Sockers overcome aftermath of brawl to capture 17th MASL title with 10-3 win

The San Diego Sockers closed out an unforgettable 2025-26 season with their 17th championship after a dominating 10-3 win over the Milwaukee Wave Monday at Frontwave Arena.

The third and deciding match of the MASL Ron Newman Cup final proved to be lopsided like Game 2, when the Sockers played shorthanded, losing 7-2, due to a post-Game 1 altercation that resulted in suspensions – and one lifetime ban. San Diego did, however, win the opening match 5-4 at UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena.

Sockers goalkeeper Chris Toth said the squad was more than ready for Game 3 – as were the fans in Oceanside.

“The energy in the building was great tonight, the guys were all buzzing around right from the start and we just put it together to play a great game,” he said.

San Diego drew first blood less than five minutes into the match. Midfielder Sebastian Mendez took advantage of a turnover caused by teammate Luis Ortega and calmly shot the ball into the back of the net, left unattended by Wave goalkeeper Gerardo Perez. 

After Milwaukee tied the game a few minutes later, courtesy of a goal by defender Mario Alvarez, the Sockers scored twice more before the end of the first-quarter. The goals came from defender Drew Ruggles and midfielder Leonardo de Oliveira, who was named finals MVP for the second time in his career.

San Diego did not let up and extended the lead after forward Tavoy Morgan sent a beautiful pass to de Oliveira, who beat Perez from long distance 15 seconds into the second quarter. Morgan, Mendez and defender Mitchell Cardenas then scored to help provide what appeared to be an insurmountable 7-1 lead at halftime.

The teams went scoreless in the third quarter and Milwaukee scored twice to start the fourth, but San Diego put the game away with three more goals courtesy of Mendez, midfielder Nilton de Andrade and Charlie Gonzalez.

For Sockers captain Kraig Chiles, who announced in December that he would retire at the end of this season, the championship was a fitting end to a long career.

“It’s a storybook ending,” said Chiles, who in his college days at San Diego State played under head coach Lev Kirshner. He began his professional career with Major League Soccer side Chivas USA before joining the Sockers in 2009.

This is the first championship for the Sockers since the 2021-2022 season, when they took their second title in a row, defeating the Florida Tropics in two games. They reached the final last year only to fall to the Chihuahua Savage in three games.