Stars Outshine Lazers in Overtime, 3-2 : Tacoma Coach’s Strategy Pays Off With a Tie in Regulation

After beating the high-scoring San Diego Sockers in their last two games, the Los Angeles Lazers were matched Saturday against another Major Indoor Soccer League team with a powerful offense, the Tacoma Stars.

But both teams did a good job preventing the expected--goals--and in the end it was Tacoma that came away with a 3-2 overtime victory before 5,022 fans at the Forum.

With the Lazers leading, 2-1, and three minutes left in regulation, the Stars lifted their goalkeeper for a sixth attacker. The gamble paid off seven seconds later when Tacoma forward Godfrey Ingram, off an assist from Gary Heale, managed to get the ball past Lazer goalkeeper David Brcic to send the game into overtime.

Brcic appeared to make the save, but, as he was falling, the ball slipped through his hands, barely crossing the line into the goal.

Tacoma Coach Alan Hinton pulled his goalie with so much time left because he felt it was the only way to get something going. “Sometimes that could be called a bad coaching move,” Hinton said, “but I’ll take that one as a good coaching move.”

At 3:02 of the overtime period, Heale, off an assist from Gerry Gray, blasted the ball past Brcic to give the Stars their fifth consecutive victory.

“Gerry’s shot came straight back (off the wall) to where I was standing, and I just knocked it in,” Heale said.

The Lazers fell to 3-1 and into second place behind the Stars (5-1) in the Western Division.

The game wasn’t exciting by any means, but it was both coaches’ game plan to let the other team make a mistake.

“The two teams were doing the same thing . . . defending the loose ball and getting five players back.” Wall said. “I knew it would be a low-scoring game.”

Tacoma took just 16 shots in the game, and the Lazers took 21.

The Lazers scored first when, after George Fernandez was dragged down from behind on a breakaway, they were awarded a one-on-one shootout situation. Beto dribbled the ball from midfield and easily slipped the ball past a faked-out Joe Papaleo, the Tacoma goalkeeper.

Tacoma managed just one shot on goal in the period, and Brcic didn’t get his hands on the ball until the second period.

Ingram tied the game at 1-1 just 29 seconds into the second period with a side-footed kick off an assist by Steve Zungul.

Brcic, who had nine saves, then prevented Zungul from giving the Stars the lead by making two spectacular close-range saves in a brief one-on one battle.

After a scoreless and lackluster third period, Lazer forward Willie Molano took a pass from Greg Ion and got his seventh goal of the season on a low, 25-foot shot at 6:12 of the fourth period, giving the Lazers a 2-1 lead that didn’t hold up.