PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania, CMC – Veteran Reggae Boy Kenardo Forbes netted his first goal of the new United Soccer League campaign as Pittsburgh Riverhounds put on a second-half show to beat Rio Grande Valley 2-0 here Saturday.
The 34-year-old midfielder was joined by fellow countryman Kevon Lambert who also produced his first strike of the season to help Phoenix Rising to a share of the points against Monterey Bay FC in a 1-1 draw in Phoenix.
For Riverhounds, the victory was their first in four outings. It took them fourth in the Eastern Conference on nine points, only a point off third-placed Birmingham Legion and five-adrift leaders Charleston Battery who won 2-1 away to FC Tulsa.
Rising, meanwhile, remained 10th in the Western Conference on six points, with only one win now in five appearances.
At Highmark Stadium in the northeast, Riverhounds came closest to breaking the nil-all deadlock in the first half when Tony Lopez slammed his 17-yard free kick against the far post in the 44th minute.
However, Cameroonian forward Albert Dikwa put the hosts ahead four minutes following the resumption when he scored from close range after latching on to Luke Biasi’s short cross from the left.
And Forbes doubled Pittsburgh’s advantage in 64 minutes, the Jamaican splitting defenders Juan Cabezas and Wahab Ackwei inside the box to nod in Daniel Rovira’s cross, also from close range.
“It’s a step in the future. In previous games, we’ve had a good spell, two good spells in 90 minutes, keeping the ball,” Forbes said afterward.
“We had more spells, more possession tonight. That was the focus coming into the game. The boys did well tonight. It’s a building block.”
At Phoenix Rising Stadium in the southwest, Rising was trailing 1-0 in the 63rd through Alex Dixon’s penalty. Still, the 26-year-old Lambert responded almost immediately for the hosts, out-jumping his markers to head home the equalizer in the 67th minute.
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