The Ron Newman Cup Championship matchup is set with the Baltimore Blast and Monterrey Flash winning their Conferences on Sunday. The Blast advanced after winning game two on the road against the Missouri Comets. The Flash hosted the Las Vegas Legends for their second win of the series.
The Missouri Comets suffered their first loss of the season in game one as Baltimore won a strong defense battle. The 6-4 score, 3-2 by traditional scoring rules, was the result of two teams fighting hard to earn the advantage in the series. Baltimore’s league best defense held firm holding the Comets to a season low for goals scored.
The first quarter of the Eastern Conference Championship second game played out much like the first game. Both teams had some chances but found it difficult to score. Missouri showed a lot more attacking presence and finally broke the ice with Keil Williams scoring for the Comets shortly before the break. With nine fouls, the tone was set.
The second quarter saw things really heat up. Mike Deasel leveled the match in the 6th minute and Lucas Roque gave the Blast the lead moments later. Ramon Palmer was called for tripping which gave Baltimore their first power-play of the game. Within 35 seconds, Tony Donatelli scored on a well coordinated attack. With the game appearing to slip away, Missouri needed an answer quickly. Alain Matingou scored on a rocket from long range bringing the game to one, but Onua Obasi answered with an equally impressive goal to push the lead again. As time was ticking off, Missouri was pressing for a late goal and John Sosa got it with a second left on the clock. Baltimore took the 4-3 lead into halftime.
The third quarter started where the second left off as Sosa was assessed a blue card for tripping just moments in. Vini Dantas converted the advantage into a goal. Bryan Perez and Josh Gardner each got on the score sheet with back to back goals midway through the quarter to tie the score. Baltimore’s Dantas and Donatelli each got a shot by Danny Waltman to reacquire the two goal lead.
The back and forth affair continued with Baltimore in the lead and more than capable of defending, so Missouri needed to press for the tie. They couldn’t find a goal, so in the 10th minute they went with a sixth attacker. As they attempted to pull Waltman from the goal, Baltimore countered and beat the reacting keeper to further extend the lead. Missouri found their goal on their next possession as Gardner cut the lead. With just over a minute left, Leo Gibson finally got on the board as he cut the lead to one. A Missouri defensive miscue on Baltimore’s next possession and a goal by Adriano Dos Santos led to John Sosa being sent off for his choice of words. Levi Hounapeu gave Baltimore a three goal lead as Missouri failed to turned the ball over immediately following their kickoff. Brian Harris was sent off for the Comets in the final seconds of the game for a violent foul.
The Blast’s win puts them in the final and avenges the home playoff loss they suffered in last year’s MISL Final against the Comets. The league’s best defense held firm to advance. Missouri looked off during the game as they missed shots they had made all season. If a few balls had gone in instead of off the post, the outcome may have been different.
Following the Missouri versus Baltimore matchup, the Monterrey Flash hosted the Pacific Division’s second place team, the Las Vegas Legends. The Legends advanced to this series after beating the Pacific Division favorites, the San Diego Sockers. Monterrey was the favorite in the Southern Division and got by the Dallas Sidekicks easily. In game one, Las Vegas gave a great showing at home, but eventually fell 7-6 to the Flash in a hard fought game.
The first quarter was fast paced with intense action. Both sides were looking to score early, and it was the Flash who broke the deadlock with a goal in the 6th minute by Armando Teran. The quarter ended with the Monterrey leading 1-0. The Legends thought they had tied things up early in the second, but the officials waived it off. Ricardo Sobreira did tie the score shortly after the disallowed goal. Monterrey's Carlos Pichardo scored the second for Monterrey midway through the quarter and the Flash took a 2-1 lead into halftime.
The third quarter saw a lot of action. Teran scored his second just a minute after the half started. Jackson Collins and Ivan Campos scored a pair of goals in just over a minute to tie the game a three apiece, but Angel Curiel's solo effort just 45 seconds after cut the tie short. Erik Tovar further extended the lead on a power-play goal in the 9th minute and pushed the lead to three in 12th. With Las Vegas having to press for goals in the fourth, Tovar was able to complete his hat trick five minutes in. The Legends were unable to cut into the lead until the 10th minute, but by then it was too little too late. The Flash held their three goal lead and won the game 7-4.
The Las Vegas Legends went into the game hopeful that they could get a result after their impressive showing at home, but the Monterrey Flash took care of business and advanced to the final.
The Ron Newman Cup Final will take place between March 22-26 with one more home and home series to come. Details for the games have not been released. With both Baltimore and Monterrey finishing the regular season 18-2 and no clarification yet given, it is unclear who will host the first leg.