Pittsburgh Riverhounds coach Bob Lilley used Tuesday’s U.S. Open Cup match as an opportunity to get a look at some of the players who have been reserves in the early part of the season.

He was pleased with their efforts, and it took a while, but they finally broke through.

Edward Kizza scored in the 81st minute and Burke Fahling added a goal in stoppage time, giving the Hounds a 2-0 win over the Maryland Bobcats in the third round of the U.S Open Cup at Highmark Stadium.

It was the same final score as last year’s meeting with the Bobcats, who play in the third division National Independent Soccer Association. Last year’s Cup meeting was in the second round.

Outside of Luke Biasi, Robbie Mertz and Tony Lopez, the rest of the lineup was made up of reserves. They pushed for a goal for the majority of the first half and most of the second. Kizza came on as a substitute in the 69th minute before getting the game-winner.

“It was good to get these guys minutes and see them execute a game plan,” Lilley said. “Some of them have come on as substitutes and made contributions, but some of the guys that played tonight didn’t have a lot of minutes logged. Not only did they get minutes, they got starters’ minutes and in some cases, 90 minutes. They had a responsibility that’s different from coming in for 10 minutes and mopping up.

“It was good for them. It’s a test they should pass and they know that. We know more about some of our players than we would have if we didn’t play.”

Kizza’s last three goals have come in elimination games, including a pair in last year’s first-round playoff win at Birmingham. Another commonality with his goals is that they’ve come after he’s entered the game as a substitute.

Kizza credited Tola Showunmi with setting him up for what turned out to be a tap-in goal.

“The biggest thing (as a substitute) is asking how you can influence the game,” Kizza said. “The guys who have been playing have already been giving all they can, so it’s about what you can do to help the team get a result and tonight, it doesn’t matter who the opponent is, you just want to make a difference.”

The second goal started with a local debut. Kiski Area senior and Hounds Academy alum Anders Bordoy made his pro debut, entering in the 89th minute, and made an immediate impact.

Bordoy fired a pure shot from the left side to the right post and the rebound fell on the foot of Fahling, who put it in to secure the result for the Hounds in stoppage time.

It was a moment Bordoy will cherish forever.

“I just walked out there, and it felt surreal,” Bordoy said about entering his first professional game. “To make an impact too for a goal was special. It was one of the best feelings I’ve felt in my life. Hopefully there’s more of those to come.”

It was a quick debut for the youngster, but Lilley was impressed with how Bordoy handled himself.

“For Anders to come on and recognize the space … there was no hesitation there,” Lilley said. “He’s got a gifted left peg and that ball was true. There wasn’t any spin on it. I don’t know if it was going in or was going to hit the post, but you can’t tag a ball much better. Anyone in our league would be happy with that quality of a strike.”

The Hounds advanced to the fourth round of the U.S. Open Cup for the first time since 2019. They’ll learn their next opponent during Thursday’s draw. The desired outcome for the Hounds is to get an MLS opponent at home for the first time since they hosted DC United in 2015.

“We want to give the fans an opportunity to see our guys against an MLS team and test ourselves in that situation,” Lilley said. “We had an exceptional first half last year in Cincinnati. We had more of the ball, and I felt we could’ve went into halftime with a lead. In the second half they added some guys and so did we. The game tilted in their favor, and we hung on to get to overtime, but didn’t get the win.

“We also lost a tough 1-0 game to Columbus in 2018, so we’re generally competitive against MLS opponents. We hope we can get one here, get the crowd into it and make a special memory.”

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