TAMPA, Florida (CMC) — Young Reggae Boy Nicque Daley scored a brace to extend his recent strong form, but his exploits came to nothing as Charleston Battery squandered a two-goal lead in the first half to crash to a 4-3 defeat to lowly Miami FC in the United Soccer League.

Playing at the Riccardo Silva Stadium in Miami on a busy midweek card, the 19-year-old Daley banged in his goals inside the first half-hour of the contest, but then watched as the hosts scored four times in the second half to grab the come-from-behind win.

The defeat was only Battery’s first in their last five outings but it was of little consequence with the franchise already qualified for the play-offs. Battery lie second on 27 points in Group H.

Miami, already eliminated, are third on 13 points, with the win their first in five matches.

Daley gave the visitors the upper hand in the first half, putting his side ahead in the 12th minute when he bundled in from close range at the far post, following a cross from Stavros Zarokostas.

And the Jamaica Under-20 player doubled Battery’s lead on the half-hour mark, courtesy of a brilliant solo effort capped off with an excellent right-footed volley from nine yards.

Up 2-0 at the break, Battery had their lead cut in half three minutes following the resumption when Jamaican Romario Williams finished off a flowing move from close range.

Robbie Crawford restored the two-goal cushion for Battery moments later, but things then fell apart quickly as Vincent Bezecourt (60th), Sebastian Velasquez (65th) and Miguel Gonzales (88th) swept Miami over the line.

At City Stadium, Trinidad and Tobago’s Andre Fortune scored from the spot in the 12th minute, while Benjamin Speas added a second in the 26th minute and John Tolkin an own goal on the stroke of half-time as North Carolina FC ran out easy 3-0 winners over New York Red Bulls II.

The 24-year-old Fortune has a franchise-leading six goals for the campaign.

North Carolina are third in Group G on 19 points while Red Bulls II are third in Group F on 15 points but already eliminated from play-off contention.

Another Trinidad and Tobago international, Cordell Cato, got on the scoresheet with his first goal of the season, but his 12th-minute strike went in vain as his Oklahoma City Energy went down 3-2 to FC Tulsa at the ONEOK Field in Tulsa.

Energy, fourth on 10 points, have already been eliminated in Group D while Tulsa are closing in on a berth in the next round and are second on 22 points.

At the H-E-B Park in Texas, St Vincent and the Grenadines international Kyle Edwards scored four minutes before the break to set up bottom dwellers Rio Grande Valley’s 2-0 victory over second-placed Austin Bold in Group D.