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USL North Carolina FC

NCFC Travels to Charleston Battery

June 27, 2024 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
North Carolina FC News Release


CHARLESTON, S.C. - North Carolina FC is back on the road for Week 17 of the USL Championship regular season, taking on an old rival, the Charleston Battery, at Patriots Point on Friday, June 28 at 7:30 p.m. ET. The match will stream live on CBS's Golazo Network.

The Battery visited WakeMed Soccer Park for the season opener on March 9, with the two sides sharing the points in a scoreless draw.

Charleston enters the match in second place in the Eastern Conference with 30 points from 16 games and an 8-2-6 record, while NCFC sits eighth with 18 points from 15 games and a 4-5-6 record.

North Carolina and Charleston have a long history against each other, dating back to the then-Carolina RailHawks inaugural 2007 season. NCFC holds a lifetime record of 7-5-4 against the Battery.

NCFC picked up a point in Week 16, drawing Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC, 0-0. Jake McGuire made two saves in the draw to lead NCFC to a sixth clean sheet of the season. A stingy defense has been one of NCFC's biggest strengths this season with a league-low 41 shots on target faced and 121 shots faced.

That defense has led NCFC to pick up points in six of the team's last seven games.

Paco Craig is set to make his 200th USL Championship appearance in Friday's match. The NCFC captain has made 13 appearances for the team since joining this offseason, with the Englishman making 95 appearances for Louisville City FC and 91 appearances for Miami FC during his decorated tenure in the USL Championship.

Scouting Charleston Battery

The Battery started the year by relentlessly bombarding opponents, scoring 26 goals in the first 11 games of the season including three different four-goal outings and a six-goal demolition of the Las Vegas Lights.

Golden Boot frontrunner Nick Markanich was the architect of that scoring explosion with 12 goals in the first 10 games of the season, but the forward hasn't scored in the last six games.

Since then, the Battery have scored just once in their last five games leading to a five-game winless stretch. Charleston's league-leading nine clean sheets helped the team still pick up points in three of those games.

Adam Grinwis has been the No. 1 in net for Charleston this season with 13 appearances, six clean sheets and a 75% save percentage, but Daniel Kuzemka also has two clean sheets in four appearances.

Aaron Molloy and Chris Allan give the Battery a strong foundation at the base of the midfield, with both players maintaining passing accuracy above 83%. With two of the stingiest defenses in the USL Championship facing off, the midfield battle could prove decisive in what is likely to be a low-scoring affair.

Next Up

North Carolina FC returns to WakeMed Soccer Park to take on Miami FC on Saturday, July 6, at 7:30 pm ET. NCFC picked up a big 4-0 road win over Miami to cap off an unbeaten May. The Fireworks in the Park night, presented by O2 Fitness, will feature a dazzling firework display following the match. Tickets are available.

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