PITTSBURGH – It’s a pretty simple understanding the Pittsburgh Riverhounds’ duo of Corey Hertzog and Kevin Kerr have developed during their time with the club.

“Whenever Kevin gets the ball, I just try to be somewhere he can put it,” Hertzog said. “I mean, he put it on top of my head twice in a row. Me and Kevin, I think, are very dangerous together.”

On Saturday night, with the Hounds holding a man advantage against their Keystone Derby Cup rivals the Harrisburg City Islanders, it again came through to earn a 1-0 victory against Highmark Stadium for the club’s second win overall of the season.

The Riverhounds duo had almost combined 10 minutes before the halftime break, Kerr’s slipped through-ball putting Hertzog in on the right side of the penalty area. On that occasion, City Islanders goalkeeper Brandon Miller was equal to the task, turning the shot aside for a corner. With 15 minutes to go, however, there was little chance for the former USL Goalkeeper of the Year to deny Hertzog’s flicked header into the right corner of the net from Kerr’s cross.

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The goal almost certainly provided a sigh of relief for the hosts, too. After Harrisburg’s Abass Mohamed had been sent off for his second yellow card seven minutes into the second half, it was the City Islanders who actually threatened more to take the lead. James Thomas had a big chance saved by Riverhounds goalkeeper Trey Mitchell in the 64th minute, while Tiago Calvano also had an effort on frame off the ensuing corner kick.

After holding the upper hand for most of the first half, the Riverhounds found it heavy sledding until Hertzog’s goal – on the first shot the Riverhounds had recorded since the sending off – lifted the weight from their shoulders.

“I feel like that’s a tough half to play because I did think we dominated in the first half,” said Riverhounds Head Coach Dave Brandt. “I think that was obvious. Our guys know it. You go into the locker room at halftime and it was difficult to shove aside the feeling of ‘hey, this is going well, we’re doing well, just keep it up.’”

After numerous frustrations so far this season, the Hounds now have a chance for their first back-to-back victories since the 2015 season when Toronto FC II visits for the USL Game of the Week on ESPN3 on Wednesday night.

“Our performance hasn’t been bad, we just haven’t been able to win,” said Kerr. “Winning is a skill, itself. We had hard luck a bit, but we got three points tonight.”