HARRISON, N.J. (September 13, 2015) – New York Red Bulls II clinched a spot in the USL Playoffs on Saturday, thanks to draws between the Richmond Kickers and Harrisburg City Islanders, and the Pittsburgh Riverhounds and Wilmington Hammerheads FC.
With Richmond, currently on 38 points with one game remaining, unable to catch the Red Bulls II, the contest between Harrisburg and Pittsburgh on Saturday, Sept.19 proved the decisive factor. While Pittsburgh can still reach 43 points with a pair of wins in its final two games to overtake New York, and Harrisburg 42 points with a similar performance, neither side would be able to record maximum points over its final two games. As a result, Red Bulls II will appear in the 2015 USL Playoffs in the club’s inaugural season.
With only playoff positioning left to play for, Red Bulls II enter its final match of the regular season looking to clinch home-field advantage in the first-round of the playoffs. With a victory against Rochester Rhinos, New York would host a conference quarterfinal on the weekend of Sept. 25-27.
READ: 2015 USL Playoffs – Where Teams Stand, Magic Numbers
Four teams have secured the six postseason spots in the Eastern Conference: Rochester, Louisville City FC, Charleston Battery and NYRB II, with Rochester and Louisville locking up the first and second seeds, respectively. The playoff format for USL is similar to MLS, where the top two teams in each conference receive a first-round bye, while the third place team hosts the sixth place team, and the fourth place team hosts the fifth place team. All playoff matches are a single leg with the winner advancing to the next round.
