RIFC Opens 2025 USL Championship Season at Charleston Battery on Saturday

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USL Rhode Island FC

RIFC Opens 2025 USL Championship Season at Charleston Battery on Saturday

March 14, 2025 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Rhode Island FC News Release


Rhode Island FC travels to Patriots Point Soccer Stadium to take on Charleston Battery in Week 2 of the 2025 USL Championship season.

WHO

Charleston Battery

Rhode Island FC

WHEN

Saturday, March 15

7:30 p.m. ET

WHERE

Patriots Point Soccer Stadium

85 Patriots Point Road

Mount Pleasant, SC 29464

BROADCAST

myRITV

CBS Sports Golazo Network

RADIO

790 The Score (790 AM)

OFFICIAL WATCH PARTY

The Guild Brewing Company

461 Main Street

Pawtucket, RI 02860

MATCH PREVIEW

Charleston's run to a second-straight USL Championship Final was halted in the 2024 Eastern Conference Final by Rhode Island FC, who became just the second team to defeat the Battery at Patriots Point Soccer Stadium last season. The 2-1 loss to RIFC not only broke a 14-game home unbeaten streak, but ended a fantastic season in which Charleston finished the regular season as runners-up in the Eastern Conference, and the entire league, with an 18W-6L-10D record. This time around, Charleston will look for its first-ever win vs. RIFC, having returned 16 players from the squad that made the 2024 Eastern Conference Final, including reigning Defender of the Year Graham Smith, All-League First Team selection Aaron Molloy and top returning scorers MD Myers and Juan David Torres. The Battery also made several additions in the offseason, highlighted by the signing of 2023 All-League First Team selection Cal Jennings, who has tallied 70 goals and 16 assists in four seasons as a professional. The striker most recently scored 34 goals and assisted five in a two-year stint with the Tampa Bay Rowdies, moving into the top 12 all-time USL Championship scorers. During his highlight season in 2023, Jennings finished as the runner-up for the Golden Boot behind RIFC's Albert Dikwa "Chico," and was a finalist for the league's Player of the Year award. In 2024, he was named to the All-League Second Team, and was one of eight new faces to make their Charleston debut in last week's 2-1 loss to Louisville City FC.

Saturday's meeting between the two clubs will mark RIFC's fourth all-time meeting with Charleston Battery, making it the Ocean State club's most common opponent. So far, RIFC is unbeaten (1W-0L-2D) in three meetings with the Battery, two of which came at Patriots Point Soccer Stadium, including a 2-1 win in the 2024 Eastern Conference Final. Last season, the two squads battled to a pair of draws in the regular season, first sharing the points in a scoreless battle at Beirne Stadium on April 6 before splitting a 1-1 draw in South Carolina on Oct. 24. Rhode Island FC was the only Eastern Conference club to defeat Charleston at Patriots Point last year and will look to repeat history in order to maintain a perfect record against its Eastern Conference counterpart to kick off 2025. Rhode Island FC returns a core of 16 players from its historic run to the USL Championship Final in 2024, including a majority of the club's regular starters, the top three scorers and more than 90 percent of the club's total 64-goal scoring output. The Ocean State club has been busy in the offseason, signing 2024 USL Championship Golden Playmaker Noah Fuson, RIFC Midfielder of the Year Clay Holstad, RIFC Defensive Player of the Year Karifa Yao and defender Frank Nodarse to multi-year contract extensions. The quartet of players were all among the top five in minutes played in 2024, and will continue to play a major role on the field for RIFC in 2025.

Check out the Rhode Island FC Statistics

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