Pittsburgh Riverhounds MatchDay: Hounds Take On Sacramento To End Road Trip
By Larry Snyder
The Pittsburgh Riverhounds will go for their third win in a row tonight as they close out the month of July on the road when take the pitch in California to do battle with Sacramento Republic FC.
It is the first and only contest between the two squads this season. The match, which is expected to be a sell out, is set to get underway at 10 p.m. ET at Bonney Field.
Members of the Steel Army will be able to cheer for the Hounds as the action will be streamed live on the USL Pro’s YouTube channel.
The Hounds (5-10-5, 20 points), four points behind the eighth-place Orange County Blues FC, are still in the hunt for the final USL Pro playoff spot with seven matches left this season. They claimed their fourth victory in their last five matches when they downed the Real Salt Lake Reserves 5-2 on Friday at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah.
Jose Angulo scored goals on penalty kicks at the sixth, 38th, and 45th minute of play in the first-half to give him eight on the season. The 5-foot-11 forward is tied for fifth in goals in the league with George Davis of the Richmond Kickers. Angulo, who has put up 23 goals in two seasons with the Hounds, is tied with Phil Karn for third on the team’s career goal-scoring list.
More from Pittsburgh Riverhounds
- Riverhounds Advance in USL Playoffs with Commanding Win
- Riverhounds: Romeo Parkes Released
- Riverhounds Add Former MLS Forwards Hertzog and Boggs
- Riverhounds: Three possible loans from Crew SC
- Riverhounds sign affiliation agreement with Columbus Crew
Midfielder Rob Vincent and forward Jason Johnson, who is on loan from the Houston Dynamo of MLS, added goals to the scoreboard in the second-half. Goalkeeper Michael Lisch, also on loan from the Dynamo, had three saves in picking up his third win this season.
Joseph Ngwenya leads Pittsburgh with five assists while Daniel Earls has contributed four helpers in 2014. The two midfielders have accounted for nine of the team’s 16 assists on the season.
Fourth-place Republic FC (10-6-3, 33 points) will be led by midfielder Rodrigo Lopez, whose 16 points and six assists in USL Pro competition leads the club. Lopez, who has put up 38 shots, is tied with forward Thomas Stewart for the team lead in goals with five apiece.
Sacramento goalkeeper Jake Gleeson has allowed just three goals in his last five appearances, including three shutouts.
The Hounds return to Highmark Stadium on Saturday, Aug 2 for a 7 p.m. match against the third-place LA Galaxy II (11-5-4, 37 points). The team known also as “Los Dos” in Southern California is owned and operated by the LA Galaxy of Major League Soccer.