Sports stats

USL Rochester Rhinos

Rhinos Gain Full 3 Points in Pittsburgh

April 4, 2015 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Rochester Rhinos News Release


Rochester Rhinos Tony Walls (No. 20) Celebrates with Rochester Teammates
Rochester Rhinos Tony Walls (No. 20) Celebrates with Rochester Teammates
(Rochester Rhinos, Credit: Terry O'Neil)

Rochester, NY - The Rochester Rhinos obtained their first win of the very young season on the road against the Pittsburgh Riverhounds tonight, Saturday, April 4th, at Highmark Stadium. The Riverhounds came into the match on fire after notching 5 goals last week in their season opener against the 2014 USL PRO runner-up, the Harrisburg City Islanders. The Rhinos came into the match with a point after 0:0 draw last week against the New York Red Bulls II.

Starting for the Rhinos were: GK- Brandon Miller; D- Onua Obasi, Vassilis Apostolopoulos, Grant Van De Casteele, Pat McMahon; M- Jonny Mendoza, Michael Garzi, Tony Walls, Kenardo Forbes; F- Alex Dixon, Christian Volesky.

On the bench: GK- Adam Grinwis; D- Sean Totsch, Julian Ringhof; M- Marcos Ugarte, Christian Silva, Tyler Rudy; F- Colin Rolfe.

The Rochester Rhinos came out of the gates early with pressure coming from all angles. Alex Dixon provided the first scoring chance of the match just 4 minutes in as he flew down the right flank past the Riverhounds defense. He served the ball into Christian Voleskey but the Riverhounds goalkeeper, Ryan Thompson, did well to punch the ball clear. The Rhinos controlled a majority of the possession over the next 20 minutes, gaining a number of chances around the box, but not able to capitalize.

In the 28th minute, Tony Walls was brought down just outside of the box and that's where the magic happened. Walls stepped up behind the ball and whipped in a beautiful shot that went up and over the wall and beat the keeper on the near post to put the Rhinos up 1:0!

The play went back and forth for the rest of the half. Both teams had their chances, but the defense for both teams did well to quell the opportunities. The Rhinos went into the half with the lead and the momentum.

The 2nd started off with a flurry of action! In the 49th minute, Max Touloute was played onside with a looping through ball from, none other than former Rhino, Danny Earls. Brandon Miller came out to the top of the 18 to try and corral it, but Touloute was able to get a foot on it and he sent a chip over the top of Miller and into the back of the net to know the game at 1.

Just minutes later, Michael Garzi got tangled up with Rob Vincent on the side line. While the confusion on the sideline was occurring, the Rhinos used a quick throw-in to catch the Pittsburgh defense off guard. Onua Obasi used his speed and foot skills to beat the first Riverhounds defender to step to him. He then sent in a perfectly placed cross into the box where Alex Dixon got on the end of it and sent a beautiful volley past Thompson and into the back of the net to put the Rhinos up 2:1 in the 52nd minute! Dixon's strike would prove to be the eventual game winner for the Rhinos!

The rest of the half was played with a lot of tenacity. Neither team would give up an inch as each were terribly hungry for the full three points. The Pittsburgh Riverhounds dominated the final 15 minutes of play and Brandon Miller and the defense came up huge to not allow an equalizer.

Rhinos substitutions made in the 2nd half: Rolfe on, Volesky off (66'); Silva on, Garzi off (75'); Ugarte on, Mendoza off (80'); Rudy on, Dixon off (85').

The Rochester Rhinos gained the full three points with 2:1 victory on the road tonight, Saturday, April 4th, in a hard fought match against the Pittsburgh Riverhounds. The Rhinos return to train at Sahlen's Stadium this coming week before getting back on the road and facing FC Montreal next Saturday, April 11th, with kickoff scheduled for 2:30pm. The Rhinos home opener is scheduled for Sunday, April 26th against the New York Red Bulls II with a 2:05pm kickoff!

Individual game tickets go on sale Monday, April 6th at 10am! Also, beginning on Saturday, April 11th, the Sahlen's Stadium Box Office will be open from 10am-2pm each Saturday. Rochester Rhinos 2015 Rhinos season tickets, flex packs and group tickets are available by calling (585) 454-KICK (5425), by visiting the MVP Health Care Box Office at Sahlen's Stadium, or online at rhinossoccer.com. Full season ticket packages start at $99.00 and the Rhinos Family Pass is $299.00 for a family of four!




Images from this story

Rochester Rhinos Tony Walls (No. 20) Celebrates with Rochester Teammates
Rochester Rhinos Tony Walls (No. 20) Celebrates with Rochester Teammates
(Terry O'Neil)		   



United Soccer League Championship Stories from April 4, 2015


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

Other Recent Rochester Rhinos Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central