The Pittsburgh Riverhounds have had very little to get excited about since the 2025 USL Championship season began in early March. The team has won just twice, registering its most recent victory March 29.
However, when it comes to the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, the Riverhounds have shown a penchant for dramatics. Most recently, a last-second stoppage-time header by Beto Ydrach on May 7 at Highmark Stadium sent the Hounds past New York City FC of MLS, 1-0, and into the Round of 16 for the second time in three seasons.
The Riverhounds are the last non-MLS club remaining in the 110-year-old tournament. In a season that has featured a lot of disappointment, a Cup win Wednesday at Philadelphia (7:30 p.m. kickoff) would go a long way to taking some of the sting from what has been a sluggish start, coach Bob Lilley said.
“We just lost to Colorado last weekend and only have one point in our previous five games, so we haven’t been as deep with the injuries we’ve faced,” Lilley said. “We are finally at a good point with having all our people. We are the last team left from the Championship. We are going to put our best foot forward.”
Part of the Riverhounds’ struggles has been a lack of scoring. The team has just one goal in its previous five USL matches. Free-agent signing Augie Williams has scored only one goal in nine games, and it isn’t because of injury, Lilley said.
“Inconsistent play from him,” he said. “Three times he was on the keeper in Louisville but didn’t convert. I think that was his best game. He played 45 vs. Colorado, and we are trying to get him on track. We need more from Danny Griffin and the other attacking players. The lack of scoring is a team problem.”
Playing the role of spoiler has been a good one for the Riverhounds in recent Open Cup play. Their MLS wins in 2023 included a road triumph in New England, then the Round of 16 home win vs. Columbus. Lilley would like to repeat that performance knowing the chase for the Cup will take a summer break before tournament play resumes in the fall.
“I don’t necessarily want that weight of being the last one standing among the lower-division teams,” Lilley said. “We don’t want to go on the road and have a poor performance.”
As far as the Pittsburgh-Philadelphia “rivalry,” which might seem natural given Steelers vs. Eagles or Penguins vs. Flyers, Union coach Bradley Carnell said the Open Cup meeting would be a good start.
“In order for something to become a rivalry, there needs to be some history, and I think this is the first step towards creating a result,” he said. “I think it’s premature to talk about rivalries. But two Pennsylvania teams coming against each other, yeah, I think there’s a little bit of pride at stake.”
Carnell was also quick to quash the idea that his club would take the USL Riverhounds in a not-so-serious manner.
“We want to continue our journey. It’s a massive game for them (Pittsburgh). They are the furthest non-MLS team to get to this point,” Carnell said. “By no means are we going to let the guard down. This is a serious game, and we will treat it as such. In some sense you can always play free as the underdog.”
Wednesday night’s game will be televised on Paramount . The Riverhounds resume USL play Saturday when they visit Rhode Island for a 4 p.m. kickoff on KDKA .