Battery drops into tie for third with Wilmington

Wilmington, N.C. — The Charleston Battery lost to the Wilmington Hammerheads, 2-1, Saturday night at Legion Stadium in front of 4,657 fans.

After taking an early lead the Battery (11-9-1, 34 points) conceded two goals before halftime and was unable to break down a resolute Wilmington defense in the second half.

The loss leaves the Battery in a tie for third position with the Hammerheads (9-6-7, 34) in the USL Pro standings. Charleston trails second-place Rochester by four points with four games remaining.

The Battery opened the scoring in the 27th minute after earning a corner kick on the near side. Zach Prince drove the ball to the back post, where it was redirected across the face of goal. Charlie Romero was first to react to the ball and flicked it up into the roof of the net past goalkeeper Kyle Polack.

Wilmington fought back to level seven minutes later after the Battery failed to clear a long throw-in at the near post. Gareth Evans beat his defender to the ball and snapped a header into the far corner.

The Hammerheads took the lead just before halftime with another well-worked set piece. This time it was a deep corner that was headed back across the face of goal to midfielder Corey Hertzog, who scored.

After the break, the Battery fought hard to find a way back into the game. Prince came close in the 48th minute, but saw his hard shot saved. With 10 minutes left, Dane Kelly saw his headed attempt palmed away.

Next up for the Battery is an away match against the Harrisburg City Islanders at 7 p.m. Wednesday.