The conditions were perfect Saturday along the banks of the Monongahela River as the Pittsburgh Riverhounds hosted USL Championship Eastern Conference foe Miami FC.
Both teams came in holding down spots among the top eight in the East, with Miami three points ahead of Pittsburgh but the ‘Hounds holding two games in hand.
The Riverhounds used an early second-half goal to spark a 2-0 win in front of a sellout crowd of 6,053 at F.N.B. Stadium, the third-largest regular-season crowd in stadium history.
Pittsburgh (5-1-4, 16 points) got a few chances early, starting in the fifth minute when Sam Bassett sent a long cross from the far wing that Miami keeper Felipe Rodriguez misread. It flew by him and inside the 6-yard box, just skipping past striker Albert Dikwa.
Miami drew a yellow card in the ninth minute, allowing the Riverhounds an enticing set piece just outside the box. Eliot Goldthorp, making his return to play after a knee injury, drew the free kick and just missed over the crossbar.
The teams spent the next 10 minutes going back and forth in the middle of the field to establish an advantage. Then, in the 22nd minute, Robbie Mertz sent a ball toward Sam Bassett, who found space but sent his shot too close to Rodriguez, who snapped it up to make the save.
Both teams continued to get chances in the last 20 minutes but could not score. Miami held a small advantage in possession, but the Riverhounds held a 6-3 advantage in shots, with each team registering one on goal each.
Things quickly changed early in the second half. Midfielder Charles Ahl took a long ball on the far side of the field, moved past a defender and sent a cross to the opposite side of the box that found Perrin Barnes. He then chipped a ball into the 6-yard box, finding the head of Dikwa, who sent the ball to the back of the net and a 1-0 lead.
The goal was his sixth of the season.
“You know me. I’m the fox in the box,” Dikwa said with a smirk. “That’s where I operate. That’s my house. That’s my space. He (Perrin) had a chance to do that in the first half. I told him to put the ball in that position and all I have to ball is connect.”
Over the next 25 minutes, Pittsburgh dominated the attack time and continued to pepper Miami’s net. The hard work paid off in the 73rd minute as Goldthorp sent a cross to Dikwa at the top of the penalty spot. Dikwa was marked and quickly sent a back-heel pass to Ahl, who charged unmarked and buried a shot to the far post to increase the Hounds lead to 2-0.
“I was screaming at him, (Dikwa) I always do.” Ahl said. “He likes to score goals. He’s pretty good at it. I have to give credit to him and Eliot (Goldthorp) on the counter. He set it up well for me, and I had to score.”
The second-half numbers told the story: Pittsburgh registered 11 shots, five on goal, while holding Miami to just one.
“We’re trying not to get carried away. Things can change so quickly.” coach Rob Vincent said. “The last home game … we were really beat up. We have to be realistic. We have a stretch of games coming up. We have Charleston next. We have to build. Over these next 10 games, teams are going to challenge for that top-four spot.”
The win creates a four-way logjam for fourth place in the conference as Charleston, Louisville and Miami FC also have 16 points.
The Riverhounds hit the road next week for a USL Cup match at Charleston. Saturday’s game against the Battery will kick off just after 7 p.m. and will be seen on SportsNet Pittsburgh.