Las Vegas Lights FC is visiting the Charleston Battery on Saturday in their first and only meeting of the season. Here is everything you need to know:
WHEN AND WHERE: Kickoff is at 1:00 p.m. PT at Patriots Point in Mount Pleasant, S.C.
WHERE TO WATCH: The match will be available to watch locally on SSSEN and streamed nationally on ESPN+ (subscription required).
2024 RECORDS AND STANDINGS: Las Vegas: 3-4-0 (9 points, 6th West), Charleston: 5-0-3 (18 points, 1st East)
FORM GUIDE (all competitions, most recent first): Las Vegas: LWLWW, Charleston: WWWDW
PREVIOUS MEETING: Charleston defeated Las Vegas 1-0 on May 5, 2023, at Cashman Field behind a 59th-minute penalty from Augustine Williams.
GUT CHECK: Saturday’s match starts a month-long stretch of games that will serve as a strong measuring stick for Head Coach Dennis Sanchez’s team. Starting with the Battery, the Lights will take on New Mexico United, San Antonio FC, Louisville City, the Tampa Bay Rowdies and Phoenix Rising, while also playing host to MLS side Los Angeles FC in the U.S. Open Cup.
NOËL FIRING: Lights midfielder Valentin Noël continued his torrid start to the season with a goal in the second straight game last weekend against Rhode Island FC. The Frenchman now has four goals and an assist in all competitions this year.
LEAGUE-LEADERS: Charleston leads the USL Championship with 18 points from eight matches and is one of just four unbeaten teams.
ATTACKING PROWESS: A big reason for the Battery’s early success has been their ruthless play in the final third. They lead the league in both goals (18) and total shots (134) with seven different players having scored.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
Lights FC midfielder Charlie Adams
On the focus for this weekend:
The focus has been on us and focusing on the way we want to play and really nailing down the identity of how we want the game to look…This league now is not like years past where you show up to some games and all you have to do is show up to win. Now every single team is competitive, every single team has beaten one another, so it’s a case of sticking to our identity, our principles and we try and enforce that on Saturday.
Lights FC defender Gennaro Nigro
On fine-tuning the details of a match as the group gets more familiar…
It’s just understanding the little moments and diversifying and not become monotonous with what we do. It’s still a work in progress and not going to come overnight. We have to remind ourselves that each game is an opportunity to learn more about one another and as a result improve everything as a collective.
Lights FC Head Coach Dennis Sanchez
On preparing for a tough Battery team…
Charleston is a very well-coached team. They’re top of the table right now and have a lot of momentum and are really well-balanced, but we want to test ourselves against the best. We feel that we can play with the best. There’s no better opportunity to do that than this weekend…We’re really looking forward to the challenge at hand.
CHARLESTON PLAYER TO WATCH: Aaron Molloy, M
Nick Markanich (seven goals) and MD Myers (five goals) will draw much of the headlines, but everything runs through Molloy. The Irishman is in his first season in Charleston and leads the USL Championship in total passes (554) and is second in chances created (22).
