By Daniel Feuerstein | Pittsburgh, PA | March 25th, 2026
The Pittsburgh Riverhounds of the USL Championship hosted their first-round U.S. Open Cup match against Steel City FC of USL League 2 after the original date was postponed due to severe weather on St. Patrick’s Day. Originally scheduled to be played at Rooney Field at Duquesne University, the postponement meant the match had to be moved to Highmark Stadium along the Monongahela River. After playing the full 90 minutes, the Riverhounds came out on top as they defeated Steel City FC by a final score of two goals to one in the Pittsburgh City derby.
Game Recap
It was an early goal for the Riverhounds as they earned a corner along the far side. As the ball was delivered, it was blocked by the Steel City defense. While the visitors weren’t able to get control of the ball, there was a moment as the Hounds shoved a Steel City defender down, and they were waiting for the referee to blow his whistle to stop play. That whistle never happened, and the Hounds took advantage when veteran Strike Danny Griffin got to the loose ball and scored in the 5th minute.
It remained a one-goal lead until the halftime whistle, but when the match restarted, the Riverhounds scored a second goal. As the play was forming toward the far side of the pitch, a quick pass toward Charles Ahl was given to him at the top of the Steel City area. He unleashed a big shot that struck the top shelf of the net, and the Riverhounds had their two-goal lead in the 66th minute. Steel City did pull one back when a penalty was awarded to them with a grab of one of their players inside the Riverhounds area. Nick Graeca converted the penalty and pulled one back in the 76th minute.
But it ended within the final minutes of regulation when William Afawabu, who was booked in the 70th minute, committed another yellow card offense in the 86th minute with a reckless challenge, and then the red card came out. Afawabu got his marching orders and went back to the locker room as Steel City FC finished the match with ten men. With seven minutes of second-half stoppage time added, the Riverhounds were able to put the clamp down and earned the victory after the final whistle blew. They will return to Highmark Stadium for their second-round matchup against Virginia Dream FC of the UPSL on Tuesday, March 31st.
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