By: Battery Media
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Charleston Battery defeated Birmingham Legion FC, 1-2, in thrilling fashion at Protective Stadium on Saturday. Charleston came back from a 1-0 deficit and scored two late goals, by Tristan Trager (82') and Derek Dodson (90'+1), to secure their first victory over Legion FC since 2019. Augi Williams provided assists for both goals. The Battery's undefeated run extends to five matches.
The Charleston and Birmingham defenses dominated the early stages of the first half, only one shot was had in the opening 20 minutes. Derek Dodson and Juan Sebastian Palma provided much of the defensive muscle to keep Birmingham at bay. Nick Markanich and Emilio Ycaza registered strong shots in the 24th minute but they were blocked and saved, respectively.
Goalkeeper Trey Muse made the save of the night to that point with a diving stop in the 32nd minute to deny Neco Brett. Muse put his body on the line and was shaken up after the play, but soldiered on after a couple of minutes to gather himself. The save was the 300th of Muse's career in the USL Championship regular season.
Birmingham managed to take the lead in the 43rd minute via Prosper Kasim. The 1-0 scoreline held into halftime.
The defensive nature of the first half continued into the second half. Charleston applied heavy pressure and Beto Avila nearly capitalized on goalkeeper Matt van Oekel's apparent lack of urgency to clear the ball out of his box, lunging and blocking the goalkeeper's pass from close range that sent the ball just wide of goal.
Charleston continued to press Legion FC while also firming up defensively. Birmingham were held without a shot on target the whole second half.
With less than 10 minutes of normal time remaining, newly-substituted Tristan Trager scored the equalizing goal in the 82nd minute. Augi Williams picked out Trager with a perfect pass and Trager hit a sublime first-time strike that banged off the far post and into the net. The goal was Trager's third across all competitions this year.
The Battery increasingly took the game to Legion FC as the match entered the waning minutes of the night, showing they had no desire to leave Birmingham with anything less than three points.
Dodson was the man of the moment and scored the match-winner in the 91st minute with a header inside the box. Williams again provided the service with an inviting cross from the left side that Dodson redirected to the far post and past van Oekel's reach. The goal was Dodson's second goal of the season and the assists were Williams' first two of the year.
Charleston held on to steal three points in the Magic City with more later-game magic of their own, 1-2 over Birmingham. Saturday's win extends the Battery's undefeated run to five matches and puts their record at 11W-5L-6D (39 pts), second place in the Eastern Conference standings.
The Battery have now won 14 points from losing positions this year, more than any other club in the USL Championship.
In addition to the match-winning goal, Dodson registered four clearances, four duels won, two blocks and five recoveries on defense. Palma tallied seven duels won, four clearances and two tackles won.
With tonight's tally, Trager's two league goals this season have both been equalizers in the second half after coming off the bench on the road.
Head Coach Ben Pirmann and forward Augi Williams discussed the victory after the final whistle, with key quotes to follow.
