Evans Continues Hounds Legacy in Tourney Director Role

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Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC

Evans Continues Hounds Legacy in Tourney Director Role

December 12, 2024 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC News Release


To say Justin Evans has done everything for the Riverhounds might be an understatement.

A member of the club's Hall of Fame as a player and No. 2 on the pro team's list for all-time coaching wins, Evans now serves as the Riverhounds Academy's Tournament Director, and the fruits of his work in that role will be on display again this weekend when the team hosts its fourth annual Three Rivers College Showcase this weekend.

The Showcase, part of the Riverhounds Tournament Series that launched in 2021, comes every December on the heels of the college and high school seasons, affording early high school-aged players a chance to catch the eye of recruiters and giving those college coaches a last chance to see older players who might not yet have made their college commitment.

But as with each tournament of the series, planning begins long before the teams actually hit the fields at Highmark Stadium, AHN Montour and other sites around the area.

"Realistically, it starts right after our August tournament. The planning starts right away," Evans said. "It's not just me, it's all of the guys who work here and the coaches on our staff. They have games against other teams, and after a good game, they talking about those teams coming here, getting to see our facilities, both Highmark Stadium and AHN Montour. And then when they get here, it's about doing right by those clubs, making sure they're taken care of and get good competition."

The tournaments involve far more than just the teams on the field, of course.

Evans has worked with the Riverhounds' corporate partnerships team to bring on the Tournament Series sponsors - Pittsburgh International Airport, Iceland Air, British Airways, Eat'n Park, Raising Cane's and King Orthodontics - and planning also includes finding merchandise and food vendors for the venues on game day. Preparation also includes making sure there are referees for more than 100 matches, and staffing the games with field marshals and trainers from Allegheny Health Network also requires planning.

It's a lot to take on for Evans, who also serves as the head of the academy's Boys ECNL program and coaches some of the youth teams. But for the person who was one of the club's first professional signings and a part of the initial 1999 team that played at Bethel Park High School, the tournaments are yet another indication of how much the Riverhounds have grown in a quarter century.

"When you think back, and we were playing (pro games) on a crowned high school field that was built for football, we made an impact on the community then," Evans said. "Now, with Highmark Stadium, AHN Montour, our Connellsville site, and now North Huntingdon, as well, it's tremendous. I probably couldn't have pictured the scope of it back then, but to see it come to fruition, and to be able to help with that and push it along, it's been really rewarding."

Evans desire to grow the organization and the sport of soccer at large has roots stretching back to his early Hounds days. At that time, it was his coaches with the Riverhounds - John Kowalski, Paul Child and Gene Klein - who were leading the push to grow the game in Pittsburgh. Now, it's Evans, after a playing career that took him to Europe and MLS, who finds himself in the role of teacher and builder.

"Those three guys, especially, were influential in my development and growth, not only as a player, but as a person," Evans said.

"You're talking about three huge personalities. John, with his knowledge of the game and how he can talk for hours about the game and keep you interested... Paul, everyone knows Paul, he was a great player, and I think he'll never stop coaching and running around with the kids... and Gene, he was just a total student of the game, and everyone knows what he did in the high school ranks in Pittsburgh, but what gets missed is what he did for U.S. Soccer in his career. He was a person I leaned on a lot in my career - all three of them, but Gene especially."

At this point, Evans has filled every position that those three influences once did, from First Team coach to youth coach to administrator. While there might be a few people in the Riverhounds with more total years than Evans, there's no one who has served the club in as wide a variety of roles.

"I think I've almost done it all, I guess that's true," Evans said. "When I was younger, obviously, you just want to play. But to be able to be in the game and impact the youth that want to play soccer, it's really good. The relationships I've made in the game have helped me out on so many levels. And being able talk to college coaches that I played with, played against, had relationships with... to help kids now get to the next level and realize their dreams, that's what makes it worth it."

So when Sunday night comes and another successful Three Rivers College Showcase is in the books, Evans will get to sit back, relax and enjoy the moment, right?

"Not really," Evans said with a laugh. "There's definitely a smile when the weekend's over, but it's always just on to the next one. There's been so many really good things and so many growing pains, as well. We're trying to make it best for the teams who come in, and for our teams, for referees, for everyone. We're getting to the point where we've established that we're putting on a good product, and we want to keep doing that."

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