Riverhounds Head South, Look to Go North in Standings
August 28, 2014 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC News Release
Another day, another must-win situation.
The Pittsburgh Riverhounds (8-12-5, 29pts) head south Friday for the first of back-to-back games with major playoff implications as they take on the Charlotte Eagles (9-13-3, 30pts) at 7:00PM EST at the Queens Sports Complex. The Riverhounds then travel to Blackbuad Stadium on Saturday when they meet up with the Charleston Battery (9-9-8, 35pts) for a 7:30PM EST kickoff.
The Riverhounds trail the Eagles by one point in the race for the final USL PRO playoff position. Each team has two games remaining after Friday's match and both currently sit outside the top eight.
"It's not even worth mentioning anymore," said interim Head Coach Niko Katic. "We're used to it. We've been playing must-win games for the last 11, so it's nothing new to us. There's pressure yes, but we're pretty used to it and I'm proud of how the guys have played every night."
The Hounds will once again be playing shorthanded this weekend. Joseph Ngwenya, Jhonny Arteaga, and Seth C'deBaca did not make the trip with the team. Jason Johnson will be unavailable Friday, but is expected to rejoin the team on Saturday.
The Riverhounds are looking to build momentum from their 3-1 victory this past Sunday over the FC Dallas Reserves. Rob Vincent, Kevin Kerr, and Mike Green all scored for the Riverhounds, with Matt Dallman providing two assists. Vincent and Dallman were both named to the USL PRO Team of the Week for their efforts.
The Eagles are looking to close out their three-game home stand with all nine points. Charlotte bested Rochester 3-1 on August 16th and followed that up with a 2-0 blanking of league leader Orlando City on August 20th.
This will be the second meeting of the season between the two teams. The Riverhounds came out on top 2-0 in a July 17th match at Highmark Stadium. Jose Angulo and Kevin Kerr both scored for the Hounds as Charlotte played a man down in the second half after Wells Thompson was shown a second yellow card in the 45th minute.
The match Saturday with the Battery will the third meeting of the season between the two sides. After playing to a 0-0 tie at Highmark Stadium on April 26th, the Battery came away with a 1-0 win at Blackbaud Stadium nearly a month later on May 24th.
The Battery had their eight-game point streak snapped Wednesday, dropping a 3-1 decision on the road to Sacramento Republic FC. Charleston is led on the offensive side by Dane Kelly with 14 points on seven goals, although he is scoreless in the last three matches.
Both games will be streamed live on YouTube. Links can be found on the front page of riverhounds.com
The Riverhounds return home for the regular season finale on September 6th at Highmark Stadium. Aluminum water bottles will be handed out to all fans in attendance, courtesy of Highmark. Limited tickets are still available at ticketmaster.com.
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United Soccer League Championship Stories from August 28, 2014
- Riverhounds Head South, Look to Go North in Standings - Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC
- Wilmington Claims Victory over Orlando City - Wilmington Hammerheads FC
- City Suffers 3-1 Defeat to Wilmington in Tough Road Match - Orlando City SC
- Philadelphia Union downs Isles - Penn FC
- Rhinos Travel to Harrisburg Saturday Night - Rochester Rhinos
- Kickers Head West - Richmond Kickers
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