Hounds drop preseason finale to TFCII, 3-1

The Riverhounds SC have never lost to Toronto FC II in five previous seasons of USL league play.

Now that the Young Reds have dropped to USL League One, they finally got the best of the Riverhounds, winning 3-1 on Saturday afternoon at Highmark Stadium.

The Hounds received its goal from Steevan Dos Santos in the 49th minute, but it wasn’t enough to overcome a 2-0 halftime deficit as they lost for the first time this preseason.

“It’s a good reminder that you can’t win on paper. That you have to have a certain intensity,” Bob Lilley, Hounds Head Coach said. “We got pushed around physically in the first half. We didn’t do a good job traveling as a team. They picked up a lot of loose balls because their midfield outworked our midfield. They beat us today with intensity. They have good players who found moments. We didn’t have enough urgency or energy, and we didn’t execute.”

ED THOMPSON PHOTOS

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Toronto jumped ahead early with two first half goals in the 35th and 42nd minutes from Jacob Shaffelburg and Jordan Peruzza, respectively.

Toronto’s first goal was a blast off Shaffelburg’s foot. The shot was let loose from outside of the penalty area and found its way into the upper left-hand corner, giving Toronto a 1-0 advantage.

The USL League One club scored another goal right before the half in the 42nd minute. This time, Peruzza finished after buildup in and around the 18-yard box.

Pittsburgh scored its lone tally in the 49th minute. Kenardo Forbes booted a ball across the penalty area and it found the head of Dos Santos, who headed it home to bring the score to 2-1 at the time.

The Hounds were awarded a penalty kick following a foul inside of the penalty area six minutes after their goal, but Christian Volesky’s take went over the crossbar.

Peruzza added another goal for Toronto in the 60th minute.

“I’d rather it happen today, than next week, when we go into our first game, that flat,” Lilley added. “I am not going to sugarcoat it. I think we were poor today.”

Riverhounds SC begins regular season play against the Tampa Bay Rowdies at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 16 at Al Lang Stadium. The game will be televised on Pittsburgh’s CW.

First Half– Kyle Morton – Ryan James, Tobi Adewole, Joe Greenspan, Jordan Dover – Mouhamed Dabo, Kenardo Forbes, Thomas Vancaeyezeele (Ethan Kutler), Kevin Kerr (Anthony Velarde) – Christian Volesky, Steevan Dos Santos (Noah Franke)

Second Half– Ben Lundgaard – Ryan James, Tobi Adewole, Joe Greenspan, Jordan Dover – Mouhamed Dabo, Kenardo Forbes, Thomas Vancaeyezeele, Kevin Kerr, – Christian Volesky, Steevan Dos Santos

Scoring Summary: 
TOR – Jacob Shaffelburg 35’
TOR – Jordan Perruzza 42’
PIT – Steevan Dos Santos 49’ (Kenardo Forbes)
TOR – Jordan Perruzza 60’