The 2003 season saw three of USL’s top clubs finally raise their league’s championship trophy after years of success while the Cape Cod Crusaders repeated as PDL champions.

 

The Charleston Battery had been the envy of nearly everyone in the A-League for their pearl of a stadium, Blackbaud - the nation's first privately funded soccer-specific stadium.  The club was still missing something to complete the stadium, an A-League championship cup. The Battery finally took care of business in the postseason by downing the perennial power Rochester Rhinos in the conference finals series and downing the Minnesota Thunder, 3-0, in impressive fashion at Blackbaud in the championship.

 

The PSL’s Wilmington Hammerheads returned to the final for the second straight year and came away victorious at home, where they had fallen the year before. This time, the Hammerheads prevailed, edging the Westchester Flames 2-1 in double overtime on a stormy night at the Legion Sports Complex. Wilmington also saw success in the US Open Cup, reaching the Quarterfinals with an upset win over the A-League’s Atlanta Silverbacks, 2-1, and a stunning 4-1 win over the Dallas Burn of MLS. Three days after winning the league title, the club narrowly fell to DC United, 1-0.

 

The Hampton Roads Piranhas, one of the two inaugural W-League clubs along with Long Island, became only the third W-League team to win the championship with an unbeaten record. The club swept its way through the regular season schedule at 12-0 before playing host to the championship tournament. The Piranhas opened with a 4-1 win over Seattle in the semifinals to face the Chicago Cobras, the last club to go unbeaten on their way to the title, going 15-0 before winning in penalty kicks in the final against the Raleigh Wings.

 

Chicago and Hampton Roads battled to the end of regulation scoreless, sending the championship to overtime. Six minutes into the extra frame, Nigerian National Team forward Mercy Akide struck home the game-winner for Hampton Roads, making them only the second club to win the title with a perfect mark. Raleigh accomplished the feat  with a 17-0 record in 1998.