OCEANSIDE — For the first time since 2022, the San Diego Sockers are Major Arena Soccer League champions.
The Sockers captured the Ron Newman Cup with a 10-3 Game 3, winner-take-all victory over the Milwaukee Wave Monday night at Frontwave Arena.
Facing the MASL’s highest-scoring team, the Sockers rode a hat-trick performance from Sebastian Mendez, two goals and an assist from Leo de Oliveira, intense defense and a few timely stops from goalkeeper Chris Toth.
“I had to learn how to save my energy, because sometimes I can get all over the place,” said Mendez, who goes by the nickname “Chaos”. “I have to credit my teammates. We all came into this game focused on doing everything we had to do to win, and we did it.”
The Sockers took Game 1 in Milwaukee 5-4 on Wednesday. The Wave bounced back to win Game 2 at Frontwave 7-2 on Friday.
Game 3 figured to be anyone’s match.
The Sockers jumped out to a 3-1 lead on first-quarter goals from Mendez, Drew Ruggles and de Oliveira and pushed it 4-1 just 16 seconds into the second quarter when de Oliveira scored again.
At that point, the fully energized Sockers were rolling, the Frontwave crowd of 3,860 was raucous and the Wave looked like a team playing a step slow and a man down.
The Sockers carried a 7-1 lead into halftime.
After a scoreless third quarter, the Wave continued the risky strategy of rolling goalkeepers into the offensive zone in order to create an extra attacker.
It briefly paid off when the Wave drew within 7-3 on scores from Max Ferdinand and keeper Ricardo Carvalho.
However, Mendez helped snuff any comeback hopes with his third goal at 9:25 of the fourth on a blast from the left wing.
Nilton de Andrade added a perfect finishing touch when he scored at 12:39. He celebrated by tucking his head into his hands as if putting himself to sleep.
The Sockers added to their legacy as the most successful franchise in the sport’s history by winning a 17th indoor title, a run that began in 1982 with a championship in the National Arena Soccer League when Ron Newman led the franchise to the first of 11 championships during his 14-season Hall of Fame tenure as head coach.
The championship trophy held aloft by the jubilant Sockers following Monday’s victory was named in Newman’s honor in 2011.
Milwaukee is the oldest continuing operating franchise in the sport and was seeking an eighth indoor title. Those hopes were dashed early Monday night when the Sockers used a combination of intense defensive pressure and crisp passing and shot-making to build a big lead.
The tone was set five minutes into the match, when San Diego’s Jesus Pacheco forced a turnover deep in the Milwaukee zone and it led to Mendez’s first goal.
De Oliveira was named final MVP for the second time in his career.
Toth was named Goalkeeper of the Finals and presented with the trophy by his father, Zoltan, a Sockers alum who was a part of several championship teams.
“That sounds nice, doesn’t it — MASL champs?” said Chris Toth. “The energy in the building was great tonight, the guys were all buzzing around right from the start and we just put it together to play a great game.”
San Diego native and longtime Sockers star Kraig Chiles, who was unavailable for the playoffs after suffering an injury and is retiring, perhaps summed it up best.
“It’s a storybook ending,” Chiles said.