PITTSBURGH — At some point, there's a certainty that the arsenal will remain intact heading into the final stages.
Until then, Monterey Bay FC's offensive struggles will continue, especially on the road.
But on Saturday in Pittsburgh, newly acquired Ouseni Bouda scored a late goal in the Union's 1-0 win over the Riverhounds, snapping a five-game away losing streak.
Bouda, on loan from Major League Soccer's San Jose Earthquakes, made a memorable performance in his first start for the Union, scoring with a shot into the bottom left corner to end a scoreless game in the 90th minute.
The win propelled Union into fifth place in the United Soccer League's Western Conference with seven wins, eight losses and four draws, tying them with Memphis 901 FC on 25 points.
Monterey Bay FC, having suffered shutout losses in seven of their last 11 games, returns to Cardinale Stadium next Saturday to take on Tulsa FC at 7 p.m.
The Union have won their last two home games, winning four, losing two and drawing three at Cardinale Stadium, which has one of the highest home attendances in the USL.
Eight of the Union's remaining 15 games will be played at home. If the season ended today, nine of the remaining 15 teams would advance to the postseason, including five from the Western Conference.
The Union is still without seven players, including goalkeeper Anthony Sciaha, who led the USL with 73 saves in the second half of the season.
Monterey Bay FC also played without the team's leading scorer, Tristan Traeger, who sat out the game for personal reasons. The sniper is sixth in the Western Conference in goals with six.
The Union showed off their goalkeeping depth as Carlos Herrera was outstanding in goalkeeping duties in place of Siaha, recording his first shutout of the season and a career-high eight saves.
Monterey Bay FC has struggled offensively, losing shots 8-1 to Pittsburgh, but has wins over Western Conference leaders New Mexico and USL runners-up Charleston this season.
Pittsburgh has struggled offensively, going six straight games without a goal and scoring just one goal in its last eight games, finishing with three wins, nine losses and six ties in the Eastern Conference.
This is the second meeting between the clubs, with the previous meeting at Cardinale Stadium last summer seeing former Riverhounds forward Alex Dixon score against his former teammate in a 2-2 draw.
