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USL-1 Charleston Battery

Battery set for Open Cup rematch with DC United

March 13, 2009 - USL First Division (USL-1)
Charleston Battery News Release


CHARLESTON, SC - The 2009 Carolina Challenge Cup title will be decided Saturday between Major League Soccer clubs Real Salt Lake and Toronto FC at Blackbaud Stadium. Kickoff for the championship match is at 5 p.m., followed by the Charleston Battery and D.C. United-playing for the coveted Coffee Pot Cup-at 7:15 p.m. in a rematch of the 2008 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup final.

RSL and Toronto both enter Saturday's title match unbeaten in CCC play. First year entrants RSL kicked off the round robin tournament in convincing fashion beating D.C. United 3-0 before topping the Battery 2-1 Wednesday night. Toronto, wrapping up the club's third consecutive preseason in Charleston, opened with a 2-1 win over the Battery before going on the beat Eastern Conference rival D.C. United by the same score.

In the event of a draw, RSL will take the CCC title based on a goal differential tiebreaker with a two-goal advantage.

Since the preseason tournament was founded in 2004, four of the five CCC champions have gone on to win one of Major League Soccer's two trophies: the Supporter's Shield awarded to the club with the best regular season record (Columbus Crew 2004, San Jose Earthquakes 2005), and MLS Cup, (Houston Dynamo 2006, 2007). Only last year's CCC winners, San Jose, failed to go on to capture one of the two league trophies.

Toronto enters Saturday's match looking to put the last pieces of the puzzle together before the club kicks off league play next weekend at Kansas City. Coming into the tournament, TFC coach John Carver stated that his first team would see the lion's share of the action. He was true to his word, resting only one regular, Welsh international Carl Robinson, who did not play in Wednesday's 2-1 win over D.C. United but is expected to appear Saturday. However there was no shortage of talent in Robinson's absence. Carver slotted the newly acquired Dwayne De Rosario in the midfield alongside Amado Guevara. De Rosario lined up at forward in the opening match versus the Battery. Versus D.C. United, Argentine Pablo Vitti lined up alongside Chad Barrett at forward.

De Rosario leads tournament scoring with goals in both games: a second minute goal versus the Battery and a penalty kick against D.C. United. Rohan Ricketts and Barrett also had goals for TFC in tournament play. Rickets netted a highlight reel game-winner versus the Battery in the club's opening match and Barrett opened scoring versus United.

Unlike TFC, which has utilized mostly first team players, the other three teams in the tournament have used a mixture of first team and reserve players. RSL fielded mostly starters in its convincing 3-0 win over D.C. to open the tournament but used a more untested side in its 2-1 win over the Battery. Luis Escalada, Yura Movsisyan, and Andy Williams all had second half goals in RSL's 3-0 win over United. In Wednesday's match, Clint Mathis squeaked a free kick through the Battery wall to put the visitors up a goal in the club's second match of the tournament. The Battery responded just before halftime with a free kick of its own, and defended valiantly before second half substitute Kyle Beckerman's dipping volley caught Battery goalkeeper Keith Wiggans off his line to give RSL the win.

Coffee Pot Cup

In the second game Charleston and D.C. United continue a decade long rivalry between the two clubs that began with the Battery's come-from-behind 4-3 win in the third round of the 1999 U.S. Open Cup at Blackbaud Stadium. A dressing room incident involving a shattered coffee pot following the Battery's stunning defeat led to a friendly competition between the two clubs' supporters-the Coffee Pot Cup-awarded to the winning side's fans after the match. D.C. United supporters currently hold the coveted cup after United's 2-1 Open Cup final win at JFK last August.

Both of the Battery's CCC matches have seen similar score lines, both 2-1 losses. Nearly every player on the Battery preseason roster has seen playing time, with coach Mike Anhaeuser running the majority of what will be his first choice team in the first half of both games and using reserves and trialists in the second half. Midfielders Tyler Hemming and Ian Fuller account for the Battery's two goals in the tournament, both on set pieces. Hamming netted a penalty kick versus Toronto-his former club-and Fuller hit a world-class free kick to level the score Wednesday night versus RSL. Forward Darren Spicer set up both opportunities, drawing fouls with his darting runs.

United has uncharacteristically managed only a single goal in the tournament, a short-range blast from second half substitute Chris Pontius versus Toronto. United coach Tom Soehn has played a mix-and-match lineup, featuring starters and reserves in various combinations throughout the tournament.

The Battery is 0-1-2 versus D.C. United in CCC play. In the event of a draw, Charleston will finish ahead of D.C. in the table based on goal differential.

Both of Saturday's matches will be broadcast at www.toronto.fc.mlsnet.com.

2009 USL-1 Season Opens April 11

The Battery open USL-1 play April 11 at 2008 league champion Vancouver. The 2009 home schedule kicks off a week later when the Battery hosts Montreal, Saturday April 18 at 7:30 p.m. Call 843-971-GOAL or go to www.charlestonbattery.com for ticket information.

Carolina Challenge Cup Tickets

Tickets for Saturday's doubleheader are $25 club/box and $15 bleacher. Call 843-971-GOAL or go to www.charlestonbattery.com for more information.

All Charleston Battery season ticket holders receive a 50 percent discount on Carolina Challenge Cup tickets.

Group ticket discounts are available for groups of 10 or more. Please call 843-971-GOAL for details.

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