Sockers’ 3-2 Victory Is a Small Feat : Segota a Shoe-In to Win MISL’s Worst Packing Award

Hoping to begin a four-game trip on the right foot, the Sockers’ Branko Segota accidentally went a little too far.

He packed two game shoes for his right foot, but forgot any for his left.

Luckily for Segota, Brian Quinn packed an extra pair of shoes, albeit a half-size smaller than Segota’s size 7 feet. Still, a slightly small shoe is better than none at all.

Segota scored a third-period goal with Quinn’s left shoe Sunday night to break a 1-1 tie against the Cleveland Force. The Sockers then took a two-goal lead before holding on in the final minutes to win, 3-2, in front of 13,144 fans at the Richfield Coliseum.

“Branko scored that goal with his left foot, so I’ll take the credit,” Quinn said. “I just wish that shoe had been on my foot.”

Lately, Segota has been making a lot of people wish they were in his shoes.

He had two goals and one assist Sunday, giving him eight goals and two assists in three games and nine goals and four assists in four games.

About the only thing he hasn’t done right lately has been packing.

“I woke up too early (Saturday),” Segota said. “We played the night before, and I had to get up at six in the morning. I had packed my stuff the day before. I forgot to check my bag again in the morning. I’m going to have somebody from Cleveland send me a pair of shoes for the next game.”

Segota started the Socker scoring Sunday with a left-footed goal at 8:42. His shot deflected off Cleveland’s Peter Ward, changed directions, and got past goalie P.J. Johns.

“I finally got a cheap goal,” Segota said. “You have to take anything you can get.”

Cleveland took advantage of a power play to tie the game, 1-1, at 13:07. Keith Furphy scored off a corner kick pass from George Nanchoff.

Cleveland outshot San Diego in the second period, 10-2, but neither team scored. Socker goalie Jim Gorsek made six saves in the period.

Segota gave San Diego the lead, 2-1, with his left-footed shot 52 seconds into the second half.

Jean Willrich made it 3-1 Sockers with an unusual goal at 13:04 of the period. He took a shot that deflected off the boards, hit Johns in the back and went into the Cleveland net. Willrich has scored in 12 straight games.

Cleveland gave the Sockers a scare after pulling Johns in favor of a sixth attacker with 3:10 to play.

Nanchoff made it a 3-2 game with 2:08 remaining, scoring from close in.

In the final two minutes, Cleveland twice came close to tying the game. Defender Kevin Crow made a good block on Nanchoff’s shot with 1:15 to play, and Gorsek made a sliding save on Craig Allen with 30 seconds to play.

“The whole team, from Steve Zungul to the four defenders, was getting back on defense,” Gorsek said. “When they play defense like that, it’s great. I just wish we’d score a few more goals in games like that.”

Cleveland Coach Timo Liekoski blamed fluke goals on his team’s loss.

“I think Gorsek was luckier than Johns,” he said. “Gorsek got the bounces, and Johns didn’t.”

Coach Ron Newman praised the play of his entire defense. However, George Katakalidis, who had a team-high five blocked shots, was not as pleased.

“Defensively, we were average,” Katakalidis said. “Cleveland didn’t play well offensively. That’s why the score was so low.

“As a team, I thought we played terrible. We were not productive or creative. It seemed like we were tentative and wanted to get the game over. To tell you the truth, a lot of us are glad we’re getting out of here. Maybe it’s the air in Cleveland.”

The Sockers (22-7) got their fourth straight win and eighth in nine games. They still have the Major Indoor Soccer League’s best record by one-half game over Baltimore (21-7). Cleveland (16-13) had won five straight and eight of 10 before Sunday’s loss.

Socker Notes

Kaz Deyna played only the game’s first second because of what might be a partially torn cartilage in his right knee. Ron Newman said he had put Deyna’s name in the starting lineup, and the league gets upset if players listed as starters don’t start. Otherwise, Deyna would not have been on the field. . . . Defender Gary Collier left the Richfield Coliseum on crutches from a possible stress fracture in his lower left leg. . . . Both Deyna and Collier will be examined today in Chicago. The Sockers play their next game Wednesday night against the Chicago Sting.