AMBUSH DROP OVERTIME HEARTBREAKER TO SAN DIEGO

Oceanside, California (April 19, 2026) – The St. Louis Ambush gave the San Diego Sockers all they could handle on Sunday at the Frontwave Arena in Oceanside, California but in the end, the Sockers prevailed 6-5 in overtime to advance to the finals and send the Ambush home for the summer. San Diego won game one at The Family Arena on Friday, then came back to escape with the overtime win on Sunday. It marked the end of a very good season for St. Louis Ambush, who have plenty to build on for next season, while the quest continues for San Diego, who squares off with the Milwaukee Wave for all the marbles.

St. Louis drew first blood in less than a minute into the match when Mario Falsone managed to get off a shot in the midst of a chaotic cluster of players in front of the goal to give the Ambush a 1-0 lead. San Diego answered just past the three minute mark when Luiz Morales beat St. Louis goalkeeper Paulo Nascimento to knot the score. The Ambush bounced back on a restart when Lucas Almeida passed to Mehrshad Ahmadi, who placed a shot out of reach of Sockers goalkeeper Boris Pardo. The visitors held a 2-1 lead at the end of the opening quarter.

San Diego drew even again in the fifth minute of the second period when Sebastian Mendez fired a shot that Nascimento couldn’t corral. Just under a minute later, St. Louis retook the lead (3-2) on Falsone’s second goal of the match. The Ambush went on a power play in the eleventh minute when San Diego’s Luis Ortega earned a blue card for tripping. St. Louis made the most of the opportunity when Lucas Almeida scored, assisted by Christian Briggs, to make it a 4-2 game. The Ambush got another power play in the fourteenth minute when Stefan Mijatovic earned a visit to the penalty box when he hip-checked Jeff Michaud into the boards. At halftime, St. Louis enjoyed a 4-2 lead.

At the start of the third quarter, San Diego made a switch between the pipes, with Chris Toth minding the net in place of Pardo. In the fifth minute of the third frame, the Sockers got one back when Tavoy Morgan scored. Morgan’s goal would be the lone tally of the quarter, giving the Ambush a 4-3 lead heading into the final period.

In the third minute of the fourth quarter, the Sockers got their first power play of the match when St. Louis’ Colin O’Keefe was sent to the sin bin for holding. Nascimento and the Ambush defense managed to kill off the penalty and play continued. In the fifth minute, O’Keefe weaved his way between San Diego defenders to score and give the Ambush a two-goal lead (5-3). Morgan put a long shot out of Nascimento’s reach in the eighth minute to notch his second of the match and shave the score to 5-4. With less than three minutes left on the clock, the Sockers pulled Toth and put Drew Ruggles in as the sixth attacker, then strategically switched between Toth and the sixth man. With 32 seconds remaining, the Sockers got a power play when O’Keefe was penalized for four fouls in the half. San Diego made good on the opportunity when Leonardo De Oliveira tied the contest with 10 seconds left in regulation. The clock ran out, sending the game into sudden-death overtime.

In the tenth minute of overtime, Nick Perera scored for the Sockers, to send San Diego to the Ron Newman Cup finals and end the season for the Ambush.

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