Duke earns team of the week honors after scoring first goal of season Sunday night

TAMPA, Fla. – USL PRO named its Team of the Week for Week 20 of the season on Tuesday, with Pittsburgh Riverhounds defender Rich Costanzo earning Player of the Week honors after leading his side to a pair of victories in Florida. The Riverhounds captain had the game-winning goal in a win against VSI Tampa Bay FC, and then played the full 90 minutes as Pittsburgh shut out Orlando City to put itself firmly in the middle of the USL PRO playoff picture.

USLPRO-Costanzo0806.jpgNeeding a win to move even with Tampa Bay on Friday night, Pittsburgh trailed at halftime, but came out with a renewed energy to start the second half. It was rewarded with an equalizer in the 54th minute through Robert Vincent. Costanzo then gave his side the lead, making a strong run through the midfield before making his way into the right side of the penalty area and slotting his finish into the left corner of the net.

Costanzo also put in a strong performance on Saturday night as the Riverhounds took a 1-0 victory against Orlando City, which marked a second consecutive shutout of the Lions by Pittsburgh. Michael Green also put in a strong performance for the Riverhounds, and joined Costanzo on the Team of the Week for his efforts.

Wilmington and Harrisburg also had two players selected to the Team of the Week, with the Hammerheads’ Kyle Greig and Phil Tuttle both earning selection after a pair of victories to keep their playoff hopes alive. Greig scored in both of Wilmington’s victories against Charleston and Dayton, while Tuttle had a six-save shutout as the Hammerheads edged the Dutch Lions 1-0.

Harrisburg’s Lucky Mkosana earned a berth on the Team of the Week for the third consecutive week as he extended his goal-scoring streak to five games. Mkosana scored in both the City Islanders’ 3-1 win against Phoenix Wednesday night, and also in Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Los Angeles. He is joined by Matt Bahner, who scored his first professional goal in Harrisburg’s win against the Wolves.

Los Angeles’ Matt Fondy completed the attacking trio on the Team of the Week after his game-tying goal against Harrisburg, while Charleston’s Mike Azira led a quartet of midfielders as he scored twice in the Battery’s 5-2 victory that ended Richmond’s hopes of an undefeated regular season.

The Kickers’ Nate Robinson was also selected after a standout performance in his side’s 1-0 win against Charlotte on Friday night, while Orlando’s Christian Duke earned his place after scoring the game-winning goal against Tampa Bay on Sunday night. Dayton’s Greg Preciado rounded out the team with the final defensive spot after his goal began the Dutch Lions’ fight-back to earn a 3-1 win against Rochester on Friday night.

Stay up to date with every game from USL PRO venues in 2013 through the league’s free online streaming service, USLNation.com, and also follow the race for the playoffs via Twitter (@USLPRO), Facebook and Google+ for live updates from every game, every night of the season, plus news, previews and recaps of all the action.



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Teams GP Pts
Orlando City SC 28 62
Sacramento Republic FC 28 55
LA Galaxy II 28 51
Richmond Kickers 28 51
Charleston Battery 28 41