Rhode Island
Rhode Island FC beats Charleston Battery. Next stop: the league championship match
MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. – Emilio Ycaza and Nick Markanich walked over to the Charleston Battery end zone to salute the club’s supporters one last time.
After the pair acknowledge their fans the two turned and embraced for a long moment. The duo looked down the field at Rhode Island’s jubilant celebration and could only shake their heads and think about what might have been had things gone differently.
But this is playoff soccer.
For the second straight year, the Charleston Battery had to watch a visiting team celebrate on their home field and hoist a trophy following the match.
Karifa Yao and Noah Fuson each scored for Rhode Island FC and held off a furious Charleston rally to beat the Battery, 2-1, in the USL Championship Eastern Conference finals before a sellout crowd of more than 5,000 at Patriots Point on Saturday night.
Rhode Island will face the winner of the Colorado Switchbacks FC-Las Vegas Lights FC in the USL Championship final next Saturday.
Charleston Battery forward Nick Markanich and MD Myers came into the playoffs as the highest scoring duo in USL Championship history – combining for 47 goals. But the Rhode Island defense harassed the pair for the entire match, not allowing them to get into any rhythm.
“They are going to get the ball and they’re going to get it in dangerous spaces, and you just have to hope you keep them in areas of the field where they can’t hurt,” said Rhode Island coach Khano Smith. “They certainly had some opportunities, but we tried to at least nullify them getting into dangerous areas.”
The match was physical from the opening kickoff as several post-play scrums between the teams erupted during the match.
“They fouled Nick and the guys and kicked the crap out of us and the ref allowed that to happen,” Pirmann said. “That’s not why we lost. They made sure our playmakers couldn’t get into a flow, and it didn’t go our way.”
Rhode Island grabbed a 1-0 lead on Yao’s header in the 43rd minute off a throw-in from midfielder Clay Holstad.
RIFC extended its lead to 2-0 on Fuson’s blast from just inside the 18-yard box. After a buildup in the Battery’s defensive third, Fuson got the ball on the left side and muscled it past Battery keeper Adam Grinwis for the score.
Charleston cut the lead in half on Juan David Torres’ free kick in the 61st minute.
The loss ended the Battery’s quest for a second straight appearance in the USL Championship finals. A year ago, Pheonix Rising FC defeated the Battery on penalty kicks in the championship game on the same field.
“This just stinks,” said Charleston Battery coach Ben Pirmann. “Sports in general can be the most amazing thing and it can also be the cruelest thing. I’ll be fine, I can compartmentalize, I’m task oriented, but I just feel for these players.”
The two teams battled to a scoreless tie and a 1-1 draw in their two matchups during the regular season.
With Saturday’s win, RIFC becomes the first expansion club to qualify for the USL Championship final in its inaugural season since Louisville City FC in 2015.
This story was provided by The Post and Courier of Charleston, S.C.
apmiller@postandcourier.com
What will RI look like in 2050? RI GOP leader fears rising spending
25 years into the new millennium, we asked, ‘What will the next 25 years bring’? House minority leader says it’s not too late to change trajectory
Rhode Island Republican Party chairman Joe Powers will resign effective Jan. 15, the party announced on Saturday, Jan. 3.
“Chairman Powers is stepping down due to the increased demands of his professional workload and an extensive travel schedule that no longer allow him to give the Chairmanship the full attention the position requires,” the party said in a news release. “The role of Chairman demands constant focus, and daily engagement especially moving into an election year, neither of which Chairman Powers can provide at this time.”
Powers a, real estate agent and unsuccessful 2022 candidate for a Cranston Senate seat, was elected to lead the state’s Republican Party in March 2023. He was reelected to a second two-year term in March.
During his tenure, Powers “oversaw meaningful organizational progress, including the successful update of the Party’s ByLaws and the full staffing of Party committees for the first time in over 20 years, establishing a strong and durable foundation heading into the next election cycle,” the GOP news release said.
Powers will remain on the GOP’s state Central Committee as chairman emeritus and will “continue to support Rhode Island Republicans in a smaller capacity,” the release said, thanking him “for his leadership and service.”
The Rhode Island Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Dec. 28, 2025, results for each game:
Winning Lucky For Life numbers from Dec. 28 drawing
12-17-25-34-42, Lucky Ball: 09
Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Numbers numbers from Dec. 28 drawing
Midday: 5-2-7-6
Evening: 9-5-9-8
Check Numbers payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Wild Money numbers from Dec. 28 drawing
01-13-20-24-34, Extra: 16
Check Wild Money payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize
- Prizes less than $600 can be claimed at any Rhode Island Lottery Retailer. Prizes of $600 and above must be claimed at Lottery Headquarters, 1425 Pontiac Ave., Cranston, Rhode Island 02920.
- Mega Millions and Powerball jackpot winners can decide on cash or annuity payment within 60 days after becoming entitled to the prize. The annuitized prize shall be paid in 30 graduated annual installments.
- Winners of the Lucky for Life top prize of $1,000 a day for life and second prize of $25,000 a year for life can decide to collect the prize for a minimum of 20 years or take a lump sum cash payment.
When are the Rhode Island Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 10:59 p.m. ET on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 11:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 10:30 p.m. ET daily.
- Numbers (Midday): 1:30 p.m. ET daily.
- Numbers (Evening): 7:29 p.m. ET daily.
- Wild Money: 7:29 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Rhode Island editor. You can send feedback using this form.
Claudia Wack talks about what housing will look like in 25 years
Neighbors Welcome! RI President Claudia Wack predicts what the housing landscape will look like in 25 years in Rhode Island.
Predicting the future isn’t easy. Back in 2000, who would have thought that by 2025 the Pawtucket Red Sox would no longer exist, or Rhode Island’s first female governor would be telling people to “knock it off” as a pandemic shut down the state?
Now, as we embark on the second quarter of the 21st century, what could Rhode Island look like in 2050? The staff at The Providence Journal asked leaders in their field for their thoughts on what Rhode Island will look like in 2050. Here’s what they had to say.
Name: Claudia Wack
Hometown: Providence
Title: President, Neighbors Welcome! RI, a housing advocacy group
What will Rhode Island look like in 2050?
“My optimistic vision is I think Rhode Island will actually do a good job, eventually over the next 25 years, of getting back to our roots and really allowing more housing and more vibrant walkable neighborhoods in village centers and city centers,” she said.
“I think we will actually infill some of the city and village centers that maybe people don’t realize the extent to which some of these areas have actually been depopulated compared to what they used to be. You know, the city of Providence has a smaller population now than it did historically.”
“There’s neighborhoods that, when you think about zoning, you couldn’t replicate today under modern zoning,” she continued. “And so to some extent, I think the 2050 vision that is possible is actually a return to our roots in some ways of allowing that infill in central areas.”
On a slightly more “pessimistic note,” Wack said that she anticipates the state having to grapple with a “managed retreat” in coastal areas that will be affected by sea level rise, erosion and increased hurricane risks.
“I think we will see less housing being built in certain coastal areas, if only because it’s going to be harder and harder to insure housing in those areas,” she said. “I think in certain communities we will see shifts in where housing is being built and seeing housing production sort of migrate away from at-risk areas and toward areas where it’s going to be more sustainable.”
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