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USL United Soccer League Championship

Riverhounds, City Islanders Prep for Second Leg of Keystone Derby in USL's Week 11

May 29, 2015 - United Soccer League Championship (USL) News Release


TAMPA, Fla. - Coming off a well-rounded effort in the third round of the 2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, it is back to regular-season business with Week 11 on the horizon. Several rivalries will be in the spotlight among the 11 regular-season matches.

The second game of the Keystone Derby Cup features the host Pittsburgh Riverhounds and Harrisburg City Islanders this Saturday at Highmark Stadium. Both teams are looking to make a climb from the middle of the Eastern Conference table, and Pittsburgh holds the upper hand in the series with a dominant 5-2 victory in late March.

Also in the Eastern Conference, Louisville City FC and Saint Louis FC square off in the third of four games in the King's Cup. Louisville has a win and a draw in the series while Saint Louis welcomes a pair of loanees from the Chicago Fire, including 2013 Major League Soccer MVP Mike Magee.

In the Western Conference, OKC Energy FC prepares for its second match of a five-game homestand at Taft Stadium, welcoming in the Austin Aztex on Sunday.

GAMES TO WATCH

Pittsburgh Riverhounds vs. Harrisburg City Islanders

Saturday, 7 p.m. ET, Highmark Stadium

The first leg of the Keystone Derby Cup was all Pittsburgh, with Kevin Kerr's hat trick and Rob Vincent's brace providing all the scoring during a dominant 5-2 victory on March 28 at Highmark. This second game of the four-game Keystone Derby returns to Pittsburgh, and the City Islanders (4-2-1) have made significant progress since that season-opening loss. They are in the midst of a five-game unbeaten streak (4-0-1) and three-game winning streak, most recently defeating the Charlotte Independence 2-0 on May 16. Pittsburgh (3-3-3) has yet to post back-to-back wins this season, but the Riverhounds will get a shot on Saturday, coming off a 2-1 road victory against the Richmond Kickers on May 23. Heading into the weekend, Harrisburg and Pittsburgh are fifth and seventh, respectively, in the Eastern Conference standings, so three points would help immensely for a spot in the upper half of the table. (Preview)

Louisville City FC vs. Saint Louis FC

Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET, Louisville Slugger Field

The third game of the King's Cup is set as City FC faces Saint Louis FC for the second consecutive weekend. They played to a 3-3 draw on May 24 at World Wide Technology Soccer Park in a back-and-forth match from start to finish. Saint Louis had three separate leads, only to see Louisville equalize every time. This Saturday's match will receive some extra intrigue for Saint Louis as Major League Soccer's Chicago Fire have loaned Mike Magee and Kingsley Price to the team. Magee, the 2013 MLS MVP, is continuing his rehabilitation from hip and knee surgery this past offseason and has yet to feature for Chicago this year. These two teams will not face each other again until the regular-season finale on Sept. 19, and Louisville holds the King's Cup lead with a 1-0-1 record after opening the year with a 2-0 victory. (Preview)

OKC Energy FC vs. Austin Aztex

Sunday, 8 p.m. ET, Taft Stadium

Fresh off a 2-0 victory against defending NASL champions the San Antonio Scorpions in U.S. Open Cup action, the Aztex hope to carry that momentum on the road against Energy FC. Austin has had a difficult May in USL play with just one win in four games. The Aztex were on the verge of a victory against Energy FC when they met on May 1, only to see Kyle Greig score the equalizer in the 87th minute to help OKC salvage a 2-2 draw. Austin will be without Guaraci Oliveira, who is serving a one-game suspension because he has accumulated five yellow cards this season. Energy FC is 2-1-0 at Taft Stadium, and both victories were significant, coming against Seattle Sounders FC 2 and most recently Sacramento Republic FC - two teams that have held first place in the Western Conference for the majority of the season. (Video Preview)

NEWS AND NOTES

- The Eastern Conference-leading Rochester Rhinos will attempt to keep their unbeaten season intact when they host FC Montreal on Saturday at Sahlen's Stadium. Rochester is 6-0-4 (22 points), three points ahead of the Charleston Battery. The Rhinos are 2-0-0 at Sahlen's Stadium and lead the USL with six shutouts. They have allowed only four goals all season.

- Arizona United SC's Long Tan heads back to Vancouver to face Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 on Sunday at UBC Thunderbird Stadium. Tan played for the MLS side in Vancouver in 2011, recording a goal and two assists in 17 matches. Tan leads Arizona with four goals this season.

- New York Red Bulls II forward Anatole Abang heads into the weekend with the top goal-scoring rate in the league with four tallies in five games (0.8 per game). The 18-year-old striker has scored the opening goal in NYRB II's past two matches against the Charleston Battery (1-1 draw on May 17) and FC Montreal (3-2 win on May 24).

HOW TO FOLLOW

Every game of the 2015 USL season can be seen live, free and in HD on YouTube (www.Youtube.com/USL), with updates from throughout the league also available via Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

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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.


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