MKE WAVE COME OUT ON TOP IN SECOND OF THREE AGAINST RIVAL BLAST; FINAL MATCH FRIDAY NIGHT IN BALTIMORE

After a tough loss last week, your Six- Time Champion Milwaukee Wave took the victory against long-time rival Baltimore Blast at UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena Saturday night.
 
Final score: Milwaukee Wave 5, Baltimore Blast 1.
 
“I thought the first half of this game was very similar to last,” commented Head Coach Giuliano Oliverio. “We all learned from our second half last week and I’m beyond proud on how the players work for each other on the field. Baltimore is a dangerous team and we had a very strong defensive game. The energy, effort, and intensive the players brought tonight was top class.”

BOXSCORE | GAMESHEET | REPLAY

Milwaukee Wave goalkeeper, number 30, Josh Lemos kept the Blast scoreless for 57 minutes. Lemos has recorded one shutout of 2017-2018 regular season thus far.
 
“Teamwork was key tonight. A lot of the shots didn’t go in because they got blocked from other guys on the team,” said Lemos. “We all put in a lot more effort this time around and were much more focused on the game. It was a great team effort and a great team win.”
 
Milwaukee Wave midfielder, number 14, Daniel Mattos and forward, number 99, Andre Hayne made their debut back on field after both suffering injuries in mid-January.
 
“We’re a totally different team when we’re healthy. To have Andre Hayne and Daniel Mattos back in the lineup is really exciting,” said Oliverio. “Both of them contributed so much, not only tonight, but all season long. Having them back speaks volume to our level of play. If other teams are going to key in on players like Ian Bennett and Max Ferdinand, other guys are going to have to step up. That's what our team did tonight.”
 
Mattos scored the third goal of the game after receiving a ball from Marcio Leite in fourth quarter.
 
“At the end of the day I’ll help the team any way I can, but I think we adapted well to what they threw at us at the first game,” said Mattos. “We struggled still during parts of game with breaking that pressure. For the most part, I felt like we had great possession and that makes a huge difference. When you don’t have to run as much defensively and you have possession it helps us a lot.”
 
The third and final match of the series takes place next Friday, February, 23^rd at the SECU Arena at 6:35 p.m. CST. That game will decide who gets home field advantage assuming both teams make it past the first round of the 2017-2018 MASL Playoffs.
 
“It’s going to be a completely different game, because we’re going to be playing on a much smaller field,” stated Mattos. “I think it’s the smallest field in the league and they’re used to it. We’re going to prepare for a hard battle.”
 
Watch the Wave take on the Blast live and for free on MASLtv at MASLsoccer.com.