The Charleston Battery comfortably defeated Miami FC 2-0 on Friday at Patriots Point. Nick Markanich was the man of the night again with a pair of goals in the second half to secure all three points for the Battery, adding to his league-leading total of 18 goals. Charleston are now five games unbeaten.
Charleston and Miami kicked off without any delay and weathered the slick and rainy conditions that persisted throughout the night from the first whistle.
Juan David Torres was among the Battery’s most aggressive players on offense and recorded four shots in the first half (one on target).
The Battery were on the front foot throughout the first 45 minutes but were unable to find a breakthrough goal. MD Myers and Nick Markanich also had shots on target before the break.
The game went into halftime scoreless as the Battery held the lion’s share of possession (roughly 70%) and shots (11 to Miami’s four).
Charleston came out of the break eager to capitalize on the progress they made in the first half and made quick work to do so.
Nick Markanich scored the night’s opening goal in the 47th minute after brilliantly guiding a cross from Mark Segbers into the net. Segbers played the ball to Markanich and Nick’s glancing touch beat goalkeeper Daniel Gagliardi. The tally extended Markanich’s goalscoring streak to four games and the assist was Segbers’ third of the year.
Markanich wasn’t done there and was granted an opportunity for a brace just minutes later. Arturo Rodriguez won a penalty after being taken down in the box and Markanich was tabbed to take the spot attempt. The striker buried it to give the Battery a 2-0 lead in the 51st minute.
Markanich’s second goal was a historic one, as he set a new single-season club record for goals scored in the Battery’s USL Championship era (18). Markanich is closing in on the all-time club record of 27 goals scored in a single season (all competitions), set by Battery legend Paul Conway in 2001.
His 18 goals place him firmly in first of the league’s Golden Boot race. He also reclaimed the top spot as the No. 1 goalscorer across all U.S. domestic leagues this season.
With a 2-0 lead, the Battery continued to apply pressure with their momentum to find another goal. Charleston sent in 12 shots in the second half, while Miami had not recorded a shot on target until the 81st minute, which drew a save from goalkeeper Adam Grinwis.
Another notable moment came in the 91st minute when Zeke Soto entered the match off the bench to make his Battery debut. The 17-year-old joined the club earlier in July and is a rising star in the U.S. youth national team setup.
Charleston saw out the 2-0 victory comfortably to extend their unbeaten run to five matches. It was also their first home win over Miami since 2021.
The victory advances the Battery’s record to 11W-2L-7D (40pts), placing them second in the league table and one point off pace of first.
Midfielder Chris Allan hit a milestone of his own tonight by playing in his 100th career USL Championship regular season match.
Forward Nick Markanich tallied his fourth multi-goal game of the year.
Goalkeeper Adam Grinwis recorded his eighth shutout of the season, adding to the Battery’s league-leading total of 11 clean sheets this season.
Head Coach Ben Pirmann and forward Nick Markanich addressed the media after the match, with key quotes to follow.
Coach Pirmann on Markanich’s performances lately…
Nick’s on fire in terms of scoring goals. Everybody on the team has a job to do, some people have to save the ball, some people have to build it, some people have to run around like crazy, some cross, some pass. Nick’s job is to do a lot of things and one of them he’s been doing well is scoring goals. You can only score if your team’s doing well. You can only score that many goals if your team’s being dominant. We were good tonight I think two [goals] were very well deserved.
Proud for Nick, proud for the team, proud for the club. Hopefully, he’s got a lot more in him and he can keep doing what he does, because if he’s scoring that means we’re probably winning games.
Coach Pirmann on his assessment of the night overall…
It was a good, mature performance. They were selfless with their movements, selfless with their actions. We just got to keep doing that more and more often and for 90 minutes at a time. To whoever else we rely on to score, whether that’s Jackson [Conway], MD [Myers], Arturo [Rodriguez], Emilio [Ycaza], Juan David [Torres], keep scoring, because we just want to keep pushing to get three points each week.
Coach Pirmann on the support from the fans through the rainy weather tonight…
The fans were incredible. Today’s been a weird day all all across the globe, so for them to support with the weather and the rain, it just shows how much they care about our boys and our club. We’re honored to be able to put that jersey on and represent the Charleston Battery. I’m excited for the group, but I’m really excited for the crowd. You can still hear them being animals and that’s what we need every week. So, kudos to them. We want to keep pushing for them.
Markanich on setting a club record in front of his family at Patriots Point…
My dad tries to come often, but I’m happy he’s here to witness me score two goals. He’ll be out here next week. Next Wednesday at Loudoun, he’s gonna go out there too, so I’ll see him again. It’s awesome having family here. He tries to just come out here as much as possible. He’s just happy for me. He thought I could get a couple more [goals].
[My bother texted me at halftime], he just said ‘keep going, you’re gonna get one’.
I mean it’s an awesome feeling. I’m glad I’m in the history books, so I’m happy to get two goals tonight and a win, especially, so move on to the next game.
Markanich on turning the match around after halftime…
We knew coming out at halftime we needed to come out stronger, and just like the last couple games, the second half has been very strong. So, we came out strong in the second half and luckily we got the early goal, [and thought] hopefully get another one, too, to finish out the game. It was awesome.
Juan David hit the post a couple of times this game, but [Miami] sat back and so it was kind of hard to break them through. So, we just had to make more vertical runs and make more movements and I think we did that a lot in the second half and it worked out.
Markanich on the support from the fans tonight…
We always hear them. And especially out here, rainy night, I know a lot of people don’t want to be out here, but they were loud and enjoyed it. I’m glad they’re always supporting us. It’s nice.
Charleston are set for a two-game road trip next week against Loudoun United FC (July 24) and the Tampa Bay Rowdies (July 27). The Battery return home on Fri., Aug. 2, to host Indy Eleven at Patriots Point for 93 Night. Tickets for the game are on sale now via SeatGeek.com, the club’s exclusive digital ticketing provider.
Lineups and Scoring Summary
Lineups
CHS: Grinwis, Segbers, Smith, Archer (Drack, 76’), Dossantos, Allan (Crawford, 76’), Molloy, Rodriguez (Ycaza, 67’), Markanich (Soto, 90 +1’), Torres (Gutierrez, 85’), Myers (Conway, 76’)
MIA: Gagliardi, Biek (DePaula, 85’), Knutson, Mitrano, Palacios (Pedro, 59’), Cardona, Cabral, Molina (Ayimbila, 76’), Murana (Santana, 85’), Lopez, Gavilanes
Scoring Summary
CHS – Nick Markanich (Mark Segbers), 47’
CHS – Nick Markanich, 51’
