Battery drops third straight with loss to Charlotte

Charlotte — The Charleston Battery lost a third straight game, dropping a 1-0 decision to the Charlotte Eagles on Saturday night at Charlotte Christian Stadium in front of 693.

Eagles forward Darryl Roberts scored the lone goal in the 36th minute to lift Charlotte (6-8-2, 17 points) to victory as the Battery (10-6-0, 30 points) slipped into third place in the USL Pro standings.

The first chance of the game fell to the Battery in only the second minute. Charlotte failed to clear a long ball and Charleston midfielder Nicki Paterson was the first to react to the loose ball. Paterson struck the ball well from 20 yards out, but his shot curled wide of the post.

Charlotte broke the deadlock in the 36th minute after right-midfielder Cheyne Roberts muscled his way past JC Mack. Robert crossed the ball into the middle and forward Darryl Roberts tucked away the chance with a superb curling volley.

The Battery still had chances to tie, with the best opportunity coming in stoppage time to substitute midfielder Jose Cuevas. Cuevas pulled off his defender at the back post, but his snap header from close range was saved by Reed at the near post.

The Battery returns to Blackbaud Stadium next Saturday night to play the Wilmington Hammerheads at 7:30 p.m.