The Charleston Battery return home to face Orange County SC on Sat., Aug 24. The cross-country clash kicks off at 7:30 p.m. ET at Patriots Point. Saturday’s match will stream for free on CBS Sports Golazo Network, and air on local television on WCSC 5.3 (Charleston) and WIS 10.4 (Columbia).
Charleston and Orange County meet for the first and only time in the regular season. Orange County won last year’s meeting, 2-0, in California.
The Battery (14W-4L-7D, 49pts) return to the Lowcountry after being dealt a 3-1 defeat on the road against Louisville City FC. Graham Smith scored Charleston’s lone goal of the night, his second of the year.
Orange County (8W-12L-4D, 28pts) visit Charleston amid a four-game winless run, most recently suffering a 0-1 road loss to El Paso Locomotive FC. The California club is led by Paul Hardyman, who took over this summer after Morten Karlsen moved to the Danish Superliga.
Looking at the league standings, Charleston are second in the Eastern Conference and Orange County are seventh in the Western Conference.
Storylines of the Match
Even All-Time Series – Charleston and Orange County have met three times since 2014 and the series is evenly split at 1W-1L-1D. The Battery won the first meeting in 2014,3-2, and Orange County’s 2021 visit to Patriots Point ended in a 0-0 draw.
Looking to Rebound – The Battery will be aiming to get back into the win column after last weekend’s road defeat. At the same time, Orange County are winless since July 20 and will be looking for a repeat performance from 2023’s fixture.
Playoff Implications – Saturday’s fixture will carry importance for the playoff ambitions of both teams. While the Battery are in second place right now, they will be looking to lock up a top-four finish to guarantee home-field advantage for as many rounds as possible. For Orange County, they are playing to preserve their place in the postseason, especially since only four points separate the five teams vying for the last two in the playoff spots. Suffice it to say, there’s plenty at stake now that the league nears the business end of the season.
Power of Pink – Debuting on Saturday will be the Battery’s Courage Kit, a pink goalkeeper kit that will also be sold in the team shop and with proceeds benefiting the American Cancer Society’s Men Wear Pink campaign. The goal of the Men Wear Pink campaign is to raise awareness and essential funds in support of breast cancer research, services, and education around screenings and risk reduction.
Gutierrez Completes Monterey Bay Switch – Diego Gutierrez completed a permanent transfer from Charleston to USL Championship side Monterey Bay FC on Thursday. Gutierrez featured in 18 matches for the Battery across all competitions in 2024 and the club wishes him the best of luck in the next chapter of his career.
Scott Unavailable for OCSC – Saturday’s visitors will be without midfielder Kyle Scott, who is serving a one-match suspension for yellow card accumulation. Scott has the second-most minutes played for Orange County this year.
Final Battery Match on Golazo – Charleston will play their seventh and final match on the CBS Sports Golazo Network of the regular season on Saturday. The Battery have been among the most-featured teams in the league on the free streaming platform and were the debut match to open the season back in Week 1.
Archer Milestone Watch – Battery skipper Leland Archer is approaching 150 USL Championship regular season appearances. He currently has 148 to his name.
Party Like It’s 1996 – Charleston will be celebrating the 28th anniversary of the club’s first league title, the 1996 USISL Pro League, won on August 24 over the Charlotte Eagles at Stoney Field after a penalty shootout. Part of the recognition will include former Battery midfielder Gerard Walker serving as honorary captain. Walker, nicknamed “The General,” played for the Battery from the inaugural season in 1993 until 1997, helping lead the team to the 1996 USISL title.
MATCH INFO
- Charleston Battery vs. Orange County SC
- Saturday, August 24 – 7:30 p.m. ET Kickoff
- Patriots Point
HOW TO WATCH:
Saturday’s match will stream for free on the CBS Sports Golazo Network! The Golazo channel can be accessed for free via your CBS Sports app, Paramount+ app, the PlutoTV app or on the channel’s website: https://www.cbssports.com/
The match will also air on local television on WCSC channel 5.3 in Charleston and WIS channel 10.4 in Columbia.
A limited amount of tickets for Saturday are available now via SeatGeek.com, the Battery’s exclusive digital ticketing provider.
