CHARLESTON, S.C. – The Charleston Battery announced on Wednesday it had signed midfielder Nico Rittmeyer to a new, multi-year contract ahead of the 2019 USL Championship season. A product of the Battery’s academy and the College of Charleston, Rittmeyer will enter his third professional season at the club this spring.

“I’m excited,” Rittmeyer said. “This is an amazing city and a great club with a long history of success. I love living here and I love playing here, so it was a no-brainer. It’s cool to see things come full circle; to get to play here as a pro after all the hard work I put in as a youth player is rewarding.”

Despite growing up in Savannah, Ga., Rittmeyer has played nearly his entire soccer career in Charleston. At the age of 11, Rittmeyer and his dad started making the two-hour trek to and from Charleston to play for Summerville Soccer Club under former Battery player Clark Brisson. With the support of the Battery, Brission helped create the Charleston Battery Academy, merging Rittmeyer’s team with other clubs in the area shortly after his first trip to Charleston.

During Rittmeyer’s time with the academy as a teenager, Battery Head Coach Mike Anhaeuser invited him to train with the first team. Rittmeyer played his first matches for the professional club as a 17-year old against the Chicago Fire and Toronto FC at the 2011 Carolina Challenge Cup.

“It was crazy being thrown into that environment as a teenager,” said Rittmeyer. “But, I gained a lot of valuable experience as a youth player in the Battery system. Testing myself against professional players and other high-level youth players from a young age prepared me for the next level.”

Rittmeyer and his Battery teammates are now preparing for this year’s edition of the Carolina Challenge Cup, which will see Major League Soccer’s FC Cincinnati, Chicago Fire and Columbus Crew SC compete alongside the perennial USL Cup Playoffs contender at MUSC Health Stadium starting this Saturday.

Eight years after his first appearance in Challenge Cup, Rittmeyer will take part in his third CCC this weekend when the Battery opens the tournament with FC Cincinnati.

“All the boys are ready to get started,” Rittmeyer said. “Challenge Cup always offers us the chance to see what we have against some of the best teams in the country early on in preseason. I’m looking forward to building on what I did last year and helping the team get back to the playoffs to give ourselves a chance to win the championship.”