PITTSBURGH (July 1, 2023) — A hard-fought rematch of last year’s playoffs ended with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds maintaining their undefeated record at Highmark Stadium after a rain-soaked 0-0 draw with Louisville City FC.
Scoring chances were scarce for both teams, as Louisville (7-4-5) held 55 percent of possession but did not record a shot on goal. The Hounds (8-2-7) moved back into a tie atop the Eastern Conference and extended their streak to 10 consecutive USL Championship matches without a loss.
First half
The Hounds came out of the gates flying, as more than 42 percent of the first 15 minutes were spent in the final third of the field. However, that didn’t translate into chances, apart from a Joe Farrell header of a free kick that was saved by Louisville’s Oliver Semmle.
As the half progressed, Louisville began to gain more of possession, though the Hounds kept their territorial edge with nearly double the passes in the final third, 73-38. The elements also played a role, as a torrential downpour that began in the 25th minute slowed the pace of play for both teams.
Second half
Both teams had their best chance of the game less than 10 minutes after the break.
Louisville thought it had pulled ahead just three minutes into the half, when Wilson Harris got into the left side of the box and set up Elijah Wynder for a chance just 8 yards from goal. Wynder’s shot struck the inside of the right post and bounced along the goal line, where Arturo Ordóñez headed the ball away, and Dani Rovira applied a second header in the goal box to knock it out of play for a corner kick.
In the 55th minute, Luke Biasi sent a long cross from the right flank to the back post, where Danny Griffin awaited. Griffin opted to head the ball back toward goal, but the Louisville defense blocked the pass back to Kenardo Forbes, who also headed toward the front of the net. Junior Etou was first to it, but his side-volley attempt sailed over the crossbar.
The Hounds then thought they had the winning goal in the 74th minute when Burke Fahling headed in a long cross from Langston Blackstock on the left side, but the offside flag was raised on the finish, negating the last golden chance for either team.
Heineken Man of the Match
Dani Rovira stepped in at one of the wing back positions and played a solid match against big, athletic Louisville wingers. In addition to his header to safety ending Louisville’s best chance, Rovira connected on 80 percent of his passes, best among the starting 11, won possession a team-high 11 times and added a chance created in 68 minutes of action.
What’s next?
As the standings read at the final whistle, next week’s game will pit the top team in each conference, as the Hounds host Sacramento Republic FC (9-2-5) — and former Hounds Russell Cicerone, Danny Vitiello and Shane Wiedt — at 7 p.m. on Saturday, July 8 at Highmark Stadium.
Riverhounds SC lineup (5-4-1) — Luis Zamudio; Dani Rovira (Burke Fahling 68’), Arturo Ordóñez, Joe Farrell (Pat Hogan 89’), Illal Osumanu, Luke Biasi (Edward Kizza 82’); Danny Griffin, Marc Ybarra (Trevor Zwetsloot 89’), Kenardo Forbes, Junior Etou (Langston Blackstock 68’); Tola Showunmi
Louisville City FC (5-3-2) — Oliver Semmle; Amadou Dia, Elijah Wynder, Wes Charpie, Sean Totsch, Oscar Jiménez (Manny Perez 74’); Paolo DelPiccolo, Tyler Gibson (Niall McCabe 74’), Rasmus Thellufsen (Maarten Pouwels 74’); Enoch Mushagalusa (Carlos Moguel Jr. 89’), Wilson Harris (Cameron Lancaster 80’)
Scoring summary
None
Discipline summary
LOU — Wilson Harris 49’ (caution – dissent)
PIT — Junior Etou 51’ (caution – reckless foul)
PIT — Kenardo Forbes 56’ (caution – tactical foul)
LOU — Elijah Wynder 64’ (caution – reckless foul)
LOU — Wes Charpie 76’ (caution – reckless foul)
LOU — Cameron Lancaster 85’ (caution – simulation)
