Saturday, May 26, 2012

CHARLESTON, S.C. -- The Charleston Battery defeated the Los Angeles Blues 1-0 on Saturday night at Blackbaud Stadium in front of 4,344 fans. Battery captain Colin Falvey scored early in the match to lift the Battery to a victory.

“Our defense did well, you can see the guys weren’t as sharp as we have been because of that nine-day lay off,” said Battery Head Coach Mike Anhaeuser, “but we will take the three points.”

The deciding goal came in the 14th minute when the Battery were awarded a free kick 40 yards out. Jose Cuevas bent the ball onto the top of the penalty area to find Falvey, who fired a header in the upper right corner of the net past Blues goalkeeper, Amir Abedzadeh. The Battery almost doubled their lead just before the half-hour mark as Amadou Sanyang headed just over, and the Blues had chances of their own, but the Battery held their 1-0 lead to the break.

As the game wore on each team had some chances, Charleston's Sallieu Bundu having a good effort saved by Abedzadeh late in the game, but Falvey’s lone goal and a strong performance by the Battery's defense proved to be the difference. Battery goalkeeper Andrew Dykstra was credited with three saves en route to his shutout.

With the win, the Battery (5-2-0) stays in third place in the USL PRO standings with 15 points, closing the gap on second-placed Rochester to five after their 2-2 draw with the Dayton Dutch Lions on Saturday night.

The Battery’s next game is on Tuesday evening when they host Major League Soccer’s New York Red Bulls in the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup at Blackbaud Stadium; gates open at 6 p.m. with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. ($10 - $18, www.charlestonbattery.com / (843) 971-4625).

The Battery returns to USL PRO action with a three game road swing starting Thursday, May 31st at the Pittsburgh Riverhounds.