The Pittsburgh Riverhounds announced their 2015 schedule this week, and it will kick off with a bang as they host their long-time rivals, the Harrisburg City Islanders.
The Riverhounds and Islanders will have a four-legged Keystone Derby this season, with the season opener in Pittsburgh on 
March 28 followed by a second match at Highmark Stadium on May 30. The Riverhounds will then travel to Harrisburg on July 25 and again for the final game of the season on September 19.
The Riverhounds will not play a team in the Western Conference. Instead, their 28 matches will be divided amongst the other 11 teams in the Eastern Conference. In addition to the four games against Harrisburg, they will play Rochester, Louisville, Toronto and Charlotte three times and each other opponent twice.
With a slate full of newcomers to the USL Pro this season, familiar opponents will be few and far between for the Riverhounds. Their second game, on April 4 will be against the Rochester Rhinos, but will be followed by four consecutive games against teams in their first season.
The new eastern teams have allowed the team to travel considerably less that they did in 2014. The longest road trip of the season will be about 650 miles to Charleston, South Carolina, compared to several trips to the west a season ago.
In addition to their league matches, the Riverhounds will also participate in the 102nd-annual Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup along with 91 other squads, a new record. All 21 US-based USL Pro squads will enter in the second round, which will be played on May 20. The Riverhounds U23 squad, which plays in the USL Professional Development League, did not qualify for the tournament. The full format of the tournament is available here.
The Riverhounds have also added two additional preseason games to their slate, taking on Robert Morris University on April 7 and Saint Francis University on April 15. Both matches will be played at Highmark Stadium.
Photo credit: Pittsburgh Riverhounds
