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USL Charleston Battery

Battery Travel to Memphis for Saturday Away Match

June 23, 2023 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Charleston Battery News Release


CHARLESTON, S.C. - The Charleston Battery will hit the road one last time this month, to take on Memphis 901 FC on Sat., June 24. Kickoff at AutoZone Park is set for 8:30 p.m. ET.

Charleston and Memphis square off for the first time this season. Dating back to 2019, the all-time series between the two clubs is evenly split at two wins apiece.

The Battery (8W-4L-4D, 28 pts) enter Saturday's contest looking to build upon the momentum of their dramatic 3-4 victory over Hartford Atheltic last weekend. Charleston rallied back from being down 3-1 in the second half to score three goals in the final 30 minutes of play. Nick Markanich bagged a brace, Derek Dodson scored the equalizer and AJ Paterson won it on a goal-of-the-year worthy strike in the 90th minute.

Memphis (7W-2L-4D, 25 pts) are among the most in-form teams in the league and are on an 11-game unbeaten run coming into Saturday's match. The Tennessee outfit defeated FC Tulsa on Wednesday, a 4-0 home victory where 901 FC overwhelmed Tulsa throughout the evening. Memphis have not lost a match since March 18 and currently sit third in the conference standings.

Arturo Rodriguez is a player to watch for the Battery. The crafty midfielder played an important role in setting up two of the Battery's four goals against Hartford and earned Championship Team of the Week honors for his complete performance.

Aaron Molloy is one to keep an eye on for 901 FC. The 2022 MVP runner-up has picked up where he left off last year and currently leads his side in assists (three, tied) and chances created (38).

There will be plenty of familiar faces taking on their former clubs this weekend. Players Derek Dodson, Chris Allan and Trey Muse, and coaches Ben Pirmann and Devin Rensing will take on Memphis for the first time since arriving in Charleston this offseason. On the opposite side, 901 FC's Laurent Kissiedou faces the club who he made his professional debut for in 2017.

Charleston are due to receive a boost on offense as Augi Williams will return from international duty ahead of the match after competing for the Sierra Leone national team last weekend in AFCON 2023 qualifiers. He played a full 90 minutes against Nigeria.

Looking at the stats leaderboard, Fidel Barajas is tied for the league lead in assists (five), Williams has the seventh-most goals (seven), and Muse is tied for the second-most clean sheets (six).

Charleston will be without Leland Archer, who is off on international duty with the Trinidad and Tobago national team for the Concacaf Gold Cup.

FROM THE TRAINING GROUND

Head Coach Ben Pirmann and defender Derek Dodson discussed Saturday's upcoming match, with key quotes to follow.

Coach Pirmann on training this week...

It's been a good, intense week of training. We've had a lot of weather, but we're getting a couple of guys back from injury and they're getting there a little bit with the intensity, but we have a long ways to go for improvements. We're getting a little bit better every single day, the boys are getting after it.

Coach Pirmann on what to expect from Memphis...

They're on a streak, 11 games unbeaten, they're a very talented group and made a good addition with Rodrigo Da Costa. They've got top players from goalkeeper into the back line through midfield on the wings and up top. We know our opponent. I know a lot of the guys, have personal relationships with them, but it's a big game because the margin between first place and sixth place in the standings is so tight. We know it will be a really tough game.

Dodson on preparations for this weekend...

Practice has been good. It's been focused and intense throughout the week, just trying to build off of a big win up in Hartford and try to carry that momentum on to Saturday. Stick to our philosophy and our game model, doing the things that we work on every single day in practice and executing them in games. When we're able to replicate what we train and with how we train and how intense we train, things tend to fall our way. So, it's been a sharp week and I think the boys are ready for Saturday.

Dodson on playing against his former side...

It's business as usual. It'll be nice to see a lot of the guys from last year, I'm still in contact with a lot of them, so it would be good to catch up. But, we're going there, we're going there for three points and take care of the game. So, it's going to be business as usual and it's just about continuing to progress through the season and really solidifying our identity as a team.

MATCH INFO

Memphis 901 FC vs. Charleston Battery

Saturday, June 24 - 8:30 p.m. ET Kickoff

AutoZone Park

HOW TO WATCH:

All Battery matches will stream on ESPN+, domestically, and through the league's YouTube channel for free, internationally.

Check out the Charleston Battery Statistics



United Soccer League Championship Stories from June 23, 2023


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.

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