RICHMOND,
VA – The
Richmond Kickers captured three points at City Stadium Saturday night
with a 4-1 win over the defending USL PRO Champions Charleston Battery.
Zimbabwean International Joseph Ngwenya opened scoring and D.C.
United forward Casey Townsend registered a pair of goals for the Kickers
while Battery defender John Wilson’s
tally prevented the shutout in front of 2,497 fans.
 |
| Photo (c) Suz Kitsteiner |
The
Kickers claimed an early lead when midfielder Luke Vercollone collected
the ball in the midfield and found defender Taylor Kemp on the left
wing.
Splitting a pair of defenders with his well-timed pass, Kemp
connected with Ngwenya who eluded a tackle and played the ball wide to
Alex Lee at the far post.
The Kickers newcomer whipped the ball back into the mix, finding
Ngwenya in the air, who nodded the ball just over Charleston goalkeeper
Odisnel Cooper’s outstretched hands to officially open his Kickers
account in the 23rd minute.
Ten
minutes later, Kickers midfielder Mike Callahan carried the ball to the
top of the box and fed it to Brian Ownby deep in Battery territory.
The Richmond homegrown player played the ball back to an awaiting
Townsend, positioned six yards out who made no mistake from point blank
range to double the score.
Ownby
nearly strengthened the home side’s lead three minutes later when he fed the ball to an onrushing Vercollone.
The Kickers workhorse did not miss a beat when collecting the
service and beat the ‘keeper as he charged off his line, but Battery
defender Cody Ellison cleared the ball just in time.
Pressing
forward, Wilson pulled a goal back for Charleston seconds before the
halftime whistle when he combined with Mike Azira for a give and go at
the top of the box.
Azira received the ball and slotted it across the goalmouth as
the Battery’s veteran defenseman calmly buried the return ball into the
back of the net.
Searching
for the equalizer immediately after the restart, the Battery sliced
through the midfield with a rapid succession of passes, ending with
midfielder Nicki Paterson 12 yards out, only to see his low driven ball
denied by the near post.
The
Kickers retaliated in the 67th minute as Townsend grabbed his second goal of the night.
Battling for possession at the left edge of the box, midfielder
Stanley Nyazamba muscled his way through traffic to feed the ball to the
awaiting MLS veteran to elude Cooper once more.
Kickers
goalkeeper Andrew Dykstra weathered a barrage of chances in the last 10 minutes before an 87th minute Battery own goal clinched the 4-1 victory.
The
Richmond Kickers return to City Stadium next Saturday, April 13 to host the Rochester Rhinos at 7:00 p.m.
Order tickets in advance at RichmondKickers.com.
Box Score First Half Second Half Final
Richmond
2 2
4
Charleston
1 0
1
Scoring Summary
23rd
minute: Richmond - Joseph Ngwenya (Alex Lee)
32nd
minute: Richmond - Casey Townsend (Brian Ownby)
45th
minute: Charleston - John Wilson (Jose Cuevas)
68th
minute: Richmond – Casey Townsend (Stanley Nyazamba)
87th
minute: Richmond – Own Goal (Cody Ellison)
Lineups
Kickers:
GK Andrew Dykstra, Alex Lee, Conor Shanosky, William Yomby, Taylor
Kemp, Luke Vercollone, Mike Callahan, Brian Ownby (Sascha Görres – 74’),
Joseph Ngwenya (Stanley Nyazamba - 49’), Casey Townsend (Philippe
Davies – 90’), Jason Yeisley (Henry Kalungi – 74’)
Battery:
GK Odisnel Cooper, Taylor Mueller (Mark Wiltse – 64’), Colin Falvey,
Cody Ellison, John Wilson, Jarad Van Schaik, Mike Azria (Heviel Cordoves
– 74’), Quinton Griffith, Nicki Paterson, Jose Cuevas (Ben Fisk – 45’),
Dane Kelly (Zach Prince – 78’)
Shots Saves Fouls Corners
Battery:
10 Battery:
4 Battery:
9 Battery:
6
Kickers:
9 Kickers:
2
Kickers: 7
Kickers: 3
Cautions:
None.
Ejections:
None.
Referee:
Mark
Gorak
Assistant
Referees:
James Brooks, Clive Edwards
Fourth
Official: Ben
Hichak
Attendance:
2,497
Weather:
Sunny, windy, 70º
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