Shoves escalated between the Milwaukee Wave and San Diego Sockers and fans got involved in the unpleasantries, turning the conclusion of Game 1 of the MASL championship series ugly.In the final seconds of the Sockers’ 5-4 victory April 22 at the UWM Panther Arena, Wave defender Tony Walls took a kick to the groin on a play that ended any chance for a traditional exchange of handshakes and hugs.Spirited jawing turned into jostling between players, and at least one fan and one Sockers player apparently were struck by thrown debris. Wave players followed the Sockers players into the tunnel leading to their dressing room, and a security officer requested the presence of police who were at the Arena.Game 1 box score: Sockers 5, Wave 4At the same time, officials were reviewing the play.
Several minutes after the game the announcement came that Sockers defender Cesar Cerda had been issued a red card for violent conduct, making him ineligible for Game 2 on April 24 in Oceanside, California.“It just got heated at the end [between] two high-level teams,” veteran Wave forward Ian Bennett said. “They're very competitive, and who wants to win it? The rest, it was a hard game to ref, right?
Because it's a big game. It's big final. Emotions are there.“To be honest, our emotions got the best of us, because we’ve got to be smarter than that, right?
We don't need to play in their hands, but kudos to them, they won, and we just got to regroup and lick our wounds and come back on Friday ready to go.”A loud and larger-than-usual crowd turned out for the final home game of 2025-26.Two quick goals by Bennett early in the fourth quarter pulled the Wave within a goal at 4-3, but Milwaukee couldn’t maintain the spark, and Sockers midfielder Leonardo De Oliveira turned the momentum back around with 5 ½ minutes left. The Wave killed a two-minute San Diego power play resulting from too many men on the field, but by the time goalkeeper Jerry Perez gave the Wave another goal, just 33 seconds remained.So now for the Wave to win an eighth arena soccer title, it must win back-to-back against the team that finished the regular season with the best record.Milwaukee lost the opening game of its quarterfinal and semifinal series and won a regulation game followed by a quarter-length knockout game each time to advance.
But those were at home; this time they’ll go on the road to play against the team that finished with the best record in the regular season. Game 3 would be a full-length game April 27.“Very difficult,” first-year Wave head coach Marcio Leite said of the challenge that awaits.“We’ve done it before. We beat them in their house.
But we need to be smarter. And we need to play better. … We need to create better chances, then we need to make sure our shots are on target.”This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee Wave falls to San Diego Sockers in MASL finals Game 1