Stinson, Strykers Aim to Show New Side of Us vs. SD, Wave
Published on February 14, 2026 under Major Arena Soccer League (MASL)
Empire Strykers News Release
Ontario, Calif. - The Empire Strykers enter perhaps the most pivotal stretch of their season this weekend, desperate to snap a three-game losing streak that reached its low point in an error-laden home defeat to last-place Utica City FC on February 5. In their upcoming back-to-back matches against two Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) heavyweights in host Dan Diego and visiting Milwaukee, the Strykers look to set the tone for an intense stretch of four fixtures in eight days, which is likely to make or break the Southern Californians' playoff hopes.
5-9-0 (wins-losses-overtime/shootout losses) Empire travels to face the 8-4-1 San Diego Sockers on Sunday at 4 p.m. PT, followed by a 6:35 p.m. home clash with the 9-3-2 Milwaukee Wave the very next day.
While the English live broadcast of Monday's game at Toyota Arena will air exclusively in the U.S. on CBS Sports Golazo Network, both upcoming fixtures will reach U.S. and international audiences via MASL+, the MASL's YouTube channel, Victory+, Unbeaten Network, Sportworld, APEX Sports and National Soccer Network, with several of the platforms making the action available on demand as well. Sunday's meeting with the Sockers will also be carried live by SLVR.
Around the world, English-speaking fans will be able to listen to the clash with the Milwaukee Wave via the exclusive radio broadcast on FOX Sports 1270AM.
The Spanish-language live video broadcasts of both matches will air exclusively in Mexico via the FOX Sports lineup of channels, with the game against Milwaukee also streaming outside of Mexico on the MASL's YouTube channel.
In their gut-wrenching 10-9 defeat to Utica, the Strykers committed a litany of inexplicable individual errors. The wildly entertaining affair saw UCFC's former Ontario Fury (today's Empire Strykers) ace Nilton De Andrade and teammate Sergio Pinal lead the charge with four points apiece, midfielder De Andrade recording a hat trick. While Empire defender-midfielder Alan Perez continued his impressive run of attacking form with a brace and an assist, netminder Brian Orozco notably collected a goal and a helper.
Time after time in the match, the Empire players worked hard to claw their way back from a deficit, only to then produce a miscue and allow the visitors to score. Strykers midfielder Justin Stinson, who has been finding his attacking form with four netters and four assists in his last five games, bagged one of each against Utica.
The 2025 MASL All-Star said, "It felt like we would score, and they'd score one on us. We'd score again, and they'd come back to score another one less than a minute later. I don't know how it kept happening so quickly, where we'd make a mistake right after we did something really good."
Stinson continued, "I was told by one of my first indoor coaches that if you give the other team two goals and get two blue cards, most of the time that's like giving up four goals, so you'll probably lose. It doesn't matter if you have a good game or a bad game outside of that. We gave up three blue cards and about five easy goals. That's why we lost."
According to the St. Louis native, the team has shown a positive response since the disappointing defeat to Utica. Under the guidance of second-year MASL Head Coach Onua Obasi, who last season returned Empire to the playoffs for the first time since 2021, the Southern Californians have been doing their best to take full advantage of nine days without competitive play.
"We had more than a full week to train, to talk about that loss, and to regroup," offered Stinson. "We focused on the exact mistakes we got punished for - from allowing transitions to not conceding blue cards. The players talked to each other, and we all talked to Obasi a lot. It's time to turn the page and show a new side of us."
While an away meeting with San Diego is never an easy task, the Strykers hope for another emotional lift of the kind they received from the two sides' most recent encounter. Back on January 22, Empire downed its regional rival 9-5 in Ontario, with Justin Stinson helping power the emphatic victory by way of a brace and an assist.
Since the stinging defeat, the Sockers have recorded three straight wins. In their two most recent matches, both of which took place at the friendly confines of Oceanside's Frontwave Arena, they edged out Tacoma 7-6 in overtime before dismantling Utica 11-4. The squad of Head Coach Phil Salvagio currently sits third in the standings but is engaged in a neck-and-neck battle for first place with the Milwaukee Wave, holding three games in hand on second-place Kansas City and one game on the Wave, which is currently ahead by a mere three points.
The Empire camp is keen on continuing to make a dent in a historical trend of narrow rivalry losses. Four games into the 2025-26 series, the Strykers sit at a very respectable 2-2, having opened their campaign with a 5-4 overtime win at San Diego in late November, followed by a 6-3 home loss in mid-December, a 4-3 away defeat on January 3, and the much-celebrated 9-5 victory over the visiting Sockers 19 days later. Last season, Empire was ousted by its longtime foe in the first round of the playoffs, falling 4-2 on the road.
Despite the early 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.
"I believe we can start a new chapter," said Empire legend Justin Stinson, who has appeared in 133 games for the club. "In my first season here, we started super bad and lost nine of the first seven games, but then we became the best team in the league before COVID hit. That shows what's possible. The playoffs aren't out of reach. Coming off a whole week of rest and really dialing in, I feel super positive. We match up well with the Sockers. It's time to get some wins and make a run at the championship."
The 28-year-old added, "We've kind of been focused on other teams and their tactics. Personally, I think we need to start focusing on what we're good at and take it one game at a time."
San Diego's experienced defensive duo of Mitchell Cardenas and Drew Ruggles will be determined to stop Stinson from contributing on attack. While Cardenas ranks tied for fifth in the league in blocks (21), Ruggles (18) sits tied for eighth.
The backline pairing protects one of indoor soccer's most accomplished netminders in Boris Pardo, who is second league-wide in save percentage (71.9% in 12 games/640 mins) and third in goals-against average (5.25). The Sockers feature another goalkeeping icon in former Tacoma Stars standout Chris Toth, who suffered a broken finger earlier in the season and has not logged enough minutes to be eligible for the MASL leaderboard. The same applies to Uganda-born backup 'keeper Nathanial Linquist.
Offensively, San Diego is led by a trio of veterans, two of whom used to sport the Ontario Fury uniform. Charlie Gonzalez ranks sixth in the league in points per game (1.89 in 9 games) and tied for tenth in goals (11) as well as runner-up on his side in points (17), with fellow ex-Fury man Leonardo De Oliveira sitting ninth MASL-wide in points per game (1.67 in 9 games) and tied for sixth in assists (11). Meanwhile, legendary forward Nick Perera is fourth in helpers (12), tenth in points per game (1.58 in 12 games) and tied for eighth in points (19).
Sebastian Mendez and Adrian Reyes share second place on the Sockers in goals (8 each).
The Strykers hold an all-time record of 11-49 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).
Currently sitting in seventh place in the MASL standings and thus just outside the playoff picture, the Strykers look to keep last-place Utica at bay - with UCFC trailing by two points and holding a game in hand - as well as to avoid completely losing touch with a trio of teams above them. The St. Louis Ambush, Tacoma Stars and Baltimore Blast each boast several-point leads over Empire, with St. Louis and Tacoma having played one fewer game and Baltimore even holding two games in hand.
So far this season, several Strykers have shared the attacking responsibilities. Mounir Alami leads the team in points (14) and jointly in points per game (1.00 in 14 games) along with defender-midfielder Alan Perez (1.00 in 11 games), in addition to being second in assists (7) and sharing runner-up in goals with Justin Stinson and Marco Fabián (7 each). While Stinson also sits second in points (13) Cuban Walter Díaz González tops the Empire roster in netters (8). Fellow forward Ant Powell ranks tied for third in the MASL in power play goals (2).
Notably, backline anchor Robert Palmer not only sits second in the league in blocks (31) but also tied for tenth in helpers (9). Filipe Dutra has recorded the second-most blocks of all Strykers (11).
Palmer and Dutra are primarily tasked with protecting a trio of quality backstops, two of whom boast standout stats. While Brian Orozco ranks second MASL-wide in goals-against average (5.23 in 11 games/516 mins), Claysson De Lima (4.50 goals-against average and 71.9% save percentage in 5 games/120 mins), who previously missed several matches due to injury, does not qualify for the leaderboard due to a shortage of minutes played.
In addition to taking care of his core responsibilities, the 24-year-old Orozco is enjoying his most remarkable season on offense thus far, having earned three netters and three assists for a stunning 0.55 points per game. On average, he has earned one point for roughly every 86 minutes played.
"Our goalies have been a huge topic," offered midfielder Justin Stinson in looking ahead to the meeting with the Milwaukee Wave, which stifled the Empire attack en route to a 3-1 win in Wisconsin back on December 31. "We have some of the best goalies in the league, and I think this week, we found a really good balance on when and how much to involve them as field players. I'm really hoping that will help us get our offense going against Milwaukee. The week was great for us to figure out how [Head Coach] Obasi wants us to play down the stretch. Now, we need to show the rest of the league."
The Wave recently climbed to the top of the standings, courtesy of three straight victories. Most recently, the side of first-year MASL Head Coach Marcio Leite defeated Utica 7-6 before taking care of visiting Kansas City 10-6. Leite and company look to defend first place against a spirited challenge from in-form San Diego, as well as to continue their club's proud tradition of never having missed the postseason in the league's eleven-year history. Milwaukee lifted the championship trophy at the conclusion of the 2018-19 season.
The Wave's matchup with Empire marks only the fifth all-time meeting between the two teams. The historical series is currently tied at 2-2, with none of the contests thus far having been decided in overtime or a shootout.
Milwaukee defeated the Ontario Fury in 2014-15, both MASL founding members' second campaign in the league, followed by Ontario/Empire victories in 2019-20 and 2024-25. Having defeated the visiting Wave 10-7 nearly a year ago, the Strykers fell 3-1 away to the Wave in this season's series opener on New Year's Eve. The Californians and the Wisconsinites have never met in the playoffs.
The Milwaukee defense has been led by Shawn Azcueta and Alex Steinwascher, who has also been a key contributor on offense. While Azcueta ranks sixth league-wide in blocks (20), fellow midfielder Steinwascher (16) holds runner-up on his team in the category.
The Wave's highly potent attack is powered by the explosive duo of Alex Sánchez and Mario Alvarez, with Steinwascher and Oscar Flores leading the excellent supporting cast of characters.
Sánchez tops the MASL in goals (22) and sits second in points (31) and points per game (2.21 in 14 games). Alvarez is sixth in goals (14) and fourth in both points (28) and points per game (2.00 in 14 games) as well as tied for first in assists (14) and for third in power play goals (2). Steinwascher ranks seventh in points (20) and tied for eighth in helpers (10), and Flores sits tied for tenth in netters (11).
While Milwaukee backup 'keeper Gerardo Perez has seen limited minutes this season, his stats from seven cameo appearances suggest he may one day rival the offensive output by Strykers netminder Brian Orozco. In just 181 minutes of action, the 21-year-old Perez has collected a staggering two goals and one assist, good for 0.43 points per game and one point for every 60 minutes spent on the turf.
Empire midfielder Justin Stinson concluded his preview of the home game against the mighty Wave by appealing to the club's faithful.
"The support from our fans has been huge," said Stinson. "I hope to see everyone on Monday and that they bring the same kind of energy. We'll do everything we can to get them a win."
Tickets to all Strykers games at Ontario's Toyota Arena are available here.
Major Arena Soccer League Stories from February 14, 2026
- Sockers Win a Classic over KC in a Shootout, 7-6 - San Diego Sockers
- Comets Drop Shootout Heartbreaker to Sockers - Kansas City Comets
- Stinson, Strykers Aim to Show New Side of Us vs. SD, Wave - Empire Strykers
- Sweetheart of a Game: St. Louis Ambush Win 7-3 on the Road - St. Louis Ambush
- Stars Host Milwaukee Wave Tomorrow at 5:05 PM - Tacoma Stars
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.
