Stars win 1-0
Published on June 14, 2008 under United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Cleveland City Stars News Release
The Cleveland City Stars took little time to bounce back from Fridays loss at Crystal Palace Baltimore in Saturday's 1-0 defeat of Pittsburgh.
Adam Ruud jumped out in front of the Riverhounds defense in the 12th minute and fooled the keeper before dropping the ball into the left corner for the 1-0 lead.
"We got behind the defense and it was a foot race to get to the ball," said Ruud. "Once I got to it I just slid it under the keeper. It was huge for us to get the early lead after yesterday's game and with it being the last leg of the long road trip. We had our back against the wall at the end but we held them off It will be great to get back home for the next four weeks."
Cleveland continued its season long dominance of its rival as the Riverhounds never mounted a serious attack during the first half.
The second half featured more stifling Cleveland defense until a Josh Westermann penalty led to Pittsburgh's first real opportunity in the 62nd minute. The resulting Pittsburgh free kick flicked off the Cleveland wall and directly into the waiting hands of keeper Eric Reed.
The City Stars defense stayed strong through the final minutes as the Riverhounds mounted a furious rally. Reed stayed strong with five second half saves, including two beautiful punch saves in the 89th minute that preserved the 1-0 victory for Cleveland.
"It feels great to come back after yesterday. Our squad doesn't accept losing," said Reed. "We take from losses what we can and we learn from them and then come back hungry in the next game. Today we came back strong and it will be great to get home and relax after such a long time away from home."
After a six game road trip Cleveland returns home Friday June 20th against the Wilmington Hammerheads.
"We look forward to returning to Cleveland and staying there for a while," said Head Coach Martin Rennie. "We've played seven of our first 11 games on the road, including the last six and we played three games in one week. Now we can return home and have the schedule get back to normal with one game per week and four in a row at home."
With the victory the City Stars improve to 6-2-3 with 21 points, including 4-1-1 during the six game road trip.
United Soccer League Championship Stories from June 14, 2008
- Eagles Win in Pink, 2-1 Over Western Mass - Charlotte Eagles
- Bermuda comes up short in Kickers' win - Richmond Kickers
- Stars win 1-0 - Cleveland City Stars
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.
