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USL Charleston Battery

Super-Sub Cordoves Voted to USL Team of the Week

August 18, 2015 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Charleston Battery News Release


Charleston Battery Forward Heviel Cordoves
Charleston Battery Forward Heviel Cordoves
(Charleston Battery)

CHARLESTON -- Battery forward Heviel Cordoves got credit only five minutes in Charleston's 1-1 draw with Saint Louis FC Saturday, but the third-year former Cuban international made every second count, saving the Battery at both ends of the pitch.

On Tuesday, USL beat writers from around the country rewarded him with a reserve spot on the Week 22 Team of the Week.

Cordoves, a 25-year-old from Havana who joined the Battery in 2013 after defecting from Cuba to Canada in the fall of 2012, went into the weekend tagged as doubtful on the team injury report. The culprit: An ankle sprain picked up on the final play of a match on June 27. He convinced the team to let him play in a July 17 friendly with English Premier League side West Bromwich Albion, but suffered a setback in that match, and his contributions had been sporadic ever since.

Worried that a continuing cycle of partial recovery and re-aggravation could haunt "Cordo" for the rest of the season, Coach Mike Anhaeuser and Head Athletic Trainer Bobby Weisenberger largely held him out of training last week, and considered shutting him down for two weeks. But without enough healthy players available for Saturday's match, Cordoves dressed and took his place on the substitute bench.

The team would have preferred that he stayed there. But when Saint Louis took a second-half lead on only its second shot of the night, Anhaeuser found himself looking for an equalizer. In the 84th minute, he turned to Cordoves.

Four minutes later, Cordoves found himself lining up for a corner kick by midfielder Justin Portillo. Portillo sent the inswinger toward the near post, where the 6-2 Cuban stepped toward the ball and headed it in to level the score. The 89th minute equalizer broke the Battery's scoreless steak at eight consecutive halves.

With the home team playing with an advantage thanks to the ejections of Saint Louis players, Cordoves' score appeared to turn the tide, inspiring the Battery to push for a game-winner. But that frenzy almost ended in disaster.

In stoppage time, a Saint Louis free kick drew Charleston keeper Odisnel Cooper off his line to his right. But when the resulting volley-shot caught Cooper leaning the wrong way, only an alert play by Cordoves, who had drifted down to the goal mouth after the initial aerial challenge, kept the visitors' final shot from producing the game-winner.

Making the performance even more remarkable was that Cordoves entered the 2015 season with a reputation for contributing little in the aerial game -- a weakness he has worked to turn into a strength.

Said Cordoves: "I want to thank especially my trainer (for making) me ready, and all the coaching staff for giving me the confidence when the team needed (me)."

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Charleston Battery Forward Heviel Cordoves
Charleston Battery Forward Heviel Cordoves
   



United Soccer League Championship Stories from August 18, 2015


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