The Pittsburgh Riverhounds hosted Detroit City FC and opened the scoring in the second minute when F Albert Dikwa capitalized on a poor decision by DCFC GK Carlos Herrera. The early breakthrough set the tone, and the Hounds continued their pressure, earning a corner in the seventh minute. Amid the congestion in the box, midfielder Robbie Mertz was shown a yellow card for rough play.
Detroit City nearly found an equalizer in the 13th minute, but Hounds GK Nico Campuzano produced a brilliant save to keep the hosts in front. One minute later, Dikwa earned a free kick just outside the penalty area, though the ensuing attempt was handled comfortably by the DCFC defense. The Hounds continued to pressure DCFC and F Albert Dikwa again with a shot on goal from outside the box was close, but misses to the right in the 17th minute.
The Hounds continued to pin Detroit City FC deep in their own end with relentless pressure on the ball, generating multiple quality chances. In the 27th minute, D Owen Mikoy rose for a header from the center of the box, but his effort sailed over the bar. Detroit weathered the surge and gradually began to settle into the match.
In the 36th minute, the Hounds conceded a corner, but the back line handled the delivery confidently and cleared the danger. As the tempo increased, so did the physicality, and the referee was forced to intervene more frequently. MF Jackson Walti was shown a yellow card for a cynical foul in midfield. The remainder of the half was evenly contested, and Pittsburgh carried a 1–0 lead into the break.
The second half opened with the players’ protest regarding the lack of a collective bargaining agreement. Once play resumed, Detroit attempted to maintain extended spells of possession to slow down Pittsburgh’s aggressive defensive pressure. The approach worked for the first ten minutes of the half but failed to produce any meaningful chances. Detroit continued to dominate possession through the 70th minute, while the Hounds dropped into a deeper defensive posture, shifting to five across the back line to protect their narrow advantage.
Pittsburgh’s discipline paid off late. In the 83rd minute, another error from DCFC GK Carlos Herrera gifted the Hounds an opportunity, and F Albert Dikwa was quick to pounce, slotting home his second goal of the night to make it 2–0.
Detroit continued to push forward and were rewarded in stoppage time when forward Chisholm Egbuchulam pulled one back in the 90+2 minute, cutting the deficit to 2–1. However, the late surge proved too little, too late, and the match concluded with a hard earned 2–1 victory for the Hounds.
