City Islanders Tie Riverhounds, 2-2
May 15, 2004 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Penn FC News Release
Pittsburgh, PA â A young Pro Soccer League rivalry continued to evolve on Saturday night, as the Harrisburg City Islanders tied the Pittsburgh Riverhounds 2-2 in an entertaining double-overtime affair at Moon High School Stadium in Pittsburgh.
With the draw, Harrisburg secures the season series with their Atlantic Division rivals and improves to 2-1-2 (eight points) overall. Pittsburgh (3-1-2, 10 points) maintains their division lead by two points.
Though in some ways the contest was tame compared to the May 8 showdown (which produced seven yellow cards), police were called onto the field to help break up a post game altercation between the clubs. The rivalry will now be temporarily put on hold: Harrisburg and Pittsburgh will not meet again this season unless it is in the PSL playoffs or U.S. Open Cup competition.
The Islanders built a 2-1 lead through halftime on the first goals of the season from rookie John Lapore (16th minute) and recently signed veteran J.T. Dorsey (32nd minute, assisted by Steve Fisher). Those scores were sandwiched around a 29th-minute tally from Pittsburgh's Gary DePalma.
Harrisburg was still holding that 2-1 lead in the 87th minute of the game, when Riverhounds forward Said Ali bagged his fifth goal of the season to tie the contest and force the two 10-minute, golden-gold overtimes.
For the second consecutive week, Harrisburg goalkeeper Dave Kern stood out, finishing with seven saves, including several standout stops in overtime. The rookie made eight saves in the Islanders' 1-0 win over Pittsburgh on May 8.
Notes: Dorsey made his debut alongside veteran Ian Carter in the Islanders' central defense; both went the full 110 minutes. Craig Tyrrell, who had been a staple in the defensive backfield through the team's first four games, played the whole game in a defensive midfield role...The Utah Blitzz defeated the San Diego Gauchos 3-0 in a U.S. Open Cup on Friday night, preventing the Islanders from clinching a U.S. Open Cup berth this weekend.
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United Soccer League Championship Stories from May 15, 2004
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