The Charlotte Independence (16-5-5, 53 Points) have played four matches in two weeks, and have 7 points — and a guaranteed playoff berth — to show for their efforts.
Though they lost an important match to first place Union Omaha (17-6-4, 55 Points) after a Souaibou Marou red card left the Jacks shorthanded, and last night’s draw put them in second place in the USL League One table, the Independence control their playoff destiny.
With a game in hand over Omaha, the Jacks can secure the Player’s Shield - the award for the best regular season record in League One - even if both teams win out. The Independence also have a superior goal differential of +23 to +19 for the Owls.
By scoring 9 goals over the four match run, they’ve also tied Union Omaha’s all-time League One record for most goals in a season, with (61). With six more matches to play this season, it’s a record that will almost certainly belong to the Jacks in the near future.
The Independence next travel to Virginia on Saturday, September 19 to face the last place Richmond Kickers (5-15-5, 20 Points). After that, they go back to a one-match-a-week schedule, culminating in a final regular season home match against 16th place New York Cosmos (6-15-4, 22 Points) on October 10th, and a Decision Day match against 11th place Portland Hearts of Pine (7-11-8, 29 Points) on October 24.
The Independence’s most important match remaining, however, could be their home fixture against eighth place Fort Wayne FC (10-9-6, 36 Points). Fort Wayne is their only remaining opponent currently above the playoff line, so should the Jacks falter down the stretch this match will do the most to help them retain home field advantage.
Independence Best Westchester in Frantic 5 - 4 Win
Christopher Jaime’s 91st-minute strike capped a wild 5-4 win for the Charlotte Independence over Westchester SC on Saturday, September 12 at American Legion Memorial Stadium, securing a playoff berth for the 7th consecutive season.
The nine-goal fixture also ranks as the second-highest scoring match in USL League One history.
Both sides mounted two-goal comebacks in a basketball-style contest that had the 656 fans in attendance roaring. Joey Skinner had a brace, and Christopher Jaime, Christy Manzinga, and Viggo Ortiz all had a goal apiece. Jon Bakero had two assists, while Jaime, Manzinga, and captain Clay Dimick all had one.
At the start, Westchester raced out to a 2-0 lead. Westchester’s Conor McGlynn converted an 18th-minute penalty past Independence goalkeeper George Tasouris, and Jack Loura headed home his first professional goal in the 27th.
Notably, McGlynn would add two more goals in Westchester’s Saturday match against the Richmond Kickers, raising his season total to 13 and putting him one ahead of previous Golden Boot leader Souaibou Marou, who missed the Westchester match due to a red card suspension.
Despite McGlynn and Loura’s strikes, Charlotte flipped the script in two minutes: Skinner curled one into the side netting, then Ortiz leveled with a deflected finish. Bakero’s pinpoint corner found Skinner for his second, completing the brace.
Christy Manzinga added a fourth before halftime to put the Jacks ahead 4-2.
Westchester refused to go away. Substitute Koen Blommenstijn scored twice in under 15 minutes—first to make it 4-3, then equalizing in the 77th—to force a frantic finish. It was a tough night for Tasouris, who was making his first ever USL League One start in goal due to Matt Levy’s injury.
Charlotte kept pushing, and when Clay Dimick won the ball high, Jaime drove forward and smashed a left-footed rocket into the roof of the net, sending Memorial Stadium into a frenzy.
“This isn’t a game that I think any of us wanted to drop any points from,” said Jamie “So, it just took a little bit of individual magic, honestly. But it all starts with Clay winning it and the whole team pushing up. So I just decided to bang it in. I’m very glad that we were able to win.”
Saturday’s win also marked a milestone for Jeffries, who earned his 150th victory of his USL career across all USL competitions. Jeffries became just the second head coach to reach the milestone, joining Bob Lilley (183), and the first to record all 150 victories with a single club.
Shorthanded Jacks Bring the Fight to Boise
Despite going down a man inside the opening 11 minutes, the Charlotte Independence battled to a 1-1 draw at AC Boise on Wednesday night. The Jacks delivered one of their strongest defensive performances of the season for their hardest-earned result of the year.
After the early red card in Omaha last week, it was deja vu all over again as Sega Coulibaly picked up two quick yellow cards and was sent off early. The Independence moved forward with Reudd Manin at center back.
Independence head coach Mike Jeffries told reporters that the Independence had worked on their 10 man play after facing a similar situation in Omaha, when Marou was sent off early and the Jacks fell 2-0.
“We took our lessons from Omaha and implemented them quite well,” said Jeffries. “I thought we were much better disciplined, kept a really good shape, and so forth throughout.”
The Jacks stayed compact and limited Boise’s chances through the first half, with a Philip Mayaka shot at the crossbar being the closest the hosts came before the break.
“Getting into halftime was huge,” said Jeffries. “We had our moments in the first half, but for the most part, they had a lot of the game. I didn’t feel like we gave away a ton of chances.”
At halftime, Ukrainian international Denys Kostyshyn came in for injured Boise captain Blake Bodily. Kostyshyn, who leads Boise in scoring with 8 goals this season, was playing in the top flight of Ukrainian football in 2022 before Russia’s illegal invasion of his home country, and left to play for El Paso Locomotive in the USL Championship in 2023.
True to his pedigree, Kostyshyn changed the game in the 57th minute when he headed home Dominic Gasso’s cross at the back post.
The Independence didn’t wait to respond.
The Jacks’ Christy Manzinga won a free kick near the edge of the box, setting up a set piece play. Jon Bakero delivered an excellent ball, and Manin touched it past Boise goalkeeper Jonathan Kliewer to level the score just five minutes later.
The assist was Bakero’s 13th of the season, solidifying his single-season record.
The Jacks then dug in.
Joey Skinner produced a remarkable last-ditch block to deny Kostyshyn in the 78th minute, Matt Levy made a sharp reflex save, and an apparent late winner for Thomas Amang was correctly ruled offside — though a previous Boise goal was disallowed on a favorable foul for Charlotte.
Charlotte settled into a deep low block, headed everything clear, and held on for a massive road point while playing more than 80 minutes a man down.
“I thought the guys were incredibly gritty, really disciplined. Just incredible work-rate and effort. Concentration was huge tonight,” said Jeffries. “Even at the end of the game, they threw everything at us, and we kept our composure, managed the game well, and maybe even had a little bit of a chance at the end to steal it completely, which I thought was a pretty good credit to the group. Everybody out there put their heart into it.”
Though they dropped below Union Omaha in the table, the result keeps the Independence firmly in the thick of the Players’ Shield race. After a resilient night in Idaho, the Jacks sit in second with 53 points to Omaha’s 55, as well as a game in hand and a superior goal differential of 23 to 19 for the Owls.
“This was a huge result for the group,” said Dimick. “This shows what our mentality has been all year, fighting through adversity and tough situations to get something out of games no matter what. I couldn’t be more proud of the group and everything we put into this game. We know that every game is huge this stage in the season and this point is a massive one.”
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