At 6-foot-5 and 220 pounds, Pittsburgh Riverhounds goalkeeper Eric Dick is the cornerstone of a defense that has been the backbone of a USL Eastern Conference title run and berth in Saturday’s league final against Western Conference king FC Tulsa.

Dick, a Kansas native, came to Pittsburgh in 2024 after six years in MLS with Sporting Kansas City, which drafted him, Columbus Crew and then Minnesota United. In his first season with the Hounds, Dick set a single-season record with 14 clean sheets in USL league play. On Saturday, he matched that mark in the club’s 1-0 win over Rhode Island FC, his third shutout against them this season. It’s also the best mark in the league.

Including his 1-0 shutout of NYCFC in the US Open Cup round of 32 on May 7 at Highmark Stadium, Dick tied the club record of 29 career clean sheets that Randy Dedini held since 2003. His goals-against average also moved to a season best 0.80. His five-save performance Saturday gave him 74 on the year, putting him fourth in the league in that department.

Not one to take credit when it’s due, Dick was humble and complimentary to his teammates after Tuesday’s practice at their facility in Montour.

“I feel great,” the lanky netminder said. “We get another week here. I couldn’t be happier. We’ve just got to focus up. We’ve got one game. When you have defenders, whether it’s the back line or midfielders who are giving effort, forcing players into angles that make my job a bit easier, it does make things simpler. It always starts with the line of defense in front of me. They cut out more chances that get to me. I rely on my fundamentals, talking to them during play. They make my job a lot easier.”

The storyline for Saturday is straightforward. The host Scissortails come in with not only a plus-20 goal differential after 33 league games but are also stingy at home as the club is riding a record 603-minute home shutout streak at ONEOK Field. Their last goal allowed at home came Sept. 6 in a 1-1 draw vs. Birmingham Legion FC.

Not to be outdone, the Riverhounds have also been quite miserly as of late. They carry a 519-minute scoreless streak into the championship game as well.

Dick acknowledged the task at hand Saturday.

“It’s our defenders who are putting in the effort,” he said. “One hundred twenty minutes in the first two playoff games — everybody is doing their jobs. The little details of defending — making sure our clearances are clean, our positioning is good, even when we don’t have the ball, we are prepared for a counter — all the little simple things of defending. If we can continue to do that, we will always be in the game.”

Rob Vincent’s role in this has been downplayed a bit, given the historic run the club has been on under his watch while manager Bob Lilley is still on “administrative leave.” He spoke about Dick’s contributions to the spot the Riverhounds sit in today.

“Over the course of the season, he’s come up big on a lot of occasions,” Vincent said. “When you narrow it down to postseason play, which is the most important time of year, he’s come up big. It’s massive we haven’t conceded a goal. The adage that defense wins championships, were hoping that can stay true. His ability to relieve pressure at times, we need him one more time.”

The task Saturday will be a tall one. FC Tulsa has not lost at home since a 2-1 setback April 12 to the Oakland Roots. Since that defeat, the Scissortails have ridden a 14-game undefeated streak on their own pitch. When they score first, they are 17-0-3 this year. They feature striker Taylor Calheira, who tallied a pair of goals in the 3-0 Western Conference final win over New Mexico United. Calheira is tied for second in the league with 17 goals.

“They are the top team in the west for a reason,” Dick said. “They were one of the few teams we didn’t play from the west this season. We will scout. We will do what we normally do. We will scout and practice hard. Focus on the details that give us the best chance to win. They are a very good team and here for a reason, as are we. We will be challenged in a different way, embrace those and have a good game plan going in.”

Forward Augi Williams, who leads the Riverhounds in goals this season with nine, praised his keeper’s play.

“He’s been big for us the whole year,” Williams said. “It’s a testimony to what he’s done all season so far. You talk about all the clean sheets. He’s been very big for us. He saved us in the quarter and semifinals. We want to keep encouraging him. He’s one of the veterans on our team. We hope he has an amazing game. There’s nothing but positive words that can be said about him. The way we can reward him is by raising that trophy on Saturday.”

Saturday’s game will kick off just after noon and will be televised on KDKA.

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