USL Championship, Riverhounds SC release full schedule for 2022

Start by marking your calendars for 2022 and making your plans for Pittsburgh football fans. The USL Championship and the Pittsburgh Riverhounds released the full schedule for the upcoming season on Thursday. You can find the full schedule here.

Highlights of the 2022 schedule include four road trips to opponents of the Western Conference – the first time the Hounds have reached the Mountain or Pacific time zones since 2014 – huge summer home games against Indy Eleven, Miami FC and Eastern Conference champions Tampa Bay Rowdies and a late season visit from defending champions Orange County SC.

Once again, all USL Championship games will be streamed on ESPN +, with the exception of those broadcast live on ESPN or ESPN2

The Hounds begin their 34-game league schedule on the streets for the fifth straight year as they face Memphis 901 FC on March 12, part of the league’s opening weekend. It is the earliest season start date in team history as the USL Championship’s schedule was set for the end of the season before the 2022 FIFA World Cup began in November. In addition to the regular season schedule, the club will also take part in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup for the first time since 2019. Enter the tournament in the second round at the beginning of April (April 5-7, TBA). The club will release its preseason shortly. Pittsburgh Soccer Now has confirmed that the Hounds will face the University of Pittsburgh in a game that will most likely take place in late February.

The home opener with Hartford pairs the Hounds with an opponent they have been familiar with since the Connecticut club joined the USL in 2019. The Hounds are 6-1-2 in nine matches over the last three seasons, but their only loss in the streak, a 1-0 game towards the end of the 2020 season, allowed Hartford to wrestle the division title from Pittsburgh. The teams last met at the close of the 2021 season, playing a 0-0 tie at Highmark Stadium on October 30, which was an outlier in the all-time series, with the Hounds scoring at least three goals in six of the nine encounters have.https: //pittsburghsoccernow.com/2022/01/06/hounds-to-open-2022- Season-at-Memphis-Home-opener-to-follow-vs-hartford-on-march-19 / The team starts at the beginning of February with the preseason. The Hounds are returning 10 players from last year’s team and have time-leading goalscorer, Dane Kelly, in the roster. Pittsburgh qualified for the playoffs with a 17-8-7 record in their fourth season under head coach Bob Lilley but had to give up their first round match in Birmingham due to positive COVID-19 results within the club.

Schedule of the USL Championship 2022

all dates Saturday, unless otherwise stated; all home games at Highmark Stadium

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John Krysinsky has been reporting on football and other sports for various publications and media for many years. He is also the author of “Miracle on the Mon” – a book about the Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC that chronicles the club, particularly the early years of Highmark Stadium and the narrative that led to and centered around a remarkable game, the helped set a spark for the franchise. John has reported sports for Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, DK Pittsburgh Sports, Pittsburgh Sports Report, was a color commentator on Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC broadcasts, and worked with OPTA Stats and broadcast teams for US Open Cup and International Champions Cup matches in the United States. Krysinsky also served as Head Men’s Soccer Coach at his alma mater, Point Park University, where he led the Pioneers to the very first winning seasons and playoff couches (1996-98); Head Coach of the North Catholic Boys (2007-08), Deputy Head Coach of the Boys of the Shady Side Academy (2009-2014).