ROCHESTER, NY, May 18, 2003 - It is hardly ever mentioned around Rochester-especially this early in the season-but fans were wondering if tonight would be the night that the Rhinos finally won a game at home. After last weekend's road trip to Virginia Beach, a 3-0 loss, and Atlanta, a 2-0 win, fans were still questioning this suddenly insurmountable feat. At 1-1-1, the Rhinos looked more like a team still trying to find their niche in this young season. The Pittsburgh Riverhounds rolled into town, with a record of 2-1-1, looking to extend their lead in the Northeast division and set the tone for the upcoming season. For Pittsburgh, a win in Rochester early in the year would be huge…the Riverhounds hadn't beaten the Rhinos in 4 straight matches.
The Rhinos appeared as if they would stand for none of this, as Rochester midfielder David Hayes narrowly missed putting the home side ahead after 3 minutes. From that point on, until roughly the 20' mark, Pittsburgh gained control of the game and put plenty of pressure on a Rhinos defense that has been marginal to poor thus far. Rochester 'keeper Bill Andracki pushed aside a close range shot from the 'Hounds in the 9' and stopped fiery 'Hounds forward Thiago Martins in the 16'.
When Pittsburgh defender David Wright was cautioned in the 24', momentum swayed back to the Rhinos and the team converted quickly. Veteran Rhinos midfielder Lenin Steenkamp pushed the ball down the left flank of the goal box and sent a crisp cross into the goalmouth to an awaiting Viktor Paco, who converted with a header in the 25', giving the Rhinos a 1-0 lead.
Rochester saw a few more spurts of pressure into the Pittsburgh end before halftime, but aside from an errant Paco shot past the far post, nothing much of note. The 'Hounds countered consistently, but the only action the Pittsburgh forwards caused resulted in a caution (Thiago, 38') and high-strung emotions, most notably displayed via stupid fouls and offensive miscues.
The second half started out with Pittsburgh playing more aggressively, going at Rochester forwards and midfielder with no avail. Rochester forward Doug Miller almost made the 'Hounds pay for their careless play, but his shot was easily scooped up by veteran Riverhounds 'keeper Randy Dedini.
The ensuing play was disastrous for Rochester, as former Rhinos forward Aleksey Koral, now a starter with the 'Hounds, placed a perfect through ball to Thiago near the right center of the Rochester goal box. Thiago nearly ripped the cover off the ball as he equalized for the away side in the 50'. A major defensive lapse, the Rhinos' sudden Achilles' heel, gave Thiago enough space to thread two Rochester defenders and convert.
After the equalizer, the game settled into an aggressive, ugly, and, at times, foul-laden event. This came to a head in the 62', when Pittsburgh's David Wright was given his second caution of the match and ejected for what appeared to be diving. Rochester tried to make the 'Hounds pay dearly for their sudden man advantage, but Steenkamp's header inside the goal box narrowly missed.
Play settled for about 18 minutes or so, as both coaches began playing chess in terms of lineup changes. Rochester began pressing again around the 80', and didn't let up, hoping to avoid another match that involved extra time. The Rhinos' resilience and pressure finally paid off in the 90', when, on a throw-in, Rochester defender Scott Schweitzer threw the ball into the Pittsburgh 6-yard box to a diving Steenkamp who converted his header into the upper-right corner of the net for the last-minute Rhinos' victory.
Goal Summary
Rochester 2 - Pittsburgh 1
Time Goal Scorer & Assist Score
25' Paco, Steenkamp ROC 1 - PIT 0
50' Martins, Koral ROC 1 - PIT 1
90' Steenkamp, Schweitzer ROC 2 - PIT 1
Starting Lineups
Y = Yellow Card
R = Red Card
Rochester Raging Rhinos
Formation: 4-4-2
1 GK - Bill Andracki
2 D - Ryan Dinunzio (Y)
3 D - Craig Demmin (Y)
4 D - Scott Schweitzer (Y)
11 D - Bill Sedgewick (Y)
7 M - Temoc Suarez
10 M - Stoian Mladenov
12 M - David Hayes
23 M - Lenin Steenkamp
9 F - Viktor Paco
19 F - Doug Miller
Pittsburgh Riverhounds
Formation: 4-3-3
0 GK - Randy Dedini
2 D - Aaron Thomas
3 D - Eric Ongao
5 D - Ricardo Irribarren (Y)
15 D - David Wright (R)
4 M - Gary DePalma
7 M - Justin Evans
11 M - Ricardo Villar (Y)
9 F - Thiago Martins (Y)
21 F - Aleksey Koral
23 F - Corey Woolfolk
How They Fared
Here's how the Rhinos fared against Pittsburgh:
8 = Highest, 0 = Lowest
J-P's
Player Rating Comments
1 GK - Bill Andracki 6.0 Played OK between the pipes, turned away more than he let
in.
2 D - Ryan Dinunzio 5.0 The jury's still out on this player...sometimes great,
sometimes not.
3 D - Craig Demmin 5.0 Looks slow and, at times, confused.
4 D - Scott Schweitzer 5.0 Assisted on game winner. Defensive lapses a problem.
11 D - Bill Sedgewick 6.0 Hustled to cover for some of the defense's mistakes.
Plays a little too rough at times.
7 M - Temoc Suarez 7.0 Good ball distribution and smart build-ups.
10 M - Stoian Mladenov 6.5 Looked a little off tonight. Could still be slightly
injured.
12 M - David Hayes 7.0 Smart player. Creates chances that others aren't
finishing.
23 M - Lenin Steenkamp 8.0 Played extremely well tonight, appears more natural in
normal midfielder position vs. defensive midfielder.
8 F - Viktor Paco 8.0 Played well and had nice touches. Scored first goal.
19 F - Doug Miller 6.0 Seemed rather vapid at times and not much part of the
action.
Coaches 6.0 More pressure should have been encouraged and enforced
when Rochester got the man advantage.
Statistics
SHOTS:
ROC: 12
PIT: 9
SAVES:
ROC: 3
PIT: 5
FOULS:
ROC: 19
PIT: 19
CAUTIONS/EJECTIONS:
ROC: 4/0
PIT: 4/1
ATTENDANCE: 9,063
