Charleston Battery's Coleman ready for his time in spotlight

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Charleston Battery striker Levi Coleman has scored a goal and added an assist in his first two games of the season.

There won't be a sophomore slump for Charleston Battery striker Levi Coleman.

A year ago as a rookie, Coleman was a key reserve coming off the bench and providing the Battery with instant offense. Spread out over 19 games, Coleman was on the field for just 453 minutes. Despite his limited playing time, he managed two goals and two assists, good enough for fifth on the team in scoring last summer.

"Coming off the bench you're looking for that guy that provides some offense," said Charleston Battery coach Mike Anhaeuser. "He did a good job of helping our attack, getting the ball forward and creating scoring chances. Like a lot of rookies he struggled a little bit with the pro game, but overall I thought he had a really good first season."

It was difficult for Coleman to get on the field with Tom Heinemann and Lamar Neagle entrenched in the starting lineup. Neagle ended up as the USL Second Division MVP with a league-high 14 goals, while Heinemann had eight goals and seven assists. Neagle (Seattle) and Heinemann (Columbus) have both since moved on to Major League Soccer.

"Some guys might have been frustrated, but I don't think I could have stepped into a better situation for my first pro season," Coleman said. "There wasn't a lot of pressure on me to get on the score sheet every game. I could work my way into the lineup, get a feel for the game at the pro level and then learn from two really good players."

That was the key for Coleman, who was eager to learn and always asking questions of Heinemann and Neagle.

"I wanted to start, I wanted to be on the field, but I knew I had to wait my turn," Coleman said. "I could not have learned from two better players in Lamar and Tom. They both taught me so much about the game at this level. What worked for me in college wasn't going to work at this level."

Neagle and Heinemann had contrasting styles as well, so Coleman was able to pick and choose from each player what would best suit his game.

"Lamar really worked hard on shooting and finishing," Coleman said. "He didn't have the hardest shot, but he could put the ball where he wanted it to go. That's why he was such a good goal scorer last year. Tom taught me how to be stronger, to hold the ball and then get my teammates involved. I learned a lot about when to make runs from both of them."

With Heinemann and Neagle out of the picture, Coleman has made the most of his opportunity this season, scoring one goal last weekend against Richmond.

"I think the biggest thing for Levi is that he came into our preseason camp very fit," Anhaeuser said. "He's put on about 10 pounds, but his body fat is down, so Levi is able to play 70, 80 and 90 minutes a game at a very high level."

At 6-2 and 190 pounds, Coleman has that rare combination of size and speed.

"He's gotten so much stronger on the ball," said Charleston defender Colin Falvey. "I could push him around last year during our training sessions, but he's not so easy to move this season. I think he's a little hungrier around the net."

Dykstra out

Charleston Battery keeper Andrew Dykstra will miss three to four weeks with a broken foot. Dykstra, who has given up just one goal in two starts, had surgery to repair the foot last week.