The Charleston Battery secured a 2-4 comeback victory over Indy Eleven at Carroll Stadium on Saturday, reaffirming their place atop the Eastern Conference standings. Emilio Ycaza scored in the 19th minute but the Battery quickly found themselves down 2-1 shortly after. Nick Markanich leveled the score before halftime, and an Indy own goal and tally by MD Myers sealed Charleston’s second consecutive win.
The win concluded a challenging stretch of three games in eight days, two of which were on the road, as the Black and Yellow persevered to secure seven points out of a possible nine in that span.
Indy started the match on the front foot, well-rested after not playing since the previous weekend while the Battery navigated a midweek match and travel prior to Saturday’s game. Goalkeeper Adam Grinwis made his first save of the night just 24 seconds in to deny Jack Blake.
Charleston absorbed Indy’s early pressure and responded by scoring the opening goal in the 19th minute through Emilio Ycaza. The threat began with Ycaza winning possession in the attacking half, and then he and Nick Markanich ran a give-and-go in the final third. Markanich assisted Ycaza’s first-time strike to take the lead.
The goal and assist were Ycaza and Markanich’s first of the year, respectively. It was Ycaza third consecutive match with a goal involvement against Indy dating back to 2023 (2G, 1A).
Indy managed to score a pair of goals in rapid succession via Tega Ikoba (27’) and Sebastian Guenzatti (28’) to claim a 2-1 lead at the half-hour mark.
Despite trailing, Charleston remained steadfast in looking to level the score. Markanich did that in stoppage time right before halftime with a stunning strike to the top corner from outside the box. The forward intercepted Indy’s attempt to regain possession and did the rest from there to score his sixth goal of the season.
The late equalizer sent the teams into the break tied at 2-2. Charleston held just under 60% of possession but were out-shot three-to-10 in the opening 45 minutes.
It was all to play for in the second half and neither team showed interest in settling for a point out of the interval. Markanich and Graham Smith each recorded shots in the opening minutes and Augi Williams sent in a shot on target in the 56th minute that drew a routine save from Grinwis. Williams was kept at bay by the back line and only made two touches inside the box.
Charleston began to make meaningful gains with their pressure on Indy and would earn five corner kicks in the second half alone as a result.
One of these corner kicks provided the match-winning tally, as Aaron Molloy whipped a ball in from the corner flag that caught Indy’s Macauley King for an own goal in the 76th minute. It was the first own goal to benefit the Battery in 2024.
Indy weren’t interested in backing down and began throwing numbers forward in search of a late equalizer. This produced two saves from Grinwis, both from the edge of the six-yard box.
MD Myers would take advantage of Indy overexerting themselves and scored the victory-sealing goal in the 86th minute. Myers was played on by Ycaza and Myers beat three Indy defenders before striking a beautiful goal to the top corner of goalkeeper Yannik Oettl’s net.
A particularly memorable moment occurred in the 87th minute when 18-year-old Matthew Dean entered the match in place of MD Myers following the goal. Dean, a USL Academy signing, made his professional debut by subbing in. It marked a full-circle moment for the Georgia Southern University Men’s Soccer signee who first arrived in Charleston during an open tryout before earning his spot on the roster.
With the game all but finished, Indy pressed for a late consolation goal in stoppage time. They nearly had one in the 95th minute, but Grinwis made a spectacular save after going to ground to swat away a point-blank attempt by Douglas Martinez. Grinwis set a new season-high for saves in a match with six against Indy.
Charleston came out victorious 2-4 over Indy, the Battery’s first away win over Indy in the all-time series.
The second consecutive victory for the Battery means the club secured seven points out of a possible nine in the grueling stretch of three games in eight days, two of which were on the road.
Charleston (4W-0L-3D, 15pts) now sit three points clear in first place of the Eastern Conference, above Louisville City FC and Detroit City FC. The Black and Yellow’s undefeated streak to start the year now stands at seven matches.
Head Coach Ben Pirmann and forward Nick Markanich discussed the victory after the final whistle, with key quotes to follow.
Coach Pirmann on the team’s response after going down in the first half…
It was a weird game. We weren’t sharp in the first 15 minutes and we knew that [Indy] were going to come out flying. Our ball speed was not great, the patterns, the timing, and the rhythm were there, but we weren’t executing. We actually were probably fortunate to go up a goal and then we were a little bit unfortunate to go down, to give up those two goals. Nick scored a great goal to tie it up right before the half.
[Indy] were putting us under pressure. Especially in the second half, we really dominated the ball. It was really well done by us in a lot of ways to break those lines and create the moments as the game went on because they had the first six or eight shots in the game.
Coach Pirmann on his message to the squad after the third game in eight days…
I told the team in the pre-match talk, I said, ‘Tuesday was a game you’re probably going to remember for a long time because of the moment and being at home with the fans. This might not be a game you remember forever. But, come August, September, October when things are positioned tight, this [match] is going to be something that’s going to be integral and huge for who we are.’
I told them after the game, I said, ‘It was ugly. We’re tired, we’re dead, we’re sick. A lot of things are working against us. A team fighting for their lives, a good team, a well-coached team, fighting with everything they had.’ They played a great game and we just did what we could to get all three points.
Coach Pirmann on USL Academy signing Matthew Dean making his professional debut tonight…
Mathew is a good young soccer player. I was proud of him and the club for another young Academy player to make their debut. Those are the things that happen when you stick with it and train well. We had a lot of injuries and guys not available tonight and for [Dean] to get on and help us see out the games is fantastic for him. Proud for him and his family, he really deserves it.
Markanich on his equalizer before halftime, with family and friends in the house…
I just knew a knockdown was going to come, so I anticipated it. I got the knockdown and I knew we were in extra time in the first half, so I thought I’d just go for a shot, and thankfully it went in the top corner. I was not too far from the 18-yard box and I had a decent amount of space, so I just ripped it.
It’s always nice to have family there, it was awesome. After I scored, I made sure they knew it was for them. I had 30 or so [family and friends] from both Illinois and Indiana [in the stands].
Markanich on his chemistry with Ycaza that led to the first goal…
Emilio and I are great friends, even off the field. We’re always trying to plan to do stuff together outside of soccer. On the pitch, we always look for each other, tell each other what to do, and try to find each other to make things happen and it worked today.
Markanich on ending the stretch of three games in eight days with a comeback victory…
We had a halftime talk with Coach Ben. We were hyping ourselves up, saying how we really only have 45 minutes left after a long stretch of games, games that were tight between each other. Last Saturday to Tuesday to Saturday, so we only had 45 minutes left to end it, so we were going to have to get another goal, and we got two goals.
Seven points out of nine in those three games, that’s really good. It’s a big win for us. We just have to keep the momentum going for next weekend in Oklahoma
Charleston are on the road again for their next match, on Sat., April 20, against FC Tulsa. The Battery return to Patriots Point on Sat., April 27, to host Las Vegas Lights FC on Community Superhero Night. This match will honor local heroes of police departments, firefighters, frontline workers and more everyday heroes. Tickets for the game are on sale now via SeatGeek.com, the club’s exclusive digital ticketing provider.
Lineups
CHS: Grinwis, Dossantos, Archer, Smith, Segbers, Molloy, Allan (Crawford, 65’), Gutierrez (LaCava, 59’), Markanich (Drack, 87’), Ycaza, Myers (Dean, 87’)
IND: Oettl, Boudadi (King, 45’), Chapman-Page, Diz, Stanley, Blake, Gibson (Mines, 79’), Schneider (Martinez, 65’), Guenzatti, Ikoba, Williams
Scoring Summary
CHS – Emilio Ycaza (Nick Markanich) – 19’
IND – Tega Ikoba (Max Schneider) – 27’
IND – Sebastian Guenzatti (Aedan Stanley) – 28’
CHS – Nick Markanich – 47’
CHS – Macaulay King (Own Goal) – 76’
CHS – MD Myers (Emilio Ycaza) – 86’
