Riverhounds® Drop Home Opener

Courtesy of the Pittsburgh Riverhounds

03.May.2003
PITTSBURGH - The Pittsburgh Riverhounds (1-1-1, 4 points) fell to the Toronto Lynx (1-0-0, 3 points), 2-0, to record their first loss of the season in the home opener at Bethel Park Stadium in front of 1,567 fans.

The Toronto Lynx opened the scoring in the 16th minute when forward Sebastian Barclay drove a shot past goalkeeper Randy Dedini, for the game-winning goal. Forward Ali Ngon, a former player for the Hounds, assisted Barclay on the play.

Toronto's second goal came in stoppage time at the end of the game when midfielder Elvis Thomas slipped a quick shot past the hands of Dedini.

The Hounds had several good scoring chances, as they controlled the ball offensively for most of the second half. In the 55th minute, veteran midfielder Gary DePalma's shot went just wide of the goal. At the 63rd minute mark, midfielder Justin Evans' shot fell short of the goal. Midfielder Ricardo Villar and defender Ricardo Iribarren both attempted shots to tie the score in the 76th and 90th minutes, respectively, but were unsuccessful.

The HOUNDS® out shot the Lynx, five to one in the second half, and had seven total shots to Toronto's five. Dedini had two saves and Toronto's goalkeeper Theo Zagar had six saves.

The RIVERHOUNDS® travel to Richmond to face the Kickers May 10 at 7 p.m. at the University of Richmond Stadium. The game against the Kickers will serve as the first of two qualifying games for the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. The Hounds return home to Bethel Park Stadium for the Second Annual School Day Game May 14 for a match against the West Virginia Chaos at 11 a.m. For more information about tickets or official RIVERHOUNDS® merchandise, call 412-381-GOAL (4625) or visit www.riverhounds.com.