Battery Defeats Patriots Clinches Eastern Conference and Southeast Division Titles with 3-0 road win

 The Charleston Battery defeated the El Paso Patriots tonight (Friday, August 23, 2002) by a score of three goals to none. The win secured the Battery the A-League Eastern Conference title and the Southeast Division. This is the first time in Club history that Charleston has won the A-League Eastern Conference. The Battery will be seeded first in the Eastern bracket and receives an automatic bye into the second round of the playoffs. Charleston improves to a record of 17-3-5, 80 points. With the loss El Paso drops to 10-11-6, 53 points.

The first goal was an own-goal scored by the Patriots in comical fashion. Defender, Carlos Martinez rolled the ball back to his goalkeeper, Freddy Estrada. Estrada went to control it with his foot but he misjudged the speed of the ball and it rolled under his boot and into an open goal.

Late in the first half Patriots defender, Edu Silva was ejected for an elbow to Battery midfielder, Justin Evans. El Paso was thus forced to play the remainder of the game a man short.

The Battery doubled its advantage in the 60th minute. Midfielder Kevin Anderson swept a free kick into the 18-yard box. Substitute midfielder John Jones met the cross and headed the ball back to the other side of the goal. Forward Paul Conway ran onto the pass and slotted the ball past the keeper and into the goal. The goal was Conway’s sixth in his last five outings; he leads the team with twelve strikes for the season.

The final goal came in the 83rd minute. Substitute striker, Raul Diaz Arce stole the ball from an El Paso defender inside the box. He looked up and passed it quickly back to John Jones who stroked it into the goal. The third goal secured Charleston the bonus point and with it the Eastern Conference.

Goalkeeper, Dusty Hudock made three saves to preserve his league-leading twelfth shutout of the 2002 campaign.

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