Empire Faces Stern Tests vs. Visiting San Diego, Kansas City
MASL Empire Strykers

Empire Faces Stern Tests vs. Visiting San Diego, Kansas City

Published on January 21, 2026 under Major Arena Soccer League (MASL)
Empire Strykers News Release


Ontario, Calif. - There's a sense of quiet focus about Empire Strykers training this week, as Head Coach Onua Obasi's squad prepares for a stretch of three straight clashes with a pair of Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) championship contenders. Having brought home three points from their recent back-to-back away games, the Strykers look to keep chipping away at their climb back into the playoff picture by making life tough for the San Diego Sockers and the Kansas City Comets, both of whom will be rolling into town within the next four days.

3-6-0 (wins-losses-overtime/shootout losses) Empire hosts 5-3-1 San Diego on Thursday, February 22, at 6:35 p.m. PST and 8-3-2 Kansas City on Sunday, February, 25, at 4:05 p.m. PST.

The English-language live video broadcasts of both meetings will reach U.S. and international audiences via MASL+, the MASL's YouTube channel, Victory+, SLVR, Unbeaten Network, Sportworld, APEX Sports, National Soccer Network and local PBS station KCVR, with several platforms also making the action available on demand. While the encounter with the Sockers can also be accessed in English by American viewers via FOX Soccer Plus, in Mexico the live video broadcasts of both matches will air exclusively in Spanish via the FOX Sports lineup of channels. Around the world, fans will be able to listen in English via the exclusive radio broadcast on FOX Sports 1270AM.

In last week's two-game road swing, the Strykers were competitive throughout, falling 4-2 to the St. Louis Ambush before bagging a crucial 7-6 win over the Tacoma Stars. The team's performance across the pair of matches was considered encouraging by most, especially given Onua Obasi had to make do without star midfielder Marco Fabián, who played in a high-profile exhibition game in Mexico, and also opted to rest starting goalkeeper Brian Orozco and backline anchor Robert "Berto" Palmer. Both Orozco and Palmer have been dealing with minor physical issues.

Captain Robert Palmer was replaced by first-year indoor pro Filipe Dutra, who announced himself to the league with two strong outings that saw him make a combined six blocks on scoring attempts by opposition players.

"Berto has been in the league for over a decade, so losing him and his experience, it's very difficult for us," offered Dutra. "He organizes the team very well, so we depend on him a lot. But I'm happy that Obasi put faith in me and that I got the job done. I gave it my all on the field, and I'm happy that we won against Tacoma. I had a lot of people coming up to me saying that I played well, so I'm very happy I could help the team."

In the narrow defeat to St. Louis, Empire finished the game with a 32-14 advantage on shots, having seen three efforts scraped off the line by field players and having been stifled by outstanding backstop Paulo Nascimento, who made no fewer than 21 saves and posted a stunning 91.3% save percentage. Ambush forward Mario Falsone had a brace in the match.

"With that many shots, it's a problem if you can't score more than two goals," said Strykers defender Dutra. "I think it just wasn't our day, but St. Louis also played really well and defended us very tough, so all credit to them for that."

Those watching the Strykers' clash with the Stars two days later would witness a highly entertaining second half featuring a total of nine netters, with the visitors scoring the winner after earlier seeing the opposition come back from a three-goal deficit. While first-year Empire man Ant Powell put up a breakout performance for his new club, bagging a hat trick, his teammate Brandon Gomez produced several spectacular saves in net, in addition to recording an assist.

"It's Tacoma, a very good team at home," said Filipe Dutra. "Before that game, they hadn't lost there, so beating them felt really good. We also did it with some rookies - me included. That makes it more special. In the beginning, we looked very unorganized, but we were able to fix that at some point. We still let them score by making some stupid mistakes, so we've been working hard in practice to get even better."

For the Strykers, backline anchor Robert Palmer has once again been a key contributor on both defense and offense. The Jamaican not only ranks third MASL-wide in blocks (21) but also leads his side in helpers (6) and points per game (1.00 in 7 games), in addition to sitting tied for runner-up in points with Ant Powell (7 each). Second place in blocks on Empire is held by Filipe Dutra (6).

Like Palmer, netminder Brian Orozco has not only excelled at his core responsibilities. In addition to leading the league in goals-against average (3.79 in 7 games/348 mins) and save percentage (75.3%), the 24-year-old has bagged a goal and two assists for an impressive points-per-game average of 0.43.

Mounir Alami has been the Strykers' most dangerous nominal attacker. While the former Morocco U-19 international tops his team in points (8) and goals (6), he is also second in points per game (0.89 in 8 games). Ant Powell ranks tied for second in the league in power play goals (2) and as sole runner-up on Empire in goals (5). Steven Chávez sits second on the team in assists (4).

In Thursday's clash with San Diego, the seventh-place Strykers will look to create a buffer between them and last-place Utica, which is level on points but has a game in hand on the Southern Californians.

A win over the Sockers would also up the pressure on three teams sitting above Empire in the standings with a six-point edge. Onua Obasi's side has played one fewer match than both fifth-place Baltimore and sixth-place St. Louis. Fourth-place Tacoma, which has gone 1-3 since its five-game win streak to open the season, has played the same number of fixtures as the Strykers.

San Diego is one of two teams nipping at the heels of league-leading Kansas City. While second-place Milwaukee trails by five points, having played three fewer games, San Diego is behind by eight points but holds no fewer than four games in hand. Two-time MASL champion San Diego also looks to extend its lead on fourth place Tacoma, which has played the same number of matches as Head Coach Phil Salvagio's squad and has earned two fewer points.

"Everybody on the Sockers has experience," said Strykers defender Dutra. "For me, that's one of the best teams in the league because they'be been playing with each other for years and years. Plus, they added [midfielder Jesus] Pacheco and [indoor legend Nick] Perera, who are top players, so I feel like they're even better this year. It's going to be a very hard game."

The Empire camp is keen on making a dent in a historical trend of narrow rivalry losses. It's so far, so okay in 2025-26, as the Strykers opened their campaign with a 5-4 overtime win at San Diego, followed by a 6-3 home loss two weeks later. Last season, the Sockers ousted Empire in the first round of the knockout stages, prevailing 4-2 in a bitterly contested affair in front of their home fans.

Despite the early playoff exit, the Strykers' 2024-25 was widely considered a success, as the organization reached the knockout rounds for just the fourth time in its history, which dates back to 2013. The previous time took place during the MASL's "COVID season" in 2021. Still playing as the Ontario Fury then, the league's founding member made a run to the championship series and came within a hair's breadth of lifting the trophy, as it took San Diego a 2-1 win in the decisive 15-minute mini game to emerge victorious.

Ever since a rough start to 2025-26, the Sockers have returned to their mostly winning ways. In their two most recent games, they defeated host Utica 4-3 before losing 10-5 at Milwaukee. The ten goals conceded against the Wave came as a surprise, as the defense can typically rely on exceptional work by veterans Cesar Cerda and Mitchell Cardenas. While Cerda ranks tied for tenth in the league in blocks (12), Cardenas (11) only trails behind by one.

The backline pairing protects two of the MASL's most accomplished netminders in Boris Pardo and Chris Toth. While Pardo sits second league-wide in save percentage (73.3% in 8 games/410 mins) and third in goals-against average, Toth's excellent numbers this season don't qualify him for the MASL leaderboard due to a shortage in appearances. Having recently missed several games with a broken finger, the 36-year-old is no longer listed on his club's availability report and appears poised for a comeback.

On attack, San Diego is led by former Fury ace Charlie Gonzalez, who is tied for eighth in the MASL in goals (16) and tied for fourth in both goals (11) and points per game (2.00 in 8 games). Offseason arrival Nick Perera has served as a strong sidekick to Gonzalez, as he ranks tied for eighth in the league in assists (7) as well as second on the Sockers in points (11). Taylor Walter Bond sits runner-up on the team in goals (5), with ex-Ontario man Leonardo De Oliveira holding the same position in helpers (5).

While Luiz Morales is tenth MASL-wide in points per game (1.67), the Texas native has only played in three games this season. The sample size is even smaller for Spanish La Liga veteran Keko Gontán (1.50 in 2 games) and only slightly higher for Brazilian midfielder De Oliveira (1.40 in 5 games).

The Strykers hold an all-time record of 10-49 against San Diego, which includes a 3-9 record in shootout/overtime decisions and a 2-3 record in postseason matches. Not included in the record are two 15-minute mini games. Prior to the one being used to determine the Sockers as the winner of the tied 2021 final series, Empire's rivals had already advanced from a tied 2016-17 MASL Pacific Division final series via a mini game victory - that time by a score of 1-0. The two sides' first-ever meeting dates back to the 2013-14 season in the Professional Arena Soccer League (PASL).

When Kansas City visits Ontario's Toyota Arena on Sunday, the side from the Midwest can be expected to once again boast a strong defensive collective, whose league-wide superiority in the blocks category reflects the fact the Comets have played by far the most games but also the inconsistent way certain stats are kept around the MASL. The official count has Chad Vandegriffe (33) atop the league, with several of his teammates also making the leaderboard in Lesia Thetsane (26; 2nd), Guerrero Pino (16; 4th), DeBray Hollimon (14; 7th) and Henry Ramirez (12; tied for 10th).

Kansas City's high-flying attack is spearheaded by the club's explosive duo up top, Zach Reget and Rian Marques. While Reget tops the league in points (26) and goals (16), in addition to ranking tied for first in power play goals along with teammate Ignacio Flores (3 each) and for runner-up in assists (11), Rian Marques sits second in points (23), third in goals (13) and tied for fourth in assists (10). The Comets' excellent offensive supporting cast is led by Dom Francis, who is tied for fourth in goals (11) and for tenth in points (15).

Christian Anderaos currently ranks tied for tenth in netters (8) and Henry Ramirez tied for eighth in helpers (7).

Despite sitting atop the standings, Kansas City has shown significant vulnerability this season. Head Coach Stefan Stokic's side recently bounced back from a three-game losing streak with a 9-2 home win over Tacoma and a 7-5 away victory over the Milwaukee Wave. The club which has made the playoffs five times running - when counting a defeat in the 2022-23 play-in round - is no doubt banking on three points from its clash with the Strykers as it looks to keep the Wave and San Diego at bay.

The Strykers' record in the all-time series with the Comets stands at 3-6, including a 1-1 record in shootout/overtime wins and a 1-1 record in playoff encounters. Not included in the count is a 15-minute mini game that was used to decide the 2021 MASL semifinal series, Empire prevailing 2-1 after each team had previously claimed one victory. Even though both the Strykers and Kansas City were inaugural league members in 2014-15, they did not face each other until the 2016-17 campaign. The two sides have not met this season. They squared off only once in 2024-25, with the Comets claiming a 7-5 home win on January 10 of this year.

Empire defender Filipe Dutra concluded his preview of the week's demanding matches with a cautiously optimistic take on the clash with Kansas City.

"We've already talked about them a bit," said the 27-year-old. "I know how they play, and I know a lot of their players. Since we play them again on the road, it would be big to go into that after winning at home. It's going to be very tough, though. That's a very good team. All their guys know how to play with each other, and they use their [target forwards] a lot, which makes it fun for me because it's a chance to show myself. I can't wait to play them."

Check out the Empire Strykers Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Major Arena Soccer League Stories from January 21, 2026


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central