PASL San Diego Sockers

San Diego Sockers Game Notes at Las Vegas

December 15, 2013 - Professional Arena Soccer League (PASL)
San Diego Sockers News Release


San Diego Sockers (3-2) at Las Vegas Legends (6-0)

DATE: Sunday, December 15th, 2013

PLACE: Orleans Arena, Las Vegas, NV

TIME: 3:05pm (PDT)

BROADCAST: AmericaOneSports.com

www.Sockers.com (internet)

SOCKERS BATTLE FIRST PLACE VEGAS

The San Diego Sockers are in Las Vegas to take on the undefeated and Pacific Division-leading Legends (6-0) in a rematch of last year's PASL semi-finals, a game San Diego won in overtime 6-5 on Chiky Luna's golden goal. Las Vegas made key additions to their lineup in the offseason and have dominated the PASL so far in 2013-14, posting a perfect record while leading the league in goals (72, twelve per game). The Sockers are 2-0 against Vegas all-time, both in 2012-13, and each time escaping on last second goals for 6-5 victories.

LAST GAME: SOCKERS 8, ONTARIO 6

The Sockers raced out to leads of 3-0, 5-1 and 7-2 before fading in the second half, holding on for an 8-6 victory over the Ontario Fury at the Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario. Kraig Chiles led the way with a hat trick and assist, all scored before halftime. Brian Farber added two goals as the Sockers won their third straight game on the road.

TWO HATS FOR CHILES

With back-to-back hat tricks, it's starting to look like Kraig Chiles is back to the form that led to three consecutive PASL MVP awards. Chiles netted four points against Ontario and leads the Sockers with nine goals and four assists (13 points) in five games. While several players have played one or two more games than Chiles, Kraig's 13 points rank third among players with five games played.

FARBER HEATING UP

After a slow start to the season, all-PASL midfielder Brian Farber found the back of the net twice against the Ontario Fury, helping the Sockers to a needed 8-6 victory. Farber is tied for second on the team with four goals. Last season Farber earned first-team all-PASL, scoring 26 goals with 20 assists (46 points)

SOCKERS SEEK FOUR-TEAM ROAD PARLAY

It's tough enough to win on the road, harder to win twice in a week on the road, and harder still to do so twice. After beating Turlock and Sacramento back-to-back on the weekend of November 22nd, the Sockers take the pitch in Las Vegas looking to complete a 4-0 road trip and win twice this week, having beaten Ontario on Thursday. The Legends, by contrast, have not played since a 14-6 win over Sacramento on December 7th.

PACIFIC DIVISION DOMINANCE

San Diego carries a win streak of 31 consecutive games within the division into Sunday's contest. The Sockers have been listed in both the Western and Pacific Divisions during their time in the PASL, but have not lost a divisional game since December 27th, 2010, dropping an overtime decision to the now-defunct California Cougars 9-8.

SOCKERS DEFENSE TOUGH TO BEAT...

The old sports bromide states that defense wins championships, and the four-time defending PASL champion Sockers have made defense a point of emphasis in 2013-14. San Diego has allowed 24 goals in five games this season (4.8 per game), third trailing only Dallas (20 goals in five games) and Hidalgo (24 goals in six games) for the best scoring defense in the PASL. The Sockers have not allowed more than six goals in a game this season.

AND THE OFFENSE IS SLOWLY WARMING

The Sockers faced tough defenses in Dallas, Monterrey and Turlock early in the season, and the results were early depressed goal totals. The 2012-13 Sockers tallied 188 goals in 16 regular season games (11.75 per game), while the 2013-14 version has managed just 33 goals in five games (6.60). PASL teams overall are averaging 7.20 goals per game so far in 2013-14. A positive trend: the Sockers have scored 19 goals in their last two games.

HUGHES GETS MARRIED! (NOT IN VEGAS)

Sockers defender/midfielder Jeff Hughes and his fiancé Marybeth Monaghan tied the knot in a Deember 14th ceremony back in California, and as such Jeff will miss today's game in Las Vegas. The 29-year-old Hughes signed with the Sockers in the offseason after starring in the PASL with Cincinnati, where he won league MVP honors in 2009-10. Hughes will be back on the pitch with his teammates when the Sockers return home on November 21st to host Turlock. Brian O'Connor will earn his second start on the back line in Hughes' place against the Legends.

REZA CONTINUES TO CONTRIBUTE

Second-year midfielder Raymundo Reza scored a goal with an assist in the Sockers' 8-6 victory over Ontario on Thursday, moving into a tie for second place on the Sockers with six points (four goals, two assists) in five games. Reza is tied with Brian Farber for second on the team in goals scored. The former SDSU outdoor star tallied ten goals and six assists (16 points) in his rookie year last season.

McNELEY MAKING HIS MARK ON BOTH ENDS

Brought in to the Sockers organization as a hard-nosed defender, Evan McNeley is quickly proving to be an offensive asset for head coach Phil Salavagio to exploit as well. McNeley is tied for third on the Sockers with five points (three goals, two assists) and has tallied at least one point in four out of five games. Evan (MISL/Milwaukee, Oregon State) has drawn power play shifts the past three games, serving as an effective left footed option. McNeley has scored the go-ahead goal in two games this year and is tied for the team lead with five blocked shots.

GO DIEGO GO

A former second-team all-PASL performer in 2010-11, when he scored 20 goals, Diego Rovira battled through nagging injuries in each of the past two seasons but seems to be finding the back of the net once again. With tallies against Sacramento and Ontario, Rovira has scored a goal in back-to-back games for the first time since 11/23-12/01/2012, and has three points in the past two contests.

SUSI SEEKS REVENGE AFTER RARE BLANKING

Keeping Sockers captain Aaron Susi off the scoreboard has been one of the toughest jobs in PASL history. The only player to have been a part of all five PASL championship teams, Susi had never been shut out in a game (no goals or assists) prior to the Sockers' season opening 5-3 loss to Monterrey. After posting six points in the next three games, Aaron found himself without a point in San Diego's 8-6 win at Ontario.

POWER PLAY NEEDS SOME JUICE

An 0-for-2 power play performance in Ontario further depressed some already depressing man advantage numbers for San Diego. In 2012-13, the Sockers led the PASL in power play percentage (52%) and finished second in power play goals (26). So far in 2013-14, the Sockers are tied for 17th in the 20-team PASL in power play percentage (3-for-15, 20%). Their three power play goals on the season are tied with Saltillo and lead only Chicago and Texas (two apiece). San Diego's penalty killing unit remains strong, allowing five power play goals in 19 attempts (73.7% kill rate, 4th-PASL). The Sockers have not scored nor have they allowed a short-handed goal yet in 2013-14.

PASL NOTES: DIVISION LEADERS STILL PERFECT

As the PASL season approaches the one-third mark, three teams have established themselves as the class of the league so far. In the West, the Las Vegas Legends (6-0) hold a 2.5 game lead over Mexico and San Diego while leading the league scoring 12 goals per game. In the Central Division, the Monterrey Flash have rolled out to a 7-0 record and 1.5 game lead over Hidalgo and co-favorite Dallas (interesting, Dallas and Monterrey will not face each other in the regular season). In the east, the surprising Chicago Mustangs are 7-0, including a pair of wins over the defending Eastern champs Detroit (3-3, 3.5 games behind).

SOCKERS GAMES BROADCAST FREE ON AMERICAONESPORTS.COM ALL YEAR

The San Diego Sockers will have all of their games broadcast live for the fourth consecutive season, and the franchise has taken the additional step of making all of its online video broadcasts, home and road, available for free on the PASL's online partner AmericaOneSports.com. Other PASL games are also available at AmericaOne for an $8 per game or $90 season pass fee, but all Sockers games will be shown free of charge. In addition, every Sockers game will have an audio simulcast streamed live and archived on the Sockers' Livestream channel. Craig Elsten returns for his fifth season as the voice of the Sockers, joined by a rotating group of Sockers veterans for color commentary on home games.

OPPONENT'S PROFILE: LAS VEGAS LEGENDS (6-0)

The Legends lead the league in goals (72) and goals per game (12.0). Owner Meir Cohen has taken over as head coach, while forward Enrique Tovar (SDSU) is running away with the PASL points lead (10g/19a/29p), eight more than the closest competitor. Felipe Gonzalez has a team-leading 13 goals, seven on the power play. Former Turlock striker Ivan Campos has 12 goals and is tied for second in the PASL with 21 points. Las Vegas is a league-best 15-for-25 on the power play (60%).

Check out the San Diego Sockers Statistics



Professional Arena Soccer League Stories from December 15, 2013


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