D.C. United have acquired English midfielder Rob Vincent on permanent transfer from the Pittsburgh Riverhounds of the United Soccer League.

Vincent, 25, leaves Pittsburgh as the Hounds’ leading regular-season scorer in the modern USL era (since 2011) with 24 goals. He led the team with 18 league goals while playing as a left-sided midfielder in 2015, and was named to the United Soccer League’s All-League first team after twice being awarded ‘Player of the Week’ honors and earning seven ‘Team of the Week’ selections.

The Liverpool, England native made 88 appearances and scored 28 goals in all competitions during his three years in Pittsburgh, following a college career at the University of Charleston in West Virginia.

“Rob first impressed us during our US Open Cup match against the Riverhounds last summer,” Dave Kasper, United General Manager and VP of Soccer Operations, said. “He is a smart player who has the ability to create and score from wide midfield positions, and his tireless work rate and professionalism excite us.”

“We’re thrilled that Rob has earned the chance to progress to the highest level of soccer in this country,” said Riverhounds head coach Mark Steffens. “He has been a fantastic servant to the Riverhounds as a player and as a coach in our Academy. Rob is a superb role model for every aspiring young player in the area to follow.”

Vincent’s superb 2015 campaign, in which he also scored in each of Pittsburgh’s three Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup games, including a converted penalty kick against D.C. United in the Hounds’ fourth round defeat to the Black-and-Red, caught the eye of head coach Ben Olsen, who offered him a trial last fall.

Vincent holds a United States Green Card and will not take up an international roster spot.

He becomes the third Riverhounds player to move to Washington in recent seasons after defender Greg Janicki and South African forward Thabiso Khumalo were transferred in 2008.