The Charleston Battery defeated the Tampa Bay Rowdies, 3-1, on Saturday in front of an electrified crowd at Patriots Point for Hispanic Heritage Night. It was a historic occasion as Nick Markanich broke the USL Championship record for most goals in a single season after scoring twice. He also tied the Battery’s single-season record for goals scored, matching Paul Conway’s 27 tallies set in 2001.
The Battery clinched home-field advantage by way of the victory and favorable results around the league. Patriots Point will host the opening round in the first weekend of November.
Charleston started the night on the front foot, appearing eager to atone for the defeat to Tampa Bay back in July.
Like he did on that same night in July, Juan David Torres opened the scoring against Tampa Bay, with a golazo off the volley in the 5th minute. Arturo Rodriguez provided the service with a perfect cross from the right side of the box to Torres at the opposite post. Torres struck the ball off the volley to beat goalkeeper Jordan Farr.
The goal was Torres’ fifth of the season and the assist was Rodriguez’s fifth.
Charleston continued to apply heavy pressure to Tampa Bay’s defense as the half wore on. MD Myers and Nick Markanich each recorded shots on target through the half-hour mark.
On the opposing side, defender Graham Smith made a decisive clearance off the line in the 25th minute to deny the Rowdies an equalizer.
History was finally made in the 37th minute when Nick Markanich scored his 26th goal of the year to extend the Battery’s lead to 2-0. Markanich broke the USL Championship record for most goals in a single season, standing alone in the history books.
The play was initiated by Jay Chapman, who sent a long ball into the box to Myers. However, Rowdies defender Eddie Munjoma headed the ball right to Markanich in the box. Markanich then struck the ball off the volley with his left foot for a clinical finish, burying the shot and securing the new league record.
Charleston took the 2-0 lead into the break after a dominant display in the first 45 minutes.
Play resumed with the Battery looking to tighten their grip on the match and keep the Rowdies from making a comeback bid like in the first meeting.
Markanich made history again at the hour-mark to make the score 3-0. Myers and Markanich combined inside the box with Myers playing the ball across to Markanich on the left side. Markanich then took one touch to get a look on goal and fired his shot inside the far post.
The goal carried two pieces of history. One, it tied the Battery’s all-time club record for most goals in a single season (all competitions), matching Paul Conway’s mark of 27 set in 2001. Two, it brought Markanich and Myers’ combined goal total to 40, setting a new Championship record for most goals in a single season by an attacking duo.
Myers’ assist was his third of the year.
A noteworthy moment occurred in the 80th minute when Aaron Molloy entered the game off the bench. Molloy had been sidelined with an injury sustained during the July 27 match against Tampa Bay and it was a welcome to the pitch for the Irish midfielder.
The Rowdies managed to pull a goal back in the 81st minute via Freddy Kleeman, cutting the score to 3-1. Charleston’s Smith came up big in the 89th minute with another clearance off the goal line to keep the Rowdies from making a late comeback attempt.
Charleston closed out the 3-1 victory, avenging the July defeat for the club’s 12th home win of the season.
Additionally, Charleston secured home-field advantage for the first round of the USL Championship Playoffs after their win was paired with an Indy Eleven loss. The combination of results guaranteed Charleston’s top-four finish in the Eastern Conference standings.
The win advances the Battery’s record 17W-5L-8D (59pts), matching the club’s win total from last year with a month still left to play.
Charleston were hailed winners of the No Quarter Derby, the supporter-led rivalry between the two team’s supporter groups, by an away goals tiebreaker, which the Battery held the edge on.
Head Coach Ben Pirmann and forward Nick Markanich addressed the media after the victory, with key quotes to follow.
Coach Pirmann on his takeaways from tonight’s match…
First and foremost, we wanted to have a big response after a poor showing in Colorado Springs. Secondly, I think both teams knew exactly going in, how this game was going to be, two aggressive teams, that want to attack, who are going to go on the front foot. We had to try to use some of their energy against them. We had to be more accountable with ourselves on the ball and in winning duels. We had a breakaway with Juan David. He scores a great goal, then they go down and have a couple of chances. Both teams kept going for chances and chances like probably could have had three or four more goals total between the two teams.
Good performance, strong performance. We challenged the players to individually be the best versions of themselves and be a little bit more accountable. We know how good Tampa are at so many things, so if we weren’t [the best version of ourselves], we were going to get played off the field. We wanted to make sure we were ready to go.
Coach Pirmann on Markanich’s historic season…
Nick is having a season for the ages. What he has done in this league has obviously never been done before. Nick is focused on doing the details in the dirty work, like our pressing and the double teaming tonight. There were so many chances with Juan David, MD, Jackson, Emilio, Arturo, and Nick.
Nick is special at finishing attacks. He is special at it. He had two or three more. He just finds the ball. He’s got a good knack at it. We switched him on to the left because that we thought they were a little bit weak in transition there, and it showed that he got the two goals. I’m proud of the group. I think Nick would be the first one to tell you that when he makes a record like that, it’s all about the team and the performance and the selflessness. That’s something special for him and we’re proud of him. He’s done a great job.
Coach Pirmann on the significance of the performance with playoffs approaching…
With five games left, 450 minutes, let’s not waste anything. Last week we wasted it. We’re back at home where we love playing and we’ve got the best fans. La Barra, those guys are just tremendous.
Obviously, Tampa are good and they work hard, but we had to focus on ourselves. We had to really make sure that we were animals. It started with a tough week of training. Started with some honest conversations, and then the boys performed. I’m so happy for them, happy for this club, happy for this community, super happy for our fans. I’m sure you can hear them behind me. That’s what it’s about. I’m very happy, very happy for everybody, especially our fans. That’s why we do this. I think you could feel it tonight. We got three more at home and at least a playoff game or so. Let’s keep pushing.
Markanich on redemption against Tampa Bay…
Last weekend we didn’t have that good of a game, so we had a long meeting Tuesday and knew we had to come back strong. Then, this week we had a good training session, so we were prepared for this game. We know they are a playoff team, so we came out strong. Especially at home, to get three goals and a 3-1 win is amazing.
Last game, when we played them in Tampa, it was a good game. We’re up 2-0 at half like we were this game [sic]. We knew we had to come out strong, because they could still come back and either tie or win it like last time. We came out in the second half and finished out the game.
Markanich on breaking the USL Championship single-season scoring record…
I was hoping I did it at home. I didn’t mean to, but I’m happy I did at home in front of the home crowd. It feels amazing. It’s all credit to my teammates for setting me up in the right positions. I just do my movements in the box and they find me. They’ve been doing that all season, so all credit to them. I wouldn’t be able to do all this without them.
[In the first goal], I was hoping MD would knock it down, which he did, or one of the defenders did, and luckily it bounced right to me. I just volleyed it back into the net. The second goal, I knew I was going to get it. I knew what I was going to do when I got the ball, so luckily it went in.
Markanich on the crowd and energy for Hispanic Heritage Night…
We feel it for sure. It gives a lot of energy on the field for us. I know it may be intimidating for the other team coming in, but we know they’re on our side. They bring a lot of energy for us, so we do it for them too. La Barra, we hear them all the time, every game, and they’re loud. We wouldn’t be winning these games or having this much intensity in the game without them. We appreciate them a lot.
Charleston will have a bye next weekend but are back home on Sat., Oct. 5, to host Detroit City FC for Breast Cancer Awareness Night at Patriots Point. Tickets for the game are on sale now via SeatGeek.com, the club’s exclusive digital ticketing provider.
Lineups and Scoring Summary
Lineups:
CHS: Grinwis, Segbers, Archer, Smith, Dossantos, Chapman (Molloy, 80’), Allan, Rodriguez (Ycaza, 73’), Torres (Saydee, 73’), Markanich (Crawford, 90 +1’), Myers (Conway, 73’)
TBR: Farr, Doherty, Kleemann, Munjoma (Niyongabire, 44’), Bender (Fernandes, 64’), Hilton, Worth (Perez, 71’), Bodily (Guillen, 71’), Jennings, Arteaga, Rivera (Bubb, 64’)
Scoring Summary:
CHS – Juan David Torres (Arturo Rodriguez), 5’
CHS – Nick Markanich, 37’
CHS – Nick Markanich (MD Myers), 60’
TBR – Freddy Kleemann (Joshua Perez), 81’
