# 2017 Charleston Battery season

The 2017 Charleston Battery season was the club's 25th year of existence, their 14th season in the second tier of the United States Soccer Pyramid, and their first in the second tier since 2009. It was their seventh season in the United Soccer League as part of the Eastern Conference.
The Battery finished the season 3rd overall in the league, and 2nd in the East. They lost in the first round of the 2017 USL Playoffs.

## Background

The Battery are coming off a season where they finished the USL with 13–9–8 record, good enough to finish sixth in the Eastern Conference and 10th in the USL. They earned a berth into the 2016 USL Playoffs as the number six seed in the Eastern Bracket. There, they beat FC Cincinnati in the first round, 2–1, before losing to Louisville City FC in the Conference Semifinals, 1–0. The Battery reached the third round of the 2016 U.S. Open Cup after beating The Villages SC, 3–0 on a forfeit. The original second round proper fixture was tied 2–2 after extra time, and the Villages won 4–2 in penalties. However, the Battery protested their use of a player cup-tied to Boca Raton FC. The appeal was approved, and the Battery reached the third round where they lost in extra-time to Jacksonville Armada FC in the third round.

## Squad

| No. | Name | Position | Date of Birth (Age) | Previous Club |
| Goalkeepers ||||||
| 0 | Joe Kuzminsky | GK | (1994-01-24)January 24, 1994 (aged 23) | UAB Blazers |
| 1 | Alexandros Tabakis | GK | (1992-12-08)December 8, 1992 (aged 24) | Atlanta United FC |
| 23 | Odisnel Cooper | GK | (1992-03-31)March 31, 1992 (aged 25) | FC Camagüey |
| Defenders ||||||
| 3 | Forrest Lasso | CB | (1993-05-11)May 11, 1993 (aged 24) | Wofford Terriers |
| 4 | Taylor Mueller | CB | (1988-09-20)September 20, 1988 (aged 29) | Washington Crossfire |
| 6 | Skylar Thomas | RB | (1993-07-27)July 27, 1993 (aged 24) | Toronto FC II |
| 7 | O'Brian Woodbine | LB | (1988-01-11)January 11, 1988 (aged 29) | Ottawa Fury FC |
| 11 | Quinton Griffith | RB | (1992-02-22)February 22, 1992 (aged 25) | Antigua Barracuda FC |
| 15 | Mikey Ambrose | CB | (1993-12-05)December 5, 1993 (aged 23) | Atlanta United FC |
| Midfielders ||||||
| 8 | Neveal Hackshaw | CM | (1995-09-21)September 21, 1995 (aged 22) | North East Stars |
| 10 | Ataullah Guerra | AM | (1987-11-14)November 14, 1987 (aged 29) | Central |
| 19 | Dante Marini | LM | (1992-07-21)July 21, 1992 (aged 25) | Reading United |
| 20 | Justin Portillo | CM | (1992-09-09)September 9, 1992 (aged 25) | Coastal Carolina Chanticleers |
| 21 | Maikel Chang | AM | (1991-04-18)April 18, 1991 (aged 26) | FC La Habana |
| 22 | Brian Anunga | RM | (1996-08-06)August 6, 1996 (aged 21) | Carolina Dynamo |
| 24 | Nico Rittmeyer | CM | (1993-10-13)October 13, 1993 (aged 24) | Charleston Cougars |
| 25 | Kotaro Higashi | LM | (1989-01-21)January 21, 1989 (aged 28) | Bonnyrigg White Eagles |
| 28 | Ryan Arambula | RM | (1993-12-19)December 19, 1993 (aged 23) | South Carolina Gamecocks |
| Forwards ||||||
| 9 | Romario Williams | ST | (1994-08-15)August 15, 1994 (aged 23) | Atlanta United FC |
| 16 | Heviel Cordovés | ST | (1989-11-10)November 10, 1989 (aged 27) | FC La Habana |
| 17 | Ricky Garbanzo | ST | (1992-08-26)August 26, 1992 (aged 25) | Coastal Carolina Chanticleers |
| 30 | Jeffrey Otoo | ST | (1998-01-21)January 21, 1998 (aged 19) | Atlanta United FC |

## Competitive
### USL
#### Table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Louisville City FC (C) | 32 | 18 | 8 | 6 | 58 | 31 | +27 | 62 | Conference Playoffs |
| 2 | Charleston Battery | 32 | 15 | 9 | 8 | 53 | 33 | +20 | 54 | Conference Playoffs |
| 3 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 32 | 14 | 11 | 7 | 50 | 35 | +15 | 53 | Conference Playoffs |
| 4 | Rochester Rhinos | 32 | 14 | 11 | 7 | 36 | 28 | +8 | 53 | Conference Playoffs |
| 5 | Charlotte Independence | 32 | 13 | 9 | 10 | 52 | 40 | +12 | 48 | Conference Playoffs |