After a stunning loss to the Chicago Mustangs, the Milwaukee Wave hosted the second leg of the series and needed a win to force the fifteen minute third game. Chicago was firing on all cylinders in game one to pull off the early upset.
The teams played through most of the opening quarter without a goal, but with just under 90 seconds to play, Miguel Vaca got things started for Chicago. A quick answer by the Wave’s Stefan St Louis leveled the game before the break. In the second quarter, Chicago struck early to take the lead. Milwaukee found another quick answer as Bato Radoncic equalized. In the 11th minute, Milwaukee found there form scoring twice in an 18 second stretch on goals by Tony Walls and Ian Bennet.
Marcelo Fontana extended the lead to three with the only goal in the third quarter. The fourth quarter was dominated by the Wave as Walls completed his hat trick before Fontana added his second. Victor Quiroz added an exclamation mark in the final minute with Milwaukee’s ninth goal of the game.
The Wave win set up the deciding game three. After a short break, the scores were reset and both teams took the field for a fifteen minute match to decide the game. As many third games go, both teams kept a defender back to avoid giving up the advantage. Ian Bennet broke the deadlock in favor of Milwaukee in the 10th minute. Omar Santillan leveled the mini game in the 12th minute to force extra time. Another fifteen minutes was put on the clock, but according to overtime rules, the first goal would win the match. It took another 8:40 for a winner to show up. Ian Bennet got free enough in the corner to slot a winner home.
The Wave’s late victory set a date with the Missouri Comets in the Eastern Division Championship. The undefeated Comets are familiar foes for Milwaukee with the teams playing several games each year and having met in the previous three playoffs. This will be the first playoff decided in Missouri as the Wave have hosted the other three. This game is set for Thursday March 12th.