Everything the Milwaukee Wave did to force a third game in the MASL Ron Newman Cup championship series went the wrong way once the Wave got there.
The San Diego Sockers, sharp and energized with three players returning from suspensions, scored six straight goals in the first half and pulled out to a 10-3 victory in the deciding match April 27 at Frontwave Arena in Oceanside, California.
“This was a game where we looked like we were a step behind every, every play,” first-year Wave head coach Marcio Leite said. “We were reacting to everything. We were always late, even in our duels to win the ball. They just won everything, like every loose ball. They won 50-50 battles.
“We needed players to make plays, and tonight, unfortunately it was one of the worst games we had all season and the better team won.”
The title was San Diego’s 18th across indoor soccer and third in the MASL.
Milwaukee managed a 7-2 victory April 24 to tie the series while Sockers defender Cesar Cerda, midfielder Luiz Morales and forward Jesus Pacheco sat out due to penalties for infractions in and after their Game 1 victory in Milwaukee.
This time San Diego came out with strength and precision.
The Sockers beat the Wave at “Jerry Ball,” scoring their first goal less than five minutes into the game by picking up a turnover behind Milwaukee goalkeeper Jerry Perez, who had come forward as a sixth attacker. Sebastian Mendez comfortably put the ball past a sliding Alex Sanchez from the left wing.
Although defender Mario Alvarez pulled the Wave even, Drew Ruggles answered with a one-timer on the run 39 seconds later. Then the Sockers quickly pulled away as shots like those that had bounced away harmlessly three nights earlier found the net this time.
“They outworked us today, which is something that doesn’t happen very often because we’re usually a very aggressive team,” first-year head coach Marcio Leite said.
“We allowed their top players to get balls in dangerous areas that we never wanted them to receive the ball in. Then if you let their targets receive the ball on the top of the arc and get the ball all the time, they’re going to hurt us. And that’s what happened.”
Milwaukee finally picked up goals from Max Ludwig and Ian Bennett in the fourth quarter, but Mendez capped his hat trick to make the score 8-3 with less than six minutes left to play, ending any dream of a rally.
So after coming back to win their first two playoff series to advance, the Wave fell one game short in a finals series between the two teams with which Leite had won championships as a player.
“At this moment, I never want to be feeling what I’m feeling now. That’s No. 1,” Leite said of his takeaways from the season.
“And No. 2, we’ve got to look at the positives. There’s a lot of things we did well. There’s a lot of things we can build upon. Me and my staff are going to get together and try to improve areas we need to improve so next year we’re here again but we’re lifting the trophy.
(This story was updated to add new information.)
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee Wave has no answer for San Diego Sockers in MASL final match
Reporting by Dave Kallmann, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
