Rhode Island FC delivered an emphatic 4-1 victory against Portland Hearts of Pine in the USL Jägermeister Cup on Friday night at Centreville Bank Stadium as Albert Dikwa bagged a hat trick for the hosts against their USL League One opposition to keep them perfect at the top of Group 4 with three wins out of three.

Dikwa put the hosts on top in the 18th minute before scoring twice in the opening 15 minutes of the second half off assists by Aldair Sanchez and Jojea Kwizera to complete his second hat trick all-time in USL competition. Hearts of Pine pulled a goal back through Titus Washington in the 63rd minute, but RIFC wrapped up all three points with five minutes to go through Noah Fuson’s finish.

Here are three things we took away from the contest.

1. Rhode Island’s attack had breakout moment, helped Dikwa make history

Over four defeats in the past five league outings, Rhode Island as an attacking proposition proved somewhat hit or miss as premium opportunities proved hard to come by. On Friday night, everything shifted into gear in what on paper stood as the third-best attacking performance the side had delivered in terms of quality opportunities to claim a convincing victory.

The tempo in transition the side showed after winning possession in all parts of the field was outstanding, with Albert Dikwa the beneficiary as he bagged the first hat trick in USL Jägermeister Cup history. The Cameroonian made the most of the service he received from Aldair Sanchez and Jojea Kwizera, who combined beautifully on the left flank to end up with three combined assists, but there were plenty of opportunities to go around as RIFC racked up five big chances for just the third time this season across league and USL Jägermeister Cup and a 2.29 Expected Goal mark while putting eight shots on target.

Maybe most important of all, Friday marked the best Expected Goals mark the side has posted since JJ Williams’ absence due to injury. The attacking movement and creativity the side showed the way forward for the side as it looks to not only secure a place in the knockout stage but to start making a move in the USL Championship standings.

2. Maxi Rodriguez’s distribution from deep provided a platform

Maxi Rodriguez has been used in differing roles at times this season, but his move into a deeper position alongside Clay Holstad was a masterstroke by RIFC Head Coach Khano Smith. The 2024 Championship All-League First Team selection was solid as usual in winning possession, but his precise angled passes upfield that got Jojea Kwizera and others into dangerous transition moments were fundamental to the side’s success.

Rhode Island completed 33 of 63 long passes on the night, and Rodriguez accounted for almost one-third of those completions going 10 of 13 – a 76.9 percent accuracy mark. Kwizera was on the receiving end of eight of the 38 passes Rodriguez completed overall, putting consistent pressure on the right side of Portland’s defense which ended up leading to RIFC’s second and third goals on the night. As RIFC moves forward, don’t be surprised to see more of Rodriguez in a deeper-lying playmaker role.

3. Hearts of Pine lacked the verve to break down RIFC consistently

For the anticipation we had going into Friday after the U.S. Open Cup meeting between these sides, this was a bit of a dud from Hearts of Pine. While Titus Washington pulled back a goal midway through the second half to make it a two-goal deficit, it was one of only two shots the visitors managed on the night after Natty James’ free kick was palmed onto the crossbar by Jackson Lee in the first half.

Washington was full of running and effort, but he ran into an excellent display by Rhode Island’s Karifa Yao at the center of the back line for the hosts. The Canadian center back tied for the game-high winning 3 of 3 tackles and led all players in winning 11 of 14 duels and 6 of 7 aerial duels.

That helped contain Hearts of Pine to a season-low in shots (2), their second-lowest Expected Goals mark in regular season or USL Jagermeister Cup play this season (0.3), and only four touches in the RIFC penalty area despite posting an equal number of final third entries to their hosts (61). Regaining momentum now is going to be imperative for Portland with games in hand to try and push into the League One Playoffs field.