Wisconsin Soccer Central

The Milwaukee Wave remained unbeaten on their home turf at U.S. Cellular Arena this season, getting hat tricks from Ian Bennett and Marcio Leite as they overwhelmed the St. Louis Ambush 21-9 on Saturday night.

Defender Victor Quiroz had three assists as the Wave (10-2) recorded assists on all but one goal and remained a half-game ahead of the Baltimore Blast (10-3) atop the Major Indoor Soccer League standings with eight games left in the regular season.

A crowd of 5,206 saw the expansion Ambush (4-10), who had scored just two goals over their previous three matches, score twice in the first quarter to take a 4-0 lead.

“Give them credit, it wasn't that we played poorly," said Wave coach Keith Tozer, whose team has the only unbeaten home record in the MISL at 6-0. "They played well."

Milwaukee, though, rattled off five straight goals in the opening 7 minutes of the second quarter. Luan Oliveira started the 11-0 run with a 3-pointer just 27 seconds into the period, while rookie Philip Suprise (Milwaukee Pius) picked up his first professional goal and Bennett scored his first two goals of the night in the surge.

Bennett capped his third hat trick of the season 3:44 into the second half with his 18th goal, which ranks third in the league. St. Louis trailed by just four at 13-9 after three quarters, but Milwaukee scored four times in the final stanza to deal the visitors their fourth consecutive loss – the Ambush have been outscored 77-13 during that span.

Leite scored his first goal 7 seconds into the fourth and netted his hat trick, the 10th of the season for the Wave, in an 8-minute, 8-second span before fellow Brazilian Hewerton closed out the scoring with his first goal of the season with just more than 3 minutes left.

Milwaukee, which ranks second in the MISL in goals scored and second in goals allowed, faces the Ambush again at 2:35 p.m. Saturday in St. Louis to open a three-game road trip.

• Leite was named to the MISL Team of the Week for his performance, while Bennett and Quiroz were honorable mention.