For the second consecutive week, the Pittsburgh Riverhounds found themselves on the road. Coming off a week one draw at North Carolina FC, the Pittsburgh Riverhounds headed to the Alamo city to take on San Antonio FC.
From the start of the match, the Hounds might have thought they were in Chicago, the windy city, with gusts between 20-30 mph. With that wind in their faces, the Hounds settled in with crisp, precise passing. After spending the first 20 minutes of the match feeling each other out, a foul just outside the box set the Hounds up with a free kick, but the SAFC wall did their job, as the ball was struck low and hard, causing it to ricochet 30 yards backwards. SAFC had the next opportunity in the 27th minute, but thanks to the Hounds 2024 Golden Glove winning goalie, Eric Dick, the shot was punched out for a corner. At the 32nd minute SAFC was guilty of a hand ball, setting up Hounds MF Robbie Mertz, with a free kick that unfortunately sailed over the SAFC net. Chippiness and scrappy play was the theme of the remainder of first half, as it ended scoreless. The first half stats were lopsided in favor of SAFC, highlighted by a possession rate of 61.4%.
As the second half kicked off, it was clear that the Hounds were intent on trying to lockdown SAFC and force them to chase the ball sideline to sideline. It held until a hesitation by Hounds GK, Eric Dick, allowed SAFC to break the tie on a Jorge Hernandez goal in the 54th minute. SAFC continued to pressure the Hounds, who held fast and manufactured two scoring opportunities before the 70th minute. HC Bob Lilley brought on four substitutions for the final quarter of the match to push for the equalizer. Unfortunately for the Hounds, the play was disjointed and chaotic at times, resulting in no real chances on goal. The Hounds defense fell apart in the 88th minute, as their youth showed and allowed SAFC Luke Haakenson to double their lead 2-0. Even with a generous 7 minutes of stoppage time, the Hounds were unable to mount any kind of meaningful attack. The final stats were much closer, but the stat that matters, the scoreboard, had the Hounds on the losing side. HC Bob Lilley has some work to do ahead of the Hounds home opener against Birmingham Legion FC next Saturday- mainly, finding some scoring.
