Presented by MUSC Health
The Charleston Battery are set to host Loudoun United FC on Fri., June 30, to close out the month’s schedule. Kickoff is slated for 7:30 p.m. ET at Patriots Point.
Charleston and Loudoun clash for the first time this season. The two sides shared the points in both fixtures last year, 1-1 in each contest. Charleston lead the all-time series with a 5W-1L-2D record against the Virginia club.
The Battery (8W-5L-4D, 28 pts) enter Friday’s match looking to bounce back and end June strong at home. Charleston wrapped up their June away stand in Memphis last weekend but suffered defeat, 3-2, after an otherwise strong performance. Beto Avila and Fidel Barajas both found the back of the net in the first half but the valiant effort fell short in the end.
Loudoun (5W-11L-1D, 16 pts) are another team looking to rebound after a promising match that saw them come up empty-handed at full-time. After holding the lead on two separate occasions, Loudoun were unable to resist Tampa Bay’s attack in the 2-4 defeat at home. Loudoun currently claim the final playoff spot.
Beto Avila is a player to watch for the Battery. The Houston Dynamo loanee recorded his first goal last match but has been a spark on offense since arriving earlier this month. Look for him to keep that form going come Friday.
Zach Ryan is the one to keep an eye on for Loudoun. Ryan is the club’s leading goalscorer (eight) and also has two assists so far. His eight goals put him one tally off the pace for the Golden Boot race (nine goals, tied between three players).
The match will see the league’s two youngest squads go against each other, with Charleston having the second-youngest average age and Loudoun having the youngest.
Friday could feature the return of goalkeeper Hugo Fauroux to Patriots Point. The shot-stopper has split duties with Dane Jacomen and was the Battery’s goalkeeper for the majority of last season.
Charleston will be without Leland Archer and Fidel Barajas, who are out on international duty with Trinidad and Tobago national team and the Mexican U-17 national team, respectively.
On the opposite end, Loudoun’s Chica Daniel will be unavailable for the match after the defender picked up a red card in the Tampa Bay match.
Fans can expect post-match fireworks following the conclusion of the match, as the club gets a head start on 4th of July celebrations at Patriots Point.
FROM THE TRAINING GROUND
Head Coach Ben Pirmann and forward Augi Williams discussed the upcoming match against Loudoun, with key quotes to follow.
Coach Pirmann on the main message in training this week…
We had a very good performance against Memphis, but we came up on the wrong side of the result. Just a couple of unfortunate mistakes, which were pretty uncharacteristic. We have to make sure we’re going above and beyond, driving each other in training, and pushing each other, more attention to detail. We are playing a really good Loudoun team that has dominated their last two games, so we know it’s going to be a tough game. They’re good in the match but we need to make sure that they’re suffering as much as possible over those 90 minutes.
Coach Pirmann on the team improving from the mistakes of last weekend…
Part of it is attention to detail and mental focus. A couple of players made mistakes who haven’t made mistakes all season. But if you play thirty-four games in a year, you’re going to make mistakes. Unfortunately, they happened in rough moments. But, we improve by the way we train, our mentality, our philosophies, the process of improving, then putting it into play.
Williams on the team’s mindset heading into Friday…
We’re excited, we’ve put the Memphis situation past us. We’re all looking to build again. Being at home is an exciting feeling being in front of our fans. We’ve had a few ups and downs, but, when you look at it, collectively, we’ve had great moments as well. The success we’ve had has been more than the failure.
Williams on kicking off the second half of the season at home…
We’re very excited, it’s another phase. We want to keep building and climb back to where we were, which was first place.
It’s a great atmosphere, in front of our fans. They give us so much energy, just to be here and see them happy again. [The match] Is something we’re very much looking forward to and we’re working hard for.
MATCH INFO
Charleston Battery vs. Loudoun United FC
Friday, June 30 – 7:30 p.m. ET Kickoff
Patriots Point
HOW TO WATCH:
Only a very limited number of tickets are still available for Friday’s match and can be purchased via SeatGeek.com, the Battery’s exclusive digital ticketing provider.
All Battery matches will also stream on ESPN+ domestically and through the league’s YouTube channel for free internationally.
