Cameron Lancaster scored for the third game running, but a late Charleston Battery equalizer led Louisville City FC to share points Wednesday night.
Both teams’ goals followed a mid-game deluge at Lynn Family Stadium, where the game continued through a driving rainstorm en route to a 1-1 final score.
The result left the USL Championship foes in their top-four Eastern Conference positions and came on the heels of another draw between the sides back on April 22 — also over a soaked pitch.
“I think tonight we certainly deserved (points) more than when we tied at their place,” said coach Danny Cruz. “These are two good teams. It was a good match — chances on both sides of the ball. We needed to be better there in the second half, but the first half was excellent. I was happy with that.
“There’s room to improve, no question about it, but I still think it was a solid performance.”
LouCity (10-7-6, 36 points) took points from a third straight game, offering a strong response to a rare three-match losing streak for the club last month. The boys in purple scored for a fourth straight contest, too, for their longest consecutive run of the season.
They threatened Charleston (11-6-7, 40 points) through most of the second half, trying four shots in the box. That included a chip over the bar and a an attempt pushed wide right by midfielder Dylan Mares.
Mares, though, made good by creating City’s breakthrough chance. He flicked a headed ball through to Lancaster in the 80th minute, and the striker delivered with a driven shot from distance. It marked the 79th career regular season goal for Lancaster, tying him with Hadji Barry for second on the USL Championship’s all-time list.
“I think we played 99% of a pretty good game — stuck to the game plan well, tried to get in behind them and switch the point of attack a lot,” said defender Kyle Adams. “I think the chances were there, but it’s just about there being a little more quality in that final product and just being clinical when defending our box down there.
“…I think we all would have liked a clean sheet and a win. Maybe at the end of the season we’ll look back and see it as a point gained, but tonight we feel it’s probably two points lost.”
The Battery offered a strong response to Lancaster’s strike, peppering LouCity with a pair of shots on target and a blocked try in the two minutes leading up to the tying goal. Finally, Emilio Ycaza got on the end of an 80th-minute Fidel Barajas cross to level the score.
Neither side converted again, but a last-ditch Charleston attempt did hit the back of the net. The referee waved off the final play of the game for a foul.
“Once we got the goal, I felt we dropped off a little bit,” Cruz said. “We conceded a little too much possession. I haven’t seen the goal back. It was tough for me to see from the sideline, but I walk off the field not feeling frustrated about the performance.
“I thought the performance was good. I thought we created chances — good service. We started the same team three weeks in a row. Maybe a little fatigue set in there around the 65th, 70th minute.”
After getting consistency in its lineup through the current unbeaten streak, changes are likely on the weekend considering both Brian Ownby and Amadou Dia subbed off early with injury concerns. The boys in purple turn around to host Rio Grande Valley FC on short rest with kickoff set for 8 p.m. Saturday at Lynn Family Stadium.
Game Summary: Louisville City FC vs. Charleston Battery
Date: August 9, 2023
Venue: Lynn Family Stadium
Kickoff: 8 p.m. ET
Weather: 78 degrees, rain
Attendance: 7,285
Scoring
Louisville City FC (0, 1, 1)
Charleston Battery (0, 1, 1)
Goals
Louisville City FC:
68’ Cameron Lancaster
Charleston Battery:
80’ Emilio Ycaza (Fidel Barajas)
Lineups
Louisville City FC: 28 — Oliver Semmle, 32 — Kyle Adams, 6 — Wes Charpie, 4 — Sean Totsch, 19 — Oscar Jimenez, 13 — Amadou Dia (54’ 15 — Manny Perez), 12 — Tyler Gibson, 23 — Elijah Wynder (85’ 7 — Ray Serrano), 10 — Brian Ownby (54’ 22 — Dylan Mares), 5 — Rasmus Thellufsen (85’ 11 — Niall McCabe), 17 — Cameron Lancaster (73’ 14 — Wilson Harris)
Subs not used: 18 — Danny Faundez, 90 — Maarten Pouwels
Head coach: Danny Cruz
Charleston Battery: 25 — Trey Muse, 5 — Derek Dodson, 28 — Leland Archer (74’ 19 — Robbie Crawford), 23 — Juan Sebastian Palma, 14 — Deklan Wynne, 4 — Chris Allan, 8 — Emilio Ycaza, 13 — Pierre Reedy, 2 — Nick Markanich (74’ 21 — Tristan Trager), 9 — Augustine Williams, 69 — Beto Avila (64’ 11 — Fidel Barajas)
Subs not used: 24 — Dan Kuzemka, 3 — AJ Cochran, 20 — AJ Paterson, 7 — Andrew Booth
Head coach: Ben Pirmann
Stats Summary: Louisville City FC / Charleston Battery
Shots: 15 / 11
Shots on Goal: 1 / 5
Possession: 48.9% / 51.1%
Fouls: 14 / 14
Offside: 3 / 3
Corner Kicks: 7 / 8
Discipline Summary
Louisville City FC:
Charleston Battery:
73’ Juan Sebastian Palma (yellow)
Referee: Brandon Stevie
