In-Form Empire Gears Up for Home Playoff Clash with Wave

Interim Head Coach Palmer: “I believe we’re prepared”

Ontario, Calif. — The Empire Strykers take on the Milwaukee Wave at Ontario’s Toyota Arena this coming Thursday, aiming to set the tone for what they hope will be a deep run in the Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) playoffs. Entering their home-and-away series with the Wave as underdogs on paper, the Strykers are poised for an upset, as they are coming off three consecutive victories, including Sunday’s dramatic overtime win over the visiting St. Louis Ambush in front of a record-breaking crowd.

12-11-1 (wins-losses-overtime/shootout losses) Empire, which boasts Mexican star and two-time FIFA World Cup veteran Marco Fabián, faces 13-6-5 Milwaukee on Thursday, April 2, at 6:35 p.m. PT, in the club’s first postseason home game since 2021. Tickets are available here.

The second leg will take place in Wisconsin on Monday. A 15-minute mini game will determine who advances in the event of each team finishing the series with one win.

The English-language live video broadcast of Thursday’s clash will reach U.S. and international audiences via MASL+, the MASL’s YouTube channel, Creator Sports Network (CSN), Unbeaten Channel, National Soccer Network (NSN) and SLVR, with several of the platforms making the action available on demand as well. It will also be carried in English by FOX Sports Radio 1270AM. The Spanish-language live video broadcast will air exclusively in Mexico via the FOX Sports lineup of channels and outside of Mexico via the MASL's YouTube channel.

In their regular season finale against St. Louis, the Strykers trailed three times before taking their first lead and ultimately recording their fourth 5-4 overtime victory of the 2025-26 campaign. The side led by Interim Head Coach and team captain Robert Palmer recorded a new all-time highest attendance in franchise history as well as the highest attendance around the entire MASL thus far this season. Empire forward Barbaro Shelier and Ambush defender Robert Williamson each earned a goal and an assist in the game.

Defender Palmer was at the center of a key moment in the opening quarter, as a wild swing with his arm caught Ozzy Santana in the head and brought about a penalty kick that was powered home by Mehrshad Ahmadi for 1-0.

“A lot of times, the team plays based on what the person at the helm puts out — whether they’re calm and cool or very erratic,” said a self-critical Robert Palmer in recounting the incident. “My emotions took over during that moment. I wasn’t being smart and got into it with the ref. I was more of a player than the coach at that moment, and it trickled down to the whole team.”

The Jamaican continued, “I’m glad we showed the resilience to keep bouncing back. It showed me that the guys have that fighting spirit and never give up. We have several attacking players who can make things happen if we avoid being multiple goals down. We did that against a gritty team like St. Louis, which is a really good sign before a knockout game.”

Strykers legend Justin Stinson not only finished the regular season topping the roster in points (27) and jointly with Mounir Alami in goals (15 each) but also ranking second in assists (12) and in points per game (1.13 in 24 games). First place in points per game was claimed by Alami (1.19 in 21 games), who was also second in points (25). Alan Perez tied for the league lead in short-handed goals (2), and his teammate Ant Powell tied for eighth in power play goals (2).

Backline anchor and new Interim Head Coach Palmer has once again been a key contributor on both defense and offense. The veteran not only finished third league-wide in blocks (45) but also topped his side in assists (14). Second place in blocks on the Strykers was claimed by MASL rookie Filipe Dutra (21).

Like Palmer, backstop Brian Orozco has been a key figure beyond his core responsibilities. In addition to sitting third in the league in goals-against average (5.06 in 18 games/~806 mins), the 24-year-old Orozco has earned three netters and five assists for a remarkable 0.42 points per game. On average, he has recorded one point for roughly every 109 minutes spent on the field. Meanwhile, fellow ‘keeper Brandon Gomez boasts an even better goals-against average than Orozco (4.71 in 13 games/~421 mins) but is ineligible for the MASL leaderboard because he has logged too few minutes.

In Milwaukee, Empire faces an opponent who narrowly missed out on a first-round bye, having placed third in a three-way photo finish for first place, despite closing out the regular season with three straight home wins after a 6-3 loss to visiting Empire on March 15. In their most recent two matches, first-year Head Coach Marcio Leite’s men edged out Baltimore 10-9 in overtime before defeating Utica City FC 11-7. By reaching the elimination stages, the Wave continues its proud tradition of never having missed the playoffs in the MASL’s 13-year history. Milwaukee lifted the championship trophy at the conclusion of the 2018-19 campaign.

The Wave’s matchup with the Strykers, who downed host Utica 5-3 prior to the win over St. Louis, marks only the seventh ever meeting between the two teams. All six contests thus far have been part of regular season play, with Empire leading the all-time series 4-2. None of the previous meetings have been decided in overtime or a shootout.

Milwaukee defeated the Ontario Fury (today’s Empire Strykers) in 2014-15, both MASL founding members’ second campaign in the league, followed by a Fury victory in 2019-20. Having again downed the visiting Wave in 2024-25 (by a 10-7 final score), the Strykers then fell 3-1 away in this season’s series opener on December 31, followed by an 8-7 home win in mid-February. Empire’s subsequent 6-3 road victory at Milwaukee in mid-March, which saw the Californians claim the series 2-1, marked Robert Palmer’s maiden match as player-coach.

“We had a game plan”, said Palmer, “but it was my first time in charge, so we only briefly talked about it in a conference room the day before. Now, we get to actually practice that a bit more aggressively because we’ve been working on it in practice. I believe we’re prepared.”

Milwaukee had by far the greatest attacking output in 2025-26 but also gave up the fourth-most goals of all eight MASL clubs. A quartet of Wave players wreaked havoc in opposition halves throughout the regular season, with Alex Sanchez, Mario Alvarez, Alex Steinwascher and Oscar Flores each putting up outstanding numbers.

While Sanchez led the league in goals (42) and finished runner-up in points (27) and points per game (2.04 in 24 games) as well as tied for eighth in assists (17), Alvarez ranked fourth in assists (21) as well as tied for fourth in points per game (1.83 in 23 games), for sixth in points (42), jointly with Steinwascher for eighth in goals (21), and jointly with Flores for ninth in power play goals (2). Midfielder Steinwascher also claimed eighth in points (40) and finished tied for fifth in assists (19) and for eighth in points per game (1.67 in 24 games), with Flores sitting fifth in goals (26).

Milwaukee received additional offensive contributions from Max Ferdinand, Ricardo Carvalho and Andre Hayne. While Ferdinand ranked tied for tenth in helpers (16), Carvalho was tied for eighth in points per game (1.67 in 12 games) and jointly with Hayne and others for fourth in power play goals (3).

Alex Steinwascher has been a major asset on both sides of the ball for the Wave, as his blocks total (33) saw him tied for fourth in the MASL. Shawn Azcueta had the second-most blocks (25) of all Milwaukee players.

Even the goalkeeper position has factored into the attack for Empire’s next opponent. Up-and-comer Gerardo Perez bagged no fewer than seven goals during the regular season, along with one assist, making for a staggering points-per-game average of 0.57 (in 14 games/~413 mins). The 21-year-old boasts a point for roughly every 52 minutes spent on the turf.

“Milwaukee is well coached,” said Strykers Interim Head Coach Palmer in concluding his remarks. “Marcio Leite is very experienced as a player and well respected. He has a clear idea of how he wants to play. For us, it’s about making sure we fine-tune our game. That has to do with both offense and defense, and it affects everything from the run of play to set pieces, the special teams, the power play, and the sixth attacker. All the little things have to be right if you want to win a playoff game. We will do our very best to do so.”

Tickets to Empire’s home postseason clash with the Wave are available here.