Battery fall 1-2 to Colorado Springs at home

CHARLESTON, S.C. (April 29, 2023) – The Charleston Battery fell 1-2 to Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC on a rainy Saturday at Patriots Point, which included a nearly two-hour weather delay, snapping the club’s 10-game undefeated streak. Charleston went down early but Leland Archer put the team back into the game with a goal in the first half. However, it was a bridge too far in the second half to overcome Colorado Springs’ lead.

The Battery remain atop the Eastern Conference standings and will look to bounce back next week.

Scoring started in the 4th minute when Colorado Springs struck first via Maalique Foster. Play was suspended shortly after due to thunderstorms in the area. After a roughly two-hour delay, the match resumed at 9:32 p.m. ET under moderate rainfall.

Both sides looked to get their footing on the new and slick playing surface in the opening minutes of resumed play. Switchbacks FC doubled their lead in the 15th minute when Steven Echevarria’s shot from outside the box was deflected into the net.

The Battery continued to press forward to get back into the game despite the early 0-2 deficit. Charleston cut into the visitor’s lead in the 27th minute when Leland Archer scored on a header, assisted by Derek Dodson. AJ Paterson initially lifted a cross to Dodson inside the box and Dodson headed the ball back to Archer. The goal was Archer’s third of his career and first since 2021.

Halftime arrived with Colorado holding a 1-2 lead over Charleston.

Goalkeeper Trey Muse made a strong save in the opening minute of the second half, denying Deshane Beckford.

Charleston looked to get a footing through the wings but were unable to find the right combination against Colorado Springs’ defense. Jesse Randall, Derek Dodson and Deklan Wynne led much of the charge forward. The Battery had a trio of shots past the 80th minute, by Paterson, Randall and Dodson, but all were blocked.

The Battery aimed for an equalizer during the eight minutes of stoppage time at the end of the second half, however, Fidel Barajas was the only player able to register a shot. The night ended in a 1-2 defeat for Charleston, snapping the club’s 10-game unbeaten streak to start the season.

As of writing, the Battery remain atop the Eastern Conference standings, despite the loss, with a 4W-1L-3D record (15 pts).

Head Coach Ben Pirmann and defender Derek Dodson discussed the match after the final whistle.

Coach Pirmann’s assessment of tonight’s match…

Firstly, full credit to Colorado Springs. They outplayed us and we could say tired legs or whatever, but they just outworked us mainly in that first little bit. We can’t have that. It was disappointing. We can lose, we can have bad games, but we can’t get outworked and they all worked, so credit to them.

After eight regular season, 10 total, matches, there are still certain trends that need to be fixed. We’re not thorough enough in our progressions. But, we’re probably also ahead of where we need to be, when you step back and you look at the last three months. It’s a good group, I love the boys, they fight, they’re willing to go for it.

Coach Pirmann on the competitiveness of this USL Championship season…

I think the biggest thing that we probably need to take away from this is that there are 23 other teams in this league that are monsters. All of them are as good as we are, so if you don’t bring your A-game each night, you’re gonna get punched in the mouth. We definitely got punched in the mouth.

Coach Pirmann on tonight’s rain delay and the supporters who stuck it out to the end…

Big picture, I appreciate the supporters. Coach Augie, I feel bad for him because it got rained out a little bit, but [thank you to] the supporters that stuck it out. We have a great venue, a great pitch. We had two good teams going at it toe to toe. We love playing for our supporters and want to keep going and pushing on for them.

Dodson on what was difficult about the match…

It’s always tough going down the first five minutes into the game. [The weather delay] gave us a chance to try and regroup, but to be honest, [Colorado Springs] worked harder than us for 90 minutes. It seemed that all 11 of them wanted it a bit more than all 11 of us. Losses come with this game, so we just have to regroup, and come hungry on Monday, because we’ve got big games ahead of us. We have to take this one, learn from it and just keep progressing through the season.

Dodson on staying prepared mentally and physically during a two-hour delay…

One of our big things is controlling what we can control. If there’s something we can’t control, we just have to be able to roll with that. We just had to relax, but stay mentally sharp and engaged, because we knew at any minute, we could get the call that we’re going back out.

Dodson on the team moving forward from the defeat…

It’s a long season, so we were trying to stay undefeated for as long as we could, but losses are going to happen in the game. It’s just about regrouping and learning from this, watching film and seeing what we can do better. And then, just progressing for the season, because we’ve got 28 more games to play.

Next week, the Battery head West for a match on Fri., May 5, against Las Vegas Lights FC, but will return home on Sat., May 13 for a match against San Antonio FC and to celebrate Military Appreciation Night at Patriots Point. Tickets are available now via SeatGeek.com, the Battery’s exclusive digital ticketing provider.