Sockers Host Stars Seeking 16th Straight Win
March 18, 2022 - Major Arena Soccer League (MASL)
San Diego Sockers News Release
The San Diego Sockers-presented by Kaiser Permanente San Diego-return home to take on the Tacoma Stars for the final time this season, looking to extend a fifteen-match winning streak. Sunday's match is set for a 5:05pm kickoff from Pechanga Arena San Diego, with the match carried live on MASL TV on YouTube.
The Sockers (18-0-1, 51 points) have won fifteen consecutive matches, the longest active streak in the MASL. San Diego has only lost once all season, an overtime 8-7 setback to Ontario on January 9, and enters the weekend in the top spot of the MASL standings table, two points ahead of Florida (49 points) and thirteen points ahead of Kansas City (38 points). The Tropics have a game in hand on the Sockers, having played 18 times to San Diego's 19. The Sockers' win streak has included four overtime victories, three in sudden death and one in a shootout, a total which reduced the club's standings points by four under the new MASL rules.
This is the sixth and final meeting of the regular season between West Division rivals San Diego and Tacoma, and the Sockers are looking for the season sweep, having gone 5-0 so far against the Stars. Tacoma did rescue a single point in their last visit to Pechanga Arena, pushing the Sockers to overtime in a 4-3 loss on February 6. San Diego won 12-3 in the club's last head-to-head on February 12. The season series goals aggregate is 41-19 in favor of the Sockers.
San Diego's dominance this year has been powered by the club's defense. The Sockers have allowed 78 goals in 19 matches, an average of 4.11 goals per match, which leads the MASL. The club has blocked 161 shots this season, an average of 8.47 per match, led by Guerrero Pino's 25 blocks. Goalkeeper Boris Pardo leads active MASL goalkeepers with a 4.35 goals-against average (GAA) and ranks second with a .730 save percentage (SV%). Of note, the Sockers have played three times on reduced-size fields, going 3-0 but conceding 21 goals in those matches. On regular-size fields, San Diego has allowed 3.56 goals per match.
Last weekend, the Sockers endured a brutal travel schedule, picking up two wins in less than 24 hours on the East Coast. On Saturday night, the Sockers battled through the unique challenge of facing the Baltimore Blast on the 150-foot long field at SECU Arena, picking up a 9-6 win by outscoring Baltimore 6-1 in the final 20 minutes. Leonardo de Oliveira had a goal and two assists in the win. The Sockers then had to drive six hours overnight to upstate New York for an early afternoon match in Utica, holding off UCFC 6-5. Tavoy Morgan netted a pair of goals in the win, as did Christian Gutierrez.
The Tacoma Stars (5-11-2, 16 points) are in desperate straits when it comes to qualifying for the Ron Newman Cup playoffs, sitting in eleventh place, six standings points out of the 8th and final playoff berth. Tacoma is 1-5-2 on the road this season, and has allowed 78 road goals (9.75 per match), a figure distorted somewhat by 31 goals allowed in two matches in Chihuahua. Nick Perera is in his familiar spot on top of the Stars' scoring leaders, pacing the Tacoma attack with (16-22=38) points. Vini Dantas (16), Micheal Ramos (11), and Alessandro Canale (10) also have double-digit goals for the Stars. Danny Waltman has started all 18 matches in net for Tacoma, posting a career-high 7.82 GAA.
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Major Arena Soccer League Stories from March 18, 2022
- Wave Take Game One of Must Win Weekend Series against Ambush - Milwaukee Wave
- Ambush Drop a Tough One to Milwaukee - St. Louis Ambush
- Sockers Host Stars Seeking 16th Straight Win - San Diego Sockers
- MASL Announces 24-Game Schedule for 2022-23 Season - MASL
- St. Louis Ambush, Milwaukee Wave Play Twice this Weekend - St. Louis Ambush
- MASL to Use Video Review During Ron Newman Cup Playoffs - MASL
- Baltimore Blast Visit Sunday as Tropics Look for Seventh Consecutive Win - Florida Tropics SC
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