By: Battery Media
The Charleston Battery travel to Indianapolis this weekend for a Saturday duel with Indy Eleven. Kickoff on October 8 at IUPUI Michael A. Carroll Stadium is set for 7 pm ET.
Charleston will look to avenge their earlier 3-4 defeat against Indy back in June. The match was ultimately decided by a 17-minute window in the first half when Indy struck four times against the Battery's lone goal that half, by Augi Williams. Williams and EJ Johnson would score in the waning moments of the second half, but it was too little, too late in the end.
Indy enter October 8's match after falling at home, 2-4, to FC Tulsa. Indy's Ayoze notched a pair of goals during the match. However, it was not enough to overcome Tulsa’s four goals. The result snapped a four-game win streak at home for the Eleven.
The Battery brought plenty of offense in their last match but were on the losing end of a dramatic 6-3 away result against Hartford. Hartford scored three in the first half but the Battery responded quickly with a pair of goals after halftime from Andrew Booth and Aidan Apodaca. Augi Williams tacked on a third later in the half, assisted by debutant Fidel Barajas.
Ayoze is a player to watch for Indy. The Spaniard bagged a brace for the Eleven in 70 minutes of action, along with eight duels won and three recoveries. He was subsequently named to the USL Championship's team of the week for his performance.
Leland Archer is another player to keep an eye on this Saturday. The center-back contributed the assist on Apodaca's goal and was accurate on 90% of his passes, in addition to five clearances, five recoveries and one interception. Archer was not in the squad last time Charleston and Indy squared off and could pose a new danger for the hosts.
Preston Kilwien will be unavailable for this weekend's contest while serving a yellow card accumulation suspension.
Saturday won't be the first away match against Indy for Charleston but it will be the first at IUPUI Michael A. Carroll Stadium. The previous fixtures were played at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Geobel Perez is poised to reach the half-century mark of Battery appearances on Saturday. He currently sits at 49 matches played since first arriving in 2021.
