Riverhounds beat Indy, 2-1, to punch ticket to eighth straight postseason

FINAL: Riverhounds 2, Indy Eleven 1

Match Stats 

A focused and determined Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC side took a two-goal lead, then held off Indy Eleven, 2-1, to clinch the club’s eighth straight postseason appearance at Highmark Stadium on Saturday night.

Former club legend Rob Vincent, in his first match at helm as acting Head Coach, less than 24 hours after the club announced that Bob Lilley was placed on administrative leave, earned his first victory.

Team captain and midfielder Danny Griffin converted from close range in the 38th minute, then defender Sean Suber added his first goal of the season at an opportune time in the 76th minute on a header.  Indy responded to cut the deficit with a James Musa goal, but Pittsburgh (11W-10L-7D, 40 points) held on for the victory.

With two matches remaining, the Hounds remain in 6th place, as results from the weekend saw Hartford (44 points) surge further up the table to jump into sole possession of third place, while Loudoun United FC (42 points) and North Carolina FC (41 points) are just above Pittsburgh in 4th and 5th place respectively.

How It Happened

There was a lot of direct play and stoppages were prevelant in the first thirty minutes, with both teams looking to pick their spots and score quickly.  Indy doubled the number of shots and chances on frame, while Pittsburgh carried nearly 60 percent possession.

Indy’s Ben Ofeimu took back-to-back corner kicks in the 36th minute, with the first swinging in on frame, forcing Riverhounds keeper Eric Dick to have to punch the ball over the bar.  The second delivery, Dick took command at the near post to deny any danger.

The Hounds broke through in the 38th minute when Augi Williams caught up with a cross from Robbie Mertz.  Williams played a clever ball across the goal box, where Griffin was there from very close range to smash it high and just under the crossbar to give the Hounds a 1-0 lead.

The Hounds nearly doubled the lead in first half stoppage time when another Mertz cross was put into dangerous area, with Williams redirecting a header that just missed getting inside the top left corner.

Pittsburgh continued to keep the field tilted in its favor early in the second half, as Williams missed on a few chances, while Hunter Sulte denied chances from Riverhounds midfielders Bradley Sample and Charles Ahl in the 55th and 58th minutes.

The Hounds remained on the front foot through the 76th minute when they doubled the lead on a well-executed corner kick, when Bradley Sample served up a ball to the near post, where Suber rose up to redirect the ball into goal off a header.

In the closing 10 minutes, Indy finally found some rhythm as the Hounds sat deeper, generating a number of chances, and eventually capitalizing when James Musa converted on this chance to beat Hounds’ keeper Eric Dick in the 87th minute.

With five minutes of stoppage time added, the Hounds pushed forward, nearly finding a third goal when sub Bertin Jacquesson unleashed a chance from the top of the box, but it was saved by Hunter Sulte.  Indy was not able to sustain another quality chance, leaving the players and coaches a chance to celebrate a win and clinching a playoff spot following a tumultuous 24-hour period.

Look for a more detailed recap to follow along with post match reaction.