Riveters SC outlast Steel City, 2-0, before overflow crowd at Founders Field (USL W League — Pittsburgh Derby)

The Pittsburgh Riveters bested Steel City FC in an intense, well-attended match at Founders Field on Thursday evening.

Riveters keeper Bailey Herfurth stepped up to pick up the clean sheet with a strong defense in front of her, with goals from Alexis Tylenda and a surprise goal-scorer off the bench — 16-year-old Anna Korney.

“I thought Alexis Tylenda and Kennedy Neighbors were outstanding as strikers,” head coach Scott Gibson said. “First ten minutes we came out, put them under a lot of pressure.”

How it Happened:

First Half

The sky at Founders Field was blue and cloudless, as the two premier women’s teams in Pittsburgh did battle for the first time this season. The Riveters were coming off a thrilling 3-3 draw against Flower City last weekend, while Steel City finished last week with a 1-0 victory over FC Buffalo.

The opening whistle kicked off an intense, physical battle on the grass at Founders Field. Both sides were strong on the ball to start, with possession moving back and forth. The Riveters opened the scoring in the 19th minute on a goal from Alexis Tylenda. The shot came from the left side of the box, and flew in a l0w, straight line before going in.

A vocal Riveters fan section was there is support, but a strong Steel City showing — including many girls from the developmental academy — was present as well.

There was some intense sparring back and forth in the midfield, as Steel City got more aggressive after conceding the opening goal. In the 31st minute, the Riveters had another chance on goal, but the high, arcing shot was punched away by Steel City keeper Ruby Morgan.

Set pieces were few and far between in the first half; movement was almost constant. In the 34th minute, Steel City was able to get numbers forward and make a push toward the box, but Taylor Green made a nice defensive play to steal the ball away and give the Riveters possession.

The first half ended with a flurry of offensive activity for the Riveters, met by clutch defense from the Steel City side.

The Riveters had a prime chance inside the box, but Tanum Nelson kicked the ball up in the air and was quickly swamped by three Steel City defenders, who cleared it away. A couple of minutes later, Alexis Tylenda had another chance on a breakaway ball, but shot it high and to the right. The Rivs made another push into the box but were choked out by the Steel City defense. Ellen Molloy took a shot with less than two minutes left, but it rolled right. Another Riveters shot got blocked by Morgan.

In the final ten seconds, Piper Coffield was involved in a physical collision that sent a Steel City player to the ground.

The referees let the clock run out. The tension inherent in this Route 28 rivalry was on full display as the teams headed into the locker rooms with Riveters holding a 1-0 advantage.

Late Drama Decides It: Second Half

The tactical chess match intensified after the break as both coaching staffs adjusted their shapes.

The Rivs opened the second half with a good chance but it went left. Nelson took a shot in the 54th minute, but it went high and over the net.

Steel City showed an aggressive style of defense throughout, actively stifling the Riveters’ attempts to create chances. However, they struggled to generate real chances themselves, especially inside the 18.

That said, there was plenty of physicality and intense one-on-one dueling in the match. In the 66th minute, Tylenda got frustrated after a routine foul call, and kicked the ball intentionally out of the field of play; she was shown the yellow card.

After surrendering three goals to Flower City, Riveters keeper Bailey Herfurth was solid, keeping a clean sheet.

In the 70st minute, Anna Korney — fresh off the bench — added to the Riveters’ score with a strong shot from the left side of the box. It was the second goal scored by the 16-year old for the Riveters — in the two Derby matches played between the local rivals in the past two seasons.

“It was Sabrina (Bryan) that played me the ball long, and I just went in for the ball,” Korney said. “It was really exciting; I was glad that I could help the team in any way…it was a hard-fought win, but I think we did a good job.”

Steel City kept up their attack late, but a swarming Riveters side kept them contained. The Rivs sent more of their bench in, including Gabby Lamprey and Sabrina Bryan, late in the game. Fueled by the 2-0 advantage, they were able to hold on.

Despite a furious push in the final minutes and minutes of stoppage time, the final whistle blew with the scoreboard reading 2-0, Riveters.

Post-Match Reaction

Riveters Head Coach Scott Gibson: “I thought it was an extremely professional performance from us, from the start to the end… it’s a very tricky place to come… we changed a couple things at halftime to nullify their build-out, and I think that worked.”

Steel City Head Coach Tom Ovenden: “It’s always really tough to play against the Rivs…they test you to be good technically, and I think we struggled today on that front. Didn’t move the ball quick, didn’t really play our game.”

Lineups & Match Information

Kits: Riveters sported their tie-dye kits with pink shorts and socks, while Steel City had their standard dark blue home kits with yellow lettering.

 

Steel City FC Lineup Connections

• Regan Reilly (17) – Homegrown Connection: One half of the fantastic local sister narrative. Regan returns to anchor the Steel City midfield while her sister, Robin, features for the opposing Riveters, continuing their high-level, separate pathways right here in western PA.

• Emily Graeca (6) – Captain & Homegrown: Wearing the armband for Steel City, she is officially designated as a homegrown talent on the roster. Her sister, L. Graeca, is also waiting in the wings on the substitutes bench tonight.

• Bri Ross (23) & Margherita Memoli (8) – Homegrown Contingent: Both are explicitly designated with asterisks on the starting sheet as homegrown players, highlighting Steel City’s ongoing commitment to building a competitive core from the local club landscape.

• Local Depth on the Bench: Looking at the reserves, local names like Tonkovich, Chontos, Salopek, Stager, Sharpless, and Ravotti further solidify the deep roots this squad has in the immediate Pittsburgh soccer community.

Pittsburgh Riveters SC Lineup Connections

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• Bailey Herfurth (1) – The Week’s Headliner: Fresh off pulling off the ultimate “goalkeeper comes up for the corner and scores the equalizer” miracle in stoppage time last Saturday, she keeps her spot between the posts. The local spotlight is squarely on her to see what she does for an encore.

• The Sibling Derby Angle (Robin Reilly): While she isn’t starting in the XI shown on the graphic, her ongoing presence with the Riveters sets up a massive local tactical battle against her sister Regan on the other side of the pitch.

• WPIAL & Collegiate Star Power: The rest of the starting lineup features an array of names very familiar to the local collegiate and high school tracking scenes, including:

  • Molloy (10), Vozar (12), Nelson (14), and Coffield (22): Form a heavily integrated, recognizable spine for the Riveters squad.

  • Tylenda (15), Butera (24), Abraham (30), and Laberge (37): Round out an aggressive attacking and defensive shape built to handle the physical grass surface at Founders Field.

• Substitutes Pipeline: On the bench, names like Bane, Bulava, Korney, and Grundler represent the deep pool of local talent the Riveters have drawn from local universities and clubs to maintain their unbeaten start to the W League campaign.