Ghana youth international Ropapa Mensah scored a brace as Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC thumped Hartford Athletic 5-0 on Saturday to clinch a place in the playoffs.
Mensah got his first when he took advantage of a mix-up defensively for the Athletic as goalkeeper Parfait Mandanda and defender Kevin Politz almost collided after each hesitating to deal with a high ball over the top.
The ball popped the way of Mensah, who finished into the open net for his first.
Mensah grabbed his second just past the hour-mark as Mertz provided a through-ball perfectly to meet the Ghanaian’s cutting run in behind the defense.
He clipped his finish over the advancing Mandanda to make it five.
The Hounds have now extended their lead at the top of Group F to nine points.
Watch Ropapa Mensah's first goal:
BOOM. ? #UNLEASH #PITvHFD pic.twitter.com/yDfLHryPU3
— Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC (@RiverhoundsSC) September 12, 2020
Watch Ropapa Mensah's second goal:
WE SMELL PLAYOFFS. #UNLEASH #PITvHFD pic.twitter.com/E54hp9KkvR
— Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC (@RiverhoundsSC) September 13, 2020