Wisconsin Soccer Central

It shouldn't be a surprise that when the Milwaukee Wave needed a goal to keep their season alive Saturday, Ian Bennett came up with it.

Bennett tracked down a loose ball and fired a shot over Chicago Mustangs goalkeeper Jesus Flores from a tight angle on the left side, giving the Wave a 2-1 overtime victory in the tiebreaking mini-game of the teams' Major Arena Soccer League playoff series at UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena and a 2-1 series victory.

Milwaukee (15-8), which forced the 15-minute mini-game with a 9-2 victory in Game 2 earlier in the day, advances to play the unbeaten Missouri Comets (20-0) in the Central Division final on Thursday. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. in Independence, Mo.

Bennett sent the matinee crowd of 2,888 home happy in what likely will be the Wave's final home match of the season. He scored the opener 9:35 into the mini-game, finishing off a rebound after Flores stopped Luan Sales Oliveira's initial shot.

Omar Santillan equalized for Chicago with 3:50 remaining, also on a rebound against Milwaukee keeper-assistant coach Nick Vorberg – playing for the first time since suffering a hamstring injury back on Jan. 25. But with 6:20 remaining, Bennett blasted up and over Flores to the far corner for the golden goal. He also scored in Game 2 earlier and leads the Wave with 40 goals in 23 games.

Milwaukee dominated play in the mini-game and overtime, outshooting the Mustangs 12-4. Flores kept Chicago, which won the Professional Arena Soccer League title last season, in the game by making 10 saves.

"I think it's a big turning point for us as a team," Wave coach Giuliano Oliviero said in a news release. "(The Mustangs) played with a lot of heart. They really wanted it. With that said, I can't say enough about our players and what they brought to the field. The guys had a lot of fight and determination in them tonight."

The Wave, who were shut out in the second half of a 6-3 loss to the third-seeded Mustangs (12-11) in the series opener Feb. 26 in Hoffman Estates, Ill., fell behind 2-1 in Game 2 after Efrain Wilo Martinez's power-play goal 1:12 into the second quarter.

But Bato Radoncic tied it 1:54 later and Tony Walls (Wauwatosa East/UW-Green Bay) gave Milwaukee the lead for good with 4:58 left in the first half. The Wave ended up scoring the final seven goals, with Marcelo Fontana scoring twice and Walls netting his third hat trick of the season – he has 20 goals in 21 games.

"Tony Walls has been great all season," Oliviero said. "He started the year as a defender and then we moved him to target forward and wow! He works hard, doesn't stop and gets better every game."

This is the fifth consecutive season the Wave and Comets will meet in the postseason. Missouri has advanced the past two years, winning mini-games to claim 2-1 series victories in Major Indoor Soccer League semifinals; Milwaukee won the previous two seasons, 2-0 and 2-1, also in MISL semifinal series.

The Comets, last season's MISL champions, beat the Wave 9-7 on Nov. 15 in Missouri and earned an 8-7 win on New Year's Eve Day at Panther Arena, winning a shootout after the teams were tied at 7 following regulation and a 15-minute overtime.

"They’re the champs," Oliviero said. "We've got a lot of respect for them, but we don't fear them. We are going in there with an attitude that we have nothing to lose and everything to gain. I think our guys are excited for that challenge on Thursday."