WAVE TAKE GAME 2 BUT FALL IN GAME 3 OF MISL SEMIFINALS

MILWAUKEE (March 10) — The Milwaukee Wave's furious rally to win Game 2 of the MISL semifinals on Monday, spirited though it was, could not carry into the Game 3 “mini-game,” and the Missouri Comets advanced to the championship series with a 6-2 victory.

Milwaukee came back from three points down in the fourth quarter of Game 2 at the U.S. Cellular Arena, grabbing a 12-9 win in front of a noisy crowd of 4,236 and leaving these rivals to again head to the mini-game, as they did in 2013.

And the result was the same, the Comets again breaking the Wave's hearts in the extra contest. Brian Harris scored just 26 seconds in and added another at the 8:53 mark to put the Comets up 4-0.

“You get some guys who have special games,” Wave coach Keith Tozer said of Harris, who also had a 3-point shorthanded goal in Game 1.

Milwaukee drew within 4-2 when Guiliano Oliviero roofed a loose ball in the penalty area with 4:10 to go, but at the 3:21 mark Vahid Assadpour clinched the win with a fine individual effort. Barrelling down the field on a counter attack, he cut left just inside the 3-point line and finished with a left foot past Marcel Feenstra.

Missouri will play either Baltimore or Syracuse in next weekend's finals. Baltimore, with a 1-0 lead over the Silver Knights, hosts Game 2 on Monday.

After suffering a decisive 20-6 loss in Game 1, the Wave grinded through a physical Game 2 on their home field. Hewerton and Carlos Munoz both left the game for Milwaukee with injuries, and three yellow cards were issued.

Assadpour put the Comets up 9-6 with 12:40 remaining in the fourth quarter, and the Wave had to find something in reserve to keep their season alive. They did.

Marcio Leite drew the Wave within 9-8 when he blazed down the left wing and finished with his left foot past Danny Waltman with 11:13 to go.

The lead came Milwaukee's way when Jonathan Greenfield pounced on loose ball in the box and slammed it into the roof of the net, and 9:36 still remained with the Wave up 10-9.

Breathing room came courtesy of a great sequence that began along the boards. Ian Bennett and Tony Walls worked to dig a ball out of a scrum, and Bennett's quick touch released Walls. He carried the ball forward, and perfectly timed a ball across to Nick Perera, who made no mistake with his first touch for a 12-9 lead.

Milwaukee held on against a sixth-attacker threat, closing out its first win against Missouri in the last four meetings.