Thursday, May 8, 2008

TAMPA, FL – Only four weeks into the USL First Division season, the Charleston Battery and Miami FC Blues will square of for a second time when they pick up off a season opening draw Friday night live on Fox Soccer Channel at 8:00 pm ET.

On April 12, the Battery and Blues kicked off the USL-1 schedule in South Florida in dramatic fashion. The two played to a back-and-forth affair in which Charleston rallied twice for a 2-2 draw. Brazilian newcomer Alex Afonso scored on an excellent head to give Miami the lead, but Charleston rookie Dominic Cianciarulo leveled the tally in the 63rd. Jamaican international Sean Fraser put the hosts in the lead in the 82nd, but Cianciarulo struck again in stoppage time to split the points.

A lot changed since the opening game. Cianciarulo has not seen action since for the Battery due to injury, but resumed training this week along with veterans Chris Corcoran and Ian Fuller. Miami lost Fraser to a dislocated right elbow and small fracture as well as defender JP Rodriguez to an ACL tear in his right leg in the next game, a 2-1 come-from-behind loss to Montreal.

Afonso, however, has continued his hot streak since the opener with three goals and an assist so far on the season to lead the league in points.

The Battery are coming off a 2-0 victory at home against the Rochester Rhinos, who were making their season debut. Miami fell at home to the Carolina RailHawks 1-0.

Last year, Charleston won the first two games 2-0 and 3-0 at Blackbaud, but fell 2-3 in Miami as the season closed out. Charleston leads the all-time since Miami’s inception in 2006 with an overall record of 4-2-2 and a mark of 3-0-1 at home.

Next USL on FSC Match: The Minnesota Thunder visit the Atlanta Silverbacks on Friday, May 16 at Silverbacks Park. The game is at 8:00 pm ET on Fox Soccer Channel.