Overtime thrillers ends in Sockers victory; defeat Milwaukee Wave in 6-5 shootout
Credit: Sockers
It was a match that kept the 4,081 fans loud all night.
It also involved something that doesn’t happen in a lot of MASL games: overtime.
Even rarer? A shootout after overtime.
That is precisely what happened in the match between the San Diego Sockers and Milwaukee Wave, as a combination of timely defense, strong goalkeeping, and clutch offense lifted the Sockers over the visiting Wave 6-5.
With two high-powered offenses squaring off, goalkeepers Boris Pardo and Joey Kapinos were kept on their toes in their goal (pun fully attended) of keeping the opposing teams off the scoreboard.
With mere seconds left in the first quarter, Kapinos broke first. A Luis Ortega shot rattled off the top of the glass but forced Kapinos to make a diving attempt at the ball. The ensuing shot rebounded to Brian Farber, whose attempt to knock the ball into the net with his head got blocked by Kapinos.
The third shot was the charm. With Kapinos on the ground, Farber’s next shot was too quick for the Wave keeper to react to, and the ball skidded into the back of the net for a goal.
The second quarter again saw tight close-quarters action as both teams jockeyed for position. However, a Taylor Bond blue card left the Sockers a man down, a situation the Wave took advantage of as Marcio Lette’s shot beat out the dive of Pardo to knot the score at 1-1.
The tie was broken up by Leonardo de Oliviera, who turned and unleashed a hook shot into the top corner of the goal to net the go-ahead score despite being hounded by Wave defenders.
After only a light amount of scoring had been done in the first half, a flurry of goals went screaming into the back of the net for both sides.
The first of these came from newcomer Gerardo Jurados, who sprang open after Guerrero Pino drew both defenders to him. With Jurardos open on the wing, Pino saw the opportunity and sent a pass his way.
Jurardos made the most of the moment. After taking a moment to line up a shot, the 23-year-old native of Tijuana sent a ground ball right past a sliding Kapinos for his first goal as a Socker.
Jurados, acquired from the Cal Turlock Express on Feb. 20, was happy to not only score a goal with his new team but to celebrate it alongside his teammates.
“I’m just very happy to be here,” said Jurados. “I’m happy to have scored a goal and to do that alongside my teammates… it’s a very good feeling.”
Goals by Derek Huffman and Leite kept the Wave in the game, but De Oliviera’s second goal and a Kraig Chiles score ensured the Sockers held on to the lead.
However, Milwaukee wasn’t out of the game. Max Ferdinand evaded the pressure of both Brian Farber and Christian Gutierrez to slip a shot past Pardo to put Milwaukee down one while Leite’s shot with four minutes left bounced off of Pardo’s foot and into the net.o
Just like that, it was a tie game.
Not even a ten minute overtime could decide this game as the finale was determined by a rare MASL shootout. A combination of clutch defending from Pardo and two goals from Chiles, who was unsure he could even take a second shot, secured a win for the Sockers.
After sinking his first goal, Chiles said that while he was unsure that he could take a second shot, he didn’t want it to look the same as the first.
“I didn’t think I could shoot a second one,” Chiles said. “I went across my body in the other direction… I didn’t want to give him the exact same look.”
After the gutsy win, San Diego will now host the Tacoma Stars on Mar. 8 as they look to keep hold of second place in the Western Conference.
I am currently attending San Diego State University while working on achieving a major in journalism. At SDSU, I write for The Daily Aztec while also hosting the sports radio show “Picked Off”, for KCR Radio. A loyal fan of San Diego sports, I hope to bring content that you will enjoy reading.