Sports stats



USL Charleston Battery

Battery Host Tormenta in U.S. Open Cup

April 5, 2022 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Charleston Battery News Release


CHARLESTON, S.C. - The Charleston Battery commence their 2022 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup campaign on Wednesday, April 6, against South Georgia Tormenta FC at Patriots Point. Kickoff for the Cup tie is slated for 7 p.m. ET as Charleston and Tormenta enter in the Second Round of the knockout competition.

Charleston and Tormenta will clash again after previously meeting in the Open Cup in 2018. The Black and Yellow won that match 1-0 after a first-half goal from Patrick Okonkwo was enough to advance the home side to the next round.

Tormenta kicked off their USL League One season on Saturday against North Carolina FC, suffering a 0-1 defeat in their home opener. North Carolina found the back of the net in the 22nd minute via Garrett McLaughlin and that goal proved to make the difference. The scoreline doesn't tell the whole story, however, as Tormenta held roughly 72% of possession during the contest, along with outshooting NCFC, 14 to four.

Charleston are now four games into their USL Championship season with a 1-3-0 record in that span. The record is another number that doesn't tell the whole story, as the Black and Yellow have demonstrated their ability put teams under pressure early - the side currently leads the league in goals within the first 15 minutes of the first half (three). Augustine Williams tallied his second goal last Friday, after that same pressure resulted in a penalty in the box for an ensuing penalty that Williams then converted on.

Both sides will look rebound from their previous results, which should make the win-or-go-home fixture on Wednesday a competitive one.

In addition to facing each other in 2018, the familiarity between the clubs extends to the rosters. Defender Leland Archer played for Tormenta in 2017 prior to signing with Charleston in 2018, and current Tormenta players Deshawon Nembhard and Arther Bosua previously played for the Battery.

Charleston have built a strong reputation in the competition and are the most recent non-MLS club to reach the Open Cup Final (2008, against D.C. United).

In the 107th edition of the tournament, Wednesday's match will be the first-ever Open Cup game played at Patriots Point.

From the training ground

The Battery were back at training Monday following the Friday night match. The Black and Yellow began preparations for an Open Cup match for the first time since 2019.

Head Coach Conor Casey embraces the change of pace from league competitions to the knock-out competition for the fifth club's game of 2022.

"[The Open Cup] is a tournament-based, win-or-go-home scenario, it's all about mentality and competition, and that's something right now that's going to be really important for this team," said Coach Casey. "The Open Cup was always a great opportunity, as a player, to get minutes against some teams that you haven't played before."

The Battery tactician said while they've seen some of Tormenta ahead of Wednesday, the focus will be on their own game.

"[Tormenta] played on Saturday, we have a good idea of how they like to play, how they like to build out," said Coach Casey. "But for us, it's all going to be focused us, what we can do, how we're able to influence the energy and impose ourselves on [Tormenta]."

Battery defender Leland Archer is looking forward to the unique challenge of the knockout game.

"Playing in the Open Cup is exciting for us, there's a lot to gain and a lot to lose," said Archer. "It's exciting to be able to move on to another round, I remember playing against Nashville [in 2019] and we won the penalty shootout."

Leland is one of eight players currently on the squad with Open Cup experience. He also said the team will look use the match to further improve themselves as part of their whole 2022 campaign.

"We want to come out and win this game, be more aggressive on the side when we don't have the ball," said Archer. "The guys want to keep moving on in the tournament and play a bigger team."

As of posting, Mauro Cichero, Enock Kwakwa and DZ Harmon are questionable, and Matteo Ritaccio and AJ Paterson are out.

>

MATCH INFO

Charleston Battery vs. South Georgia Tormenta FC

2022 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, Second Round

Wednesday, April 6 - 7:00 p.m. ET Kickoff

Patriots Point

HOW TO WATCH:

Tickets are available for Wednesday's match, but sections are starting to sell out. Buy tickets for the game via SeatGeek here. Fans can use the access code "843" to get discounted GA tickets at $8.43.

U.S. Open Cup matches will also stream on ESPN+.

Check out the Charleston Battery Statistics

• Discuss this story on the United Soccer League Championship message board...

United Soccer League Championship Stories from April 5, 2022


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central