Charleston, SC -Veteran Forward Paul Conway lifted the home town Charleston Battery out of a two game losing streak with a natural hat-trick for the home side in a three goals to one victory over the Pittsburgh Riverhounds in A-League action from Blackbaud Stadium Friday night. The four point victory and the bonus point lifts the Battery into a first place tie with the Hampton Roads Mariners.
The Battery were able to strike first against the Riverhounds when at the sixteenth minute mark, Battery Captain Nicky Spooner delivers a sizzling cross from right to left to a wide open Paul Conway as Conway easily heads the ball into the empty net by the near post to give the home side a 1-0 lead. Meanwhile, the Riverhounds were able to tie the match seven minutes later on a fluke goal when Charleston Defender Darren Warham plays a back pass from 35 yards out to goalkeeper Dusty Hudock that squirts through his legs and rolls into the net thereby allowing a surprise goal for the Riverhounds.
In the second half, the Battery was able to take matters into their own hands thanks to the efforts of Striker Paul Conway. In the sixty-first minute mark, Midfielder Substitute Temoc Suarez delivered a beautiful ball from right to left to a wide open Conway as Conway places the ball past a diving Randy Dedini to give the home side a 2-1 lead which became a lead that the Battery would never relinquish. However, five minutes later the Battery would put the icing on the cake as Dean Sewell beats two Riverhound Defenders and drills a sensational cross from right to left to a wide open Paul Conway inside the box as Conway nets the hat-trick by heading the ball into the open net to the back post before the Blackbaud Stadium faithful. The frantic action continued in the second half but the only major scoring chance made by the Riverhounds in the second stanza came when Midfielder Gary DePalma races onto a Phil Karn through ball from the right side into the box and fires a shot on net but Battery Goalkeeper Dusty Hudock palms the ball way with his right hand ending a great chance by the Riverhounds. With the victory, the Battery are now 4-0-1 at Blackbaud Stadium this year and will host the 1999 MLS Champion DC United in the second round of the US OPEN CUP next Wednesday June 14th, the kickoff is scheduled for 7:30pm. Last season, the Battery shocked DC United 4-3 in a thrilling overtime match in the 1999 US OPEN CUP on its way to the OPEN CUP Final Four.
Game Report by Herman Howard
June 9, 2000 1st 2nd Final
Pittsburgh Riverhounds 1 0 1
Charleston Battery 1 2 3
Scoring Summary:
Battery: Conway (Spooner) 17
Riverhounds: Own Goal 24
Battery: Conway (Suarez) 61
Battery: Conway (Sewell ) 66
CHARLESTON BATTERY - Hudock, Sancho, Baptiste, Woods (Scott 57), Warham (Suarez 57), Sewell (Brownell 83) Spooner, Cloutier, Miller, Conway, Cozier (Akin 64)
SHOTS:11; FOULS :22 ; SAVES: Hudock 9; CORNER KICKS:2 ; OFFSIDE:4; CAUTIONS: Cloutier 32; Sancho 50; Spooner 61;
PITTSBURGH RIVERHOUNDS-Dedini, Terlecky, Wright (DePalma 68), Bonsei, Ihekoronye, Ballenger, Eller, Vasic (Klotz 79), Jones, Butler (Fedoruk 66), Apple (Karn 66)
SHOTS:14; FOULS :18; SAVES: Dedini 4; CORNER KICKS:6 ; OFFSIDE:3 ; CAUTIONS: Vasic 17; Ihekoronye 83; Jones 89; EJECTIONS: None
Referee: Chris Kenney; Referee's Assistants: Sean Hurd, Michael Bice
Attendance: 3,789
Weather: Warm
Blackbaud Player of the Game: Paul Conway
