Edward Kizza makes MLS debut with Revolution

Pitt alum Edward Kizza made his Major League Soccer debut with the New England Revolution on Saturday night and helped his team to a 2-2 draw with Chicago Fire FC at Soldier Field.

Kizza saw limited action in his pro debut, as he came on in the 83rd minute as a substitute for Adam Buksa. However, he made the most of the opportunity, as he nearly scored, heading a shot off the Chicago crosssbar in the first shot attempt of his MLS career.

The Ugandan forward was selected by the Revolution with the 24th overall pick in the first round of the 2021 MLS draft in January. Kizza was one of four Pitt products in the draft, as he was joined by Nico Campuzano, Alexander Dexter and Jasper Löeffelsend. The other three would go undrafted and rejoin Pitt, but after Kizza's selection, he made four appearances in the preseason and recorded one assist.

At Pitt, Kizza was vital to the turnaround of the program under Panthers coach Jay Vidovich. The 5’9”, 170-pound forward scored 31 goals and came up with seven assists for a total of 69 points in 53 career games at the college level. As a result of his standout play, he earned first-team All-ACC honors twice, and his goal total ranks second in program history.

Last season, New England finished 15th in the league and eighth in the Eastern Conference, with an 8-7-8 record and 32 points. However, that record was enough to earn the Revolution a playoff berth, and the team made a deep run that ended with a 1-0 loss to the Columbus Crew, the eventual league champions.