BY KEITH NAMM
Of The Post and Courier staff
BATTERY 5, METROS 2
Paul Conway scored three first-half goals to lead the Battery to a 5-2 A-League victory over the Nashville Metros before 2,827 at Blackbaud Stadium on Saturday night.
The victory was the fourth in a row in league play for Charleston (4-2, 19 points), which moved past the Metros (4-3, 14 points) into first place in the Central Conference.
After Jakob Fenger scored a fifth-minute goal for Nashville, the Battery scored four unanswered goals before intermission. Jon Akin, who had three assists, set up Conway's first goal in the 11th minute. In the 27th minute, Brian Piesner's first of two assists led to Conway's second goal.
Piesner made it 3-1 in the 40th minute off an Akin assist, and Conway scored in the 45th minute off a Piesner setup for a 4-1 lead. The Metros, who had won their three previous league games, cut it to 4-2 on Brian Hinkey's 58th-minute score.
Charleston's Velko Iotov then capped the scoring after an Akin feed in the 62nd minute.
The Battery finished with a 16-13 edge in shots and got six saves from keeper Dusty Hudock.
Charleston next plays at 7:30 p.m. Friday at home against the USL D3 Pro League's Carolina Dynamo in a U.S. Open qualifying match.
