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USL Richmond Kickers

Kickers Host Charleston in USL PRO Quarterfinals Saturday

September 11, 2014 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Richmond Kickers News Release


RICHMOND, VA - (Thursday, September 11, 2014) - The #4 seed Richmond Kickers return to City Stadium to host the #5 seed Charleston Battery in the USL PRO Quarterfinals this Saturday, September 13. The First Round playoff match kicks off at 7:00 p.m. and the gates open at 5:30 p.m. with live music from Pump House, craft beer on tap and RVA food trucks. Tickets are on sale now for $12/adult and $7/youth, ages 3-17, at RichmondKickers.com. With the exception of All-Access and Red Army Passes, 2014 Season Passes will not be accepted at this match.

The Kickers concluded the 2014 regular season with a 13-3-12 record and 51 points, good for a fourth place finish and home field advantage for the first round of the playoffs. Following a near-record high 21-game unbeaten streak, injury crises and D.C. United call-ups left the Kickers with a 2-3-2 record to close out the regular season, most recently dropping their final match with a narrow 1-0 loss to Orlando last weekend.

Meanwhile, Charleston climbed to a fifth place finish in the standings, posting an 11-9-8 record and going 5-1-1 to close out the regular season schedule. Most recently, the Battery posted a decisive 4-0 win over Pittsburgh before edging Harrisburg 2-1 to amass 41 points on the season.

Rivals for over two decades, Saturday's match marks the 52nd meeting between the Kickers and the Battery with the Kickers holding the slight edge on the all-time series record at 23-22-6 following a 4-0 rout at City Stadium in July. A pair of goals on either side of the half saw Conor Shanosky, George Davis IV and Jason Yeisley each convert tallies before Matthew Delic�te posted his 13th goal of the season.

Three days later, the two clubs swapped home field advantage for a rescheduled match that ended with a 1-1 draw at Blackbaud Stadium. After conceding a 7th minute penalty, the Kickers responded with a quick equalizer when Yeisley buried a header for his second goal in as many games. Previously, the two clubs opened the 2014 campaign with a 2-2 draw in Charleston in March when end to end action saw Davis score on either side of Jared van Schaik and Amadou Sanyang goals.

Despite combining for seven league Championship titles (Charleston 1996, 2003, 2010, 2012; Richmond 1995, 2006, 2009), the two sides have only met in one other high-stakes match, when the Battery claimed their third league title in a heated 2-1 affair on August 28, 2010.

The winner of Saturday's game will advance to the USL PRO Semifinals to face the winner of the #1 seed Orlando City versus #8 seed Harrisburg City Islanders match.

Players to Watch

Kickers: Forward Jason Yeisley (#17) tallied two goals in back to back games against Charleston this season, adding a tally to the 4-0 scoreline in Richmond before burying the equalizer in the 1-1 draw on the road. Earlier this year, he made a triumphant return to the field after a nearly 10-month hiatus due to injury and added a third goal against the Orange County Blues to conclude the regular season campaign. Stalwart defender Sascha Gorres (#23) earned USL PRO Team of the Week honors twice this season, notching one goal and three assists while contributing to seven shutouts. In his 10th season with the Kickers, the player/assistant coach ranks second on the all-time career assists list with 49 and holds the club record for most consecutive games played, appearing in 107 successive matches. Midfielder George Davis IV (#11) finished the regular season campaign with a fifth place ranking in the league with 27 points on the season. The Lima, OH native signed with the Kickers in 2014 after spending two seasons with the Orange County Blues and the leads the team this season with 14 goals and six assists through all competitions.

Battery: The 2012 USL PRO Rookie of the Year, Jose Cuevas, re-signed with the Battery in July and made an immediate impact with three goals and four assists during the remainder of the regular season. Despite an early season injury in 2013, Cuevas returned late in the summer and added four goals and three assists last year to help lift the Battery to the third seed in the USL PRO playoffs. Cuban goalkeeper Odisnel Cooper (#0) returned for his sophomore season with the Battery after defecting from the Cuban National Team before a World Cup Qualifier in 2012. Making over 40 appearances in Charleston over two seasons, he posted nine shutouts during 2014 campaign, ranking second in USL PRO. Leading the Battery to three of their four Championship titles, veteran defender John Wilson (#25) has anchored the Battery defense for more than a decade. Reversing a retirement decision prior to the 2011 season, Wilson resides in second place on the Battery's all-time career list with over 240 appearances.

Playoffs

Kicking off this weekend, the 2014 USL PRO Playoffs include the top eight finishers in the table with the #1 seed Orlando City hosting #8 Harrisburg City Islanders, #2 seed Sacramento Republic hosting #7 seed Wilmington Hammerheads, #3 seed LA Galaxy II hosting #6 seed Rochester Rhinos and #4 seed Richmond Kickers hosting #5 seed Charleston Battery at City Stadium. The Semifinals featuring the four remaining teams will be played the following weekend, with 2014 USL PRO Championship slated for the weekend of September 27. All playoff rounds feature a single-game knockout format and teams will not be re-seeded following each round.

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