enough space to blast a shot by goalkeeper Alex Tambakis to provide the Hounds with a 1-0 lead.

71’ Kevin Kerr assisted by Kenardo Forbes

François replicated his 45th minute score with another break into the penalty area and again drew two defenders.

This time, François (yellow arrow) elected to pass the ball back to Kenardo Forbes (orange arrow), who stood open just outside the 18-yard box before booting a ball across the penalty area.

Depicted above, Kevin Kerr (green arrow) ultimately out-jumps a North Carolina FC defender and wins the aerial duel. His header then finds the optimum location, beating Tambakis low and far post for the club’s second goal and the final tally of the match.

Tale of the Tape

Pittsburgh applied consistent pressure throughout the match, posting six shots in the first half and seven shots in the second half. Overall, the team found ways to penetrate the North Carolina FC backline, as 12 of its 13 shots came from inside the penalty box.

The Hounds amassed eight chances created in the match, and Lee paced the team in the statistic with three key passes, including his assist. As it often found the right attackers at the right time, Riverhounds SC ultimately defeated North Carolina FC despite conceding the possession battle (41 percent possession).

It had been a while since Thomas Vancaeyezeele booted a strong take on target from an attacking-friendly position.

Last time out against Louisville City FC, the rookie lined up a faulty clearance from the opposition and sent a powerful shot at the goalmouth from just beyond the 18-yard box. Although his take was saved, it was a welcomed sight to see Vancaeyezeele jump back into the attack.

Now following its 1-0 victory over the reigning USL champions, Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC (7-1-7) will look to build upon this momentum in a home date with North Carolina FC (5-7-3) at 7 p.m. on Wednesday at Highmark Stadium. As he remains the only Pittsburgh athlete to play every minute (1,350) of the 2018 campaign, Vancaeyezeele now figures to see additional time in a holding midfield role after spending the bulk of the season at center back.

“[Joe Greenspan’s] a leader on the team, so he went back on defense and gave us strength in the back,” Vancaeyezeele said. “I came back into the midfield, and try to win balls, play forward and keep possession for my team.”

Missing time due to injury since early April, Greenspan returned to the starting lineup against the Charleston Battery on June 23, the first match of the team’s recent two-game road trip. At this time, Vancaeyezeele moved from the backline into the midfield.

“Tommy is a great player,” defender Jordan Dover said. “One of our most versatile players. I think he’s played almost everywhere in the midfield, everywhere at the back. It’s great to have a player like that because it gives our whole team a lot more flexibility and it helps with our depth as well.”

Moving into the holding midfield spot still allows the Caen, France native to utilize defensive skills that have propelled him to lead the Hounds with 42 interceptions, but now he is one step closer to the frontline at a position that is friendlier to catalyzing offense.

This season in USL play, Vancaeyezeele has recorded one goal and one assist. He also posted a tally in the squad’s earlier Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup victory against Erie Commodores FC of the National Premier Soccer League.

“When I get the ball, I try to find [the forwards] and look for the runs,” Vancaeyezeele said. “I try to create passes in their runs and then they can score goals. That’s what we train to do.”

As the Hounds prepare for North Carolina FC, they will face one of the higher-scoring attacks in the Eastern Conference. This season, the USL newcomer ranks fifth of 16 teams in the conference with 23 goals forwarded.

Despite their offensive success, scoring goals could be hard to come by for North Carolina FC. Pittsburgh has allowed just one goal on its home turf in eight games at Highmark Stadium this year and has three clean sheets in its past five seasons hosting an Independence Day match.

“I think it’s going to be pretty fun,” Vancaeyezeele said. “That’s going to be my first Fourth of July game, so I don’t really know what to expect, but I look forward to seeing the fireworks and the game.”

Defeating reigning USL-champion Louisville City FC last week, Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC (7-1-7) extended its unbeaten streak to four games. After a two game road trip, the Hounds now return home to face North Carolina FC (5-7-3) at 7 p.m. on Wednesday at Highmark Stadium for a Fourth of July clash. This will mark the first-ever meeting between the two sides.

Holiday Tradition

The Hounds will host a match at Highmark Stadium for the sixth straight season on the Fourth of July. Holding a 2-2-1 record in these games, the team will look to break its one-game Independence Day losing streak this Wednesday. Prior to losing 3-1 to the Charlotte Independence in 2017, the Black and Gold posted three straight shutouts on July 4 from 2014-16 – perhaps a promising sign for a team in search of its 11th clean sheet this campaign.

Joe Knows

Defender Joe Greenspan has racked up 376 minutes this season, and the Hounds have yet to allow a goal in any of them. All four of Greenspan’s games started have ended with a Pittsburgh clean sheet. Dating back to last season when he made his club debut, the squad has allowed just 0.63 goals per game with him on the field. The United States Naval Academy product figures to play a large role in the team’s backline rotation moving forward.

Kenny Can

Midfielder Kenardo Forbes has helped catalyze the Hounds attack in 2018, but he switched roles and scored his first goal of the season last time out against Louisville City FC. Heading into the team’s match against North Carolina FC with one goal and three assists this season, Forbes will look to boost the offense again on Wednesday.

The Pittsburgh backline hasn’t allowed a goal in the club’s past 307 minutes of gameplay, including a stretch of three straight clean sheets.

Last time out at Louisville City FC, the Hounds lost the shots battle for just the third time this season. In 2018, Pittsburgh is 1-0-2 when losing the shots battle. As the squad returns home to the friendly confines of Highmark Stadium, a venue at which it hasn’t been outshot this year, it must once again allow less takes then it records.