Pittsburgh Riverhounds MatchDay: Hounds Travel To Tangle With Hammerheads
By Larry Snyder
Riverhounds midfielder Danny Earls controls the ball against Wilmington on April 12. Pittsburgh seeks to avenge that night’s 4-3 loss on Friday. (Photo: Riverhounds.com)
After the firing of head coach Justin Evans this week, the Pittsburgh Riverhounds (0-4-3, 3 points) will seek their first victory of the season on the road as they take the pitch for a rematch with the Wilmington Hammerheads on Friday night at Legion Stadium in North Carolina.
The first contest for interim coach Nikola Katic is set to kick off at 7:30 p.m. and it will be streamed live on the USL Pro’s YouTube channel.
Wilmington (3-1-2, 11 points) won the first meeting at Highmark Stadium 4-3 back on April 12 on a pair of goals from forward Sammy Ochoa. They were Ochoa’s first and only goals of the season. Jose Angulo, Collins John, and Kevin Kerr tallied for the Hounds.
Hammerheads head coach David Irving will have to start backup goalkeeper Matt Glaeser in tonight’s match as Quillan Roberts is serving a one-game suspension for receiving a red card last weekend against the Charleston Battery. There was no word as of Friday morning if the Hammerheads had signed an emergency goalkeeper for this evening. Wilmington is 1-1-2 at home and 2-0-0 on the road in 2014.
In April’s game, the Hounds led in shots 10-7 over the Hammerheads, and the corner kicks were even at five apiece. However, Pittsburgh committed 15 fouls to Wilmington’s nine, so it would be wise to avoid repeating that many free picks tonight.
Pittsburgh will be without defender Anthony Arena, who earned honorable mention for USL Pro Team of the Week honors for Week 9, as he was recalled to the Houston Dynamo late Wednesday night. The Hounds also said on Twitter that forward Jason Johnson had been recalled, too. Houston midfielder Brian Ownby returned to the Hounds and will be available for this evening. Ownby had one goal on two shots in three games prior to his recall back to the Dynamo.
With back to back matches this weekend, it will be interesting to see if Katic uses goalkeeper Michael Lisch for both games or split them with Hunter Gilstrap who is ready to return to action after an injury in Week 1 against Orlando. Lisch, who is on loan from the Houston Dynamo, has allowed four goals and put up 13 saves in the last four games for Pittsburgh.
Following tonight’s match, the Hounds will load up the bus and hit the road to Blackbaud Stadium in South Carolina for a Saturday, May 24 rematch with the Charleston Battery. Kickoff is set 7:30 p.m.
Riverhounds Reinforcements: Pittsburgh will host RWB Adria of the USASA at Highmark Stadium this week on Wednesday, May 28 in the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. If the Riverhounds win, they will take on the Chicago Fire of MLS in the fourth-round at Toyota Park on Wednesday, June 18 at 7:30 p.m. CT.
Last week, the Riverhounds signed Miroslav Čabrilo to the 2014 squad. Čabrilo brings depth to the roster as a forward or attacking midfielder. The signing of the Hamilton, Ontario native came just before the FIFA Transfer Window closed on Monday, May 12.
Čabrilo played his collegiate soccer at Robert Morris University, and has competed in first team friendlies between the Hounds and the Colonials over the last four years. He also participated in the USL’s Premier Development League for Heartland FC in Toronto, now known as KW United.