MILWAUKEE-Behind game MVP Chile Farias and league MVP Genoni Martinez, La Raza de Monterrey rallied from a 6-0 deficit to defeat the Milwaukee Wave 12-6 in the Associated Bank Major Indoor Soccer League Championship Game, presented by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Farias started the La Raza comeback with a long 3-pointer in the third quarter, then gave La Raza the lead for good with a 2-pointer with 4:07 remaining in the third.
Martinez, also the league’s defender of the year, drove a stake through the heart of the U.S. Cellular Arena crowd with 7:16 to go in the fourth quarter, converting a shorthanded goal to give his team a 9-6 lead.
Finally, Farias closed out the scoring after the Wave brought on the sixth attacker with 3:05 remaining. His ball from midfield past Josh Rife with 53 seconds left found the net and touched off a wild celebration by the La Raza fans among the 5,402 in attendance.
The Wave, who had won eight consecutive games, looked to take control of the game with two goals in the first three minutes of the third quarter. First, Giuliano Oliviero turned in the box and slipped a low shot past Jose Bontti to give Milwaukee a 4-0 advantage.
About two minutes later, Ian Bennett forced a turnover in the Monterrey end. He deftly touched the ball over a defender to Marcelo Fontana, who settled and again scored low.
But the Wave would not score again. Monterrey beat Milwaukee for the third time this year at the U.S. Cellular Arena. In doing so, La Raza won their first MISL title in their third season in the league.
Bontti was forced to make just seven saves in a tightly played contest that saw only one goal in the first half. Nick Vorberg of the Wave, the league’s goalkeeper of the year, saved 8 of 12 shots.
Oliviero led the Wave with three points. He assisted on the game’s first goal scored by Ryan Mack from inside the penalty area with 2:12 remaining in the first half.
This is the fourth final the Wave have lost since 2002, and the third on their home field. The Wave won titles in 1998, 2000, 2001 and 2005.
