FINAL: Riverhounds 2, Tampa Bay Rowdies 1

USL Championship — Week 14 

FINAL: Riverhounds 2, Tampa Bay Rowdies 1

Live statistics: USL Championship Match Center

Match Summary

On a very hot, sticky night, the Riverhounds made two early goals count in a 2-1 victory against Tampa Bay Rowdies at Highmark Stadium on Saturday.

Pittsburgh (5W-6L-2D, 17 points) scored a pair of goals five minutes apart as they were on the front foot for a good portion of the first half, but Tampa Bay responded with a late first half goal to cut the deficit in half.

“They left some doors open,” Bob Lilley, Riverhounds Head Coach said.

“We deserved to win tonight. I would have liked to see us keep the pressure on through the end of the first half, but we came out in the second half and were better. I am proud with how we responded to find goals.”

How It Happened

In the 15th minute, the Hounds got the first goal after earning its fourth corner kick of the match.  Midfielder Robbie Mertz’s service connected with a former teammate, Thomas Vanaceyezeele, who extended his leg to deny ball, but it deflected into the goal.

Five minutes later, forward Augustine Williams got the monkey off his back, scoring on a well-timed run to the far post, getting on the end of a Luke Biasi cross.

“I knew if I played the ball low and hard, I knew it was going to get cut out,” Biasi explained.

“But, I thought, let me just put this up in the air, hopefully Augi could spin out, get around and get there, and it worked out.”

Beto Ydrach nearly added a third goal at the half-hour mark after a feed from Charles Ahl, but his close-range effort was denied by another of Rowdies goalkeeper Ethan Bandré’s five saves.

Tampa’s response came as playmaking midfielder Ollie Basset kept a possession alive at the top of the box area, then laid off a pass for Manuel Arteaga.

The Rowdies forward struck a low turf-burner that beat Hounds keeper Eric Dick inside the left post.

As the sun started to go down, legs grew weary for both sides, with teams exchanging hard tackles and play got sloppier.

Hounds goalie Eric Dick had his biggest moment shortly after halftime, when he denied a blast on goal by Blake Bodily shooting from the left side of the box. Dick finished with two saves in the match.

Jacquesson responded with a good chance of his own in the right side of the box, but Bandré cut off the angle and saved the ball wide of the goal.

Jackson Walti nearly added the third goal when Mertz found him in space late in the match, but a defender’s boot was enough to deflect the chance high. Over the final 40 minutes of the match, the Hounds limited the Rowdies to two shots — one blocked and one off target.

While the Hounds conceded possession slightly as they played most of the match with the lead, while Tampa pressed for goals, the Hounds continued to apply enough pressure, with the edge in shots (14-11, 6-2 on target) and in corners (8-3).

Pittsburgh started the match without its captain, Danny Griffin, who had been sick since Wednesday.  Griffin was available off the bench and was utilized as a sub in the 67th minute.

Paid attendance for the match was 5,028.

Match Day Updates

Look for updates and match commentary, along with lineups and more, to be posted here throughout day.

Second Half Updates

FINAL — PITTSBURGH 2, TAMPA BAY 1

Hounds pick up an important three points — hang on after scoring two early goals as things in the second slowed down, got more physical. Much more to come as we’ll have post match reaction.

90+3 — YELLOW CARD — Hounds’ Luke Biasi goes in books for a hard, professional foul that slows down TBR transition moment.

87′ — Crazy sequence as Hounds get in transition but Jackson Walti with the follow up shot on open area on back post is saved off line by Rowdies defender.

87′ — SUB — Hounds

Max Brought on for Hounds — in for Mertz

77′ — Hounds squad rotation update:

I know it’s hot out there — things have slowed down a bit but both teams going to bench now. Hounds with three subs — Junior Etou just came in while Danny Griffin and Jorge Garcia came on for Beto Ydrach, Bertin Jacquesson & Charles Ahl 77′ 2-1 Hounds

72′ — Subs — Rowdies

IN: Skinner, Moon

OUT: Wyke, Bodily

68′ — SUBS — Hounds

• Danny Griffin and Jorge Garcia enter
• Bertin Jacquesson and Charles Ahl are out

67′ — YELLOW CARD — Tampa Bay’s WoobensPacius

64′ — Official runs into Hounds’ Luke Biasi — both stay down but play goes on for a bit. Tampa advances the ball pretty far while Hounds’ Augi Williams’ appeared to be trying to stop play as he hovered over the official, Natalie Simon.   After a few minutes, Simon and Biasi were able to get up.

59′ — Jacquesson with some impressive work to navigate around a pair of defenders — acceleration takes him wide but behind, but keeper comes off his line to make quality save. Hound win another corner.

54′ — Ooof. As Hounds keep possession alive thanks to some clever work on the left side, Luke Biasi has a golden look at top of box but whiffs on it.

52′ — YELLOW CARD — Hounds Sean Suber takes down Arteaga as Rowdies attacker was trying to get behind the defender.

50′ — Decent chance for Tampa.  Blake Bodily with dangerous ball in box after making deep run up left side.  Eric Dick gets to it.

46′ — Jacquesson right footed shot from outside the box misses to the right. Assisted by Luke Biasi.

First Half Updates

A look at the first half goals:

HALF — PITTSBURGH 2, TAMPA BAY 1

Hounds HC Bob Lilley heads to locker room likely not very happy. For 35 minutes his squad were dominating play but left the foot off the gas in the final 10.

40′ — GOAL — TAMPA BAY ROWDIES 1

Manuel Arteaga with well struck low turf-burner that beats Hounds keeper Eric Dick inside the left post as the keeper dove to his right.

Terrific work by Ollie Bassett — who kept the possession alive with clever on-the-ball work then laid it off to Arteaga.

34′ — Quality work by Hounds keeper Eric Dick to come off his line to deny Rowdies chance on corner.

30′ — Charles Ahl carves out a nice diagonal ball to the far post for Mertz, but shot chance is saved.

25′ — shot to left side from TBR’s Luis Álvarez — forces Hounds keeper Eric Dick to dive for save.  Looked like it was going to go wide though.

20′ — GOAL!!  RIVERHOUNDS 2, ROWDIES 0

AUGI WILLIAMS Finally, the Hounds target forward breaks through for his second goal of season — and first since season opener on March 8.  Cross came in from Luke Biasi.

15′ — GOAL!!   RIVERHOUNDS 1, ROWDIES 0

Mertz serves in corner kick and his former teammate Thomas Vancaeyezeele is the last to touch — it goes in for OWN GOAL!

13′ — Bertin Jacquesson creates a quality chance — plays a 1-2 — gets ball back, then accelerates to endline, sending cross for Mertz, but shot is saved by Tampa’s keeper, Ethan Bandre!

10′ — Nice build-up for Hounds ends with passes around edge of box.  Luke Biasi moves up the end line and sends a shot that hits side netting.

2′ — A pair of early corners for Hounds.  Second one had more of a chance — Mertz played short, got ball back then sent bending ball to far post for Beto Ydrach who’s header was too high.

7:06 pm — they’ve kicked off!!

Starting Lineups 

Hounds starters on what’s expected to be a hot one here at Highmark.  Most interesting takeaway — Danny Griffin is on the bench to start this one.

Also, former Hounds’ MF/D Thomas Vancaeyezeele in the lineup for the Rowdies.

Preview / What’s at Stake

The Riverhounds have struggled this season, by their standards, barely staying over the playoff line but they are not alone.  The Hounds will face a Tampa Bay Rowdies side that is playing below their usual standards on Saturday night.

Pittsburgh has one player, defender Illal Osumanu (Questionable – Hamstring) on the injury list, so Head Coach Bob Lilley should have a full allotment of players from the squad in his lineup selections.

Tampa has listed Pacificque Niyongabire as out, while veteran Leo Fernandes is questionable.

Despite the uneven start to the season, the Hounds are 4-2-0 at home in all competitions in 2025 — 3-1-0 in USL Championship play — and all four of the wins have been clean sheets for Eric Dick and the Hounds defense.

The Rowdies, meanwhile, have been uncharacteristically poor to begin 2025, with a 2-8-2 record leaving them second from the bottom of the Eastern Conference and now under the helm of an interim coach, Steve Coleman.

The Rowdies are aiming to claim a second consecutive victory for this first time this year in a place where wins have been tough to come by.

In nine previous trips to Pittsburgh, the Rowdies have come away with all three points only once.

“Getting the reward for the hard you put in creates a slightly more positive vibe,” Coleman noted on the squad’s morale after recording two wins in their last three outings.

“But in terms of togetherness, are we seeing anything different? No. Are we seeing anything different in terms of application and professionalism? No. In fact those things are what’s making a bit of a difference right now. Pittsburgh is a tough place to go, but we certainly won’t be backing down from the challenge.”

However, many of their quality pieces of recent years remain, including Laurence Wyke, Lewis Hilton and Manuel Arteaga, the latter two of whom combined for the game-winning goal in stoppage time last weekend for the Rowdies in a win over in-state rival Miami FC.

Their attack has been spearheaded by young Canadian Woobens Pacius, who has five goals for Tampa Bay on loan from Nashville SC.

Former Hounds standout defender, Thomas Vancaeyezeele (nine matches played with seven starts), is also on the Rowdies roster.

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