Riverhounds top league in number of clean sheets

Whenthe Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC defeated Birmingham Legion, 1-0, last weekend, it was their fourth clean sheet in just nine league games this season, tied for the fourth mosti n USL Championship.

Perhaps more notably, though, the Riverhounds did so with three rookies starting on their back line. Luke Biasi and Nathan Dossantos started at right and left fullback, respectively, while rookie Arturo Ordóñez played center back with 31-year-old veteran Mekeil Williams.

Clearly, the four combined to help thwart any attacks from Birmingham in the match. Dossantos also chipped in on the other end of the pitch, recording his third assist of the season on the

Riverhounds’lone goal.

Manager Bob Lilley has rotated through a myriad of capable defenders throughout the young season, including the rookies. The ability to play three at the same time, however, speaks to the trust Lilley has in his younger players, who have already grown within his system.

“We’ve got some good ones, just being here. They’re growing fast,” Lilley said. “... In preseason, we’re pretty demanding. Everyone’s going to defend. Outside backs need to know when to protect their corner and when they’re bumping on the press, what they need to be doing on the weak side. We’re pretty specific with our center backs, when they’re stepping, when they’re dropping, but we’re generally pretty good at working as a unit defensively, and that helps our defenders that there’s a shape in front of them, and they’re not plugging big holes in the ship every game.”

Granted, defensive strength is nothing new under Lilley. In his first season with the club in 2018, the Riverhounds strung together four consecutive clean sheets, the first time they had done that since 2013. Already this season, their eight goals against are tied for the sixthfewest allowed in USL Championship.

To simply compliment the team keeping up their defensive pace with rookies playing key roles might be underselling the group as a whole. Mekeil Williams, Jesse Williams, Shane Wiedt and Jelani Peters each have experience with the team. Plus, Ordóñez and Dossantos were both second-round picks in this year’s MLS SuperDraft, taken by Houston Dynamo and Orlando City, respectively. Though both went unsigned out of camp by the teams that drafted them, they were skilled enough to be selected.

Both have Pittsburgh ties, as well. Ordóñez played in college at Pitt, while Dossantos began at Duquesne before transferring to Marshall, where he won the 2020 NCAA tournament and was selected tothe all-tournament team.

“I think we have a really great group,” Dossantos said. “We’ve got, obviously, a bunch of older, more experienced guys like Mikeil and Jelani and Shane. And then you’ve got younger guys. ... We rotate a lot, and we change up guys in practice. I think it’s a testament to [Lilley] making sure that we’re all working together and have a good unit, and it’s not just the four or five guys that are out there.”

Dossantos received further honors himself this week. The combination of the clean sheet and the assist were enough to earn him a spot on the USL Championship team of the week. He became the first of the Riverhounds’ eight rookies to earn a spot on the team of the week this season.

He understands that his personal achievement stems from team success, though. Take his assist for example. Dos santos maintained width down the left side and fired a low cross into the box, which found the feet of Danny Griffin, who made a quick turn and put the ball into the net. Even beyond Griffin’s effort, though, attacker Albert

Dikwa had made a good run in behind as well, drawing defenders away from Griffin. Russell Cicerone had done the same earlier in the move, bringing a defender away from Dossantos.

Basically, the shape and movement of the team contributed to the goal itself, just like the group as a whole contributes to the defensive efforts that have at times defined the Riverhounds’ early success this season.

“We travel together and try to squeeze space collectively,” Lilley said. “We work on it a lot. We show them video, we go over things in practice, we do things specifically to how we’re defending our exercises. ... [The rookies] have come in and competed well, and when they’ve gotten their chances, they’ve done well with them.”