Louisville City jumps to third in Eastern Conference following 1-0 win over Pittsburgh.
Louisville City FC pipped the Pittsburgh Riverhounds in the Eastern Conference standings with a 1-0 road win on Saturday night.

City returned to Highmark Stadium after a midweek clash with Tartan Devils Oak Avalon in the 2nd round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. Their 9-0 win was a franchise-best in goals scored in a single game.

City continued their offensive momentum and took the lead in the 8th minute. Brian Ownby bolted past his marker on the right flank and played a low cross to Spencer, who tapped home for his second goal of the season.

City should have made it 2-0 in the 40th minute, but a tremendous play by Connor Maloney kept Pittsburgh’s deficit at one. Ownby, the central figure in Louisville’s attack, beat his man and set up a 3v2 situation for the boys in purple. He cut in and centered it to George Davis IV. Davis fired, but Maloney threw himself in front of the shot and knocked the ball out for a corner.

Pittsburgh’s strategy is staying organized and grinding out results. They had a slight advantage in possession in the first half, but failed to convert them into quality chances. Three of their four first-half shots were from outside the box, and hardly troubled City goalkeeper Tim Dobrowolski.

The Riverhounds made better use of their chances in the second half. The first came in the 50th minute when Kevin Kerr almost equalized with his effort. Corey Hertzog worked on the right flank to beat his man and ran deep into the box. He found Kerr unmarked and played to him. Kerr’s low shot beat Dobrowolski but hit the bar and City cleared away.

Hertzog had Pittsburgh’s best chance of the night in the 71st minute. A long ball was played forward with Hertzog and two City defenders chasing. Both City defenders overran the ball and Hertzog had plenty of time to line up his volley but fired wide right.

Pittsburgh was given a breath of life in the 87th minute when City captain Paolo DelPiccolo was sent off. DelPiccolo and Romeo Parkes were jostling for the ball. DelPiccolo unnecessarily slid at Parkes after he was dispossessed and was shown a straight red.

Pittsburgh looked the better team in the second half as they were in pursuit of the equalizer. But Dobrowolski put in a Man of the Match performance to hold on and secure the clean sheet.

Louisville City’s next outing comes against rival FC Cincinnati in the 3rd round of the U.S. Open Cup on May 30. Their next league match will wrap up a month-long road trip against Eastern Conference leaders Charleston Battery on June 3.