The Charleston Battery took home all three points in a 3-1 victory over Memphis 901 FC on Saturday at Patriots Point. Nick Markanich scored his 21st goal to add to his USL Championship Golden Boot race lead in the first half, and goals from MD Myers and Juan David Torres in the second half sealed the Battery’s second consecutive win.
Charleston and Memphis kicked off amid clear skies that were unindicative of the tropical storms that passed through the Lowcountry the days prior.
Memphis were eager to find an early lead, but the Battery defense held firm. Goalkeeper Adam Grinwis made a sensational athletic save in the 20th minute to deny Memphis’ Bruno Lapa. Grinwis recorded another save a minute later on Nighte Pickering’s shot, a routine stop.
The match’s complexion changed in the 38th minute when Memphis were reduced to 10 men after Lucas Turci was shown a second yellow card and subsequent red card. The advantage was quickly seized upon by Charleston.
Nick Markanich broke open the game with one of his classiest finishes of the season in the 41st minute. Juan David Torres picked out Markanich with a brilliant long ball that Markanich then settled with his chest and fired into the net in quick succession.
The goal was Markanich’s 21st of the year and the assist was Torres’ fifth, the most on the team in league play for the respective categories.
Charleston took the 1-0 lead over 901 FC into the break.
Play resumed in the second half with Memphis looking to draw level in the opening stages. Samuel Careaga tied the game for 901 FC in the 50th minute. Memphis nearly took the lead moments later if not for another sensational save by Grinwis.
Charleston, however, were undeterred by the visitors and regained momentum along with the crowd energizing Patriots Point again. MD Myers reclaimed the lead for the Battery by pouncing on a loose ball inside the box and firing it into the back of the net. Arturo Rodriguez initiated the chance by recycling a deflected ball back into the box to Markanich, who then managed to play the ball to Myers before going to ground. Myers carried the ball briefly and delivered a clinical strike to the center of the frame.
The goal was Myers’ 14th of the season and the assist was Markanich’s sixth, across all competitions.
Charleston aimed to add to their lead and make the most of their one-man advantage to pull away from 901 FC.
Torres tacked on the Battery’s third goal of the night with a stunning strike from outside the box in the 72nd minute. The Colombian winger received a long ball from Jay Chapman and maneuvered his way from the sideline to a view of goal before slotting his dipping knuckleball shot inside the near post.
The goal was Torres’ third of the year. In the last three games, Torres has two goals and three assists.
Charleston tightened their grip on the match as the final minutes played out, coming close to grabbing a fourth goal, and locked in the 3-1 victory over 901 FC with relative ease at the end.
The second consecutive victory for the Battery advances their record to 14W-3L-7D (49pts), placing them second in the Eastern Conference table.
With 21 goals, Markanich takes sole possession of fourth place in the club’s all-time single-season goal record. The club record for goals scored in a single season (all competitions) is Paul Conway’s mark of 27 in 2001. The USL Championship’s single-season record is 25 goals. The Battery have 10 regular season matches remaining.
