Good Not Good Enough for Sockers : MISL: Coach Ron Newman likes what he sees, but bottom line is still bad: a 4-3 loss at St. Louis.

The Sockers appear to have a healthier psyche on the road than at home, although that wasn’t enough Friday at the St. Louis Arena.

Minus offensive leaders Branko Segota and Brian Quinn, the Sockers were edged by the Storm, 4-3, before 7,308.

Still, Socker Coach Ron Newman liked what he saw.

“We played great,” he said. “I’m very happy. If we can just keep doing this, we’ll be all right.”

The Sockers (15-21), coming off a 9-5 victory over Dallas Wednesday--their most impressive on the road this season--took a 2-1 lead in the first quarter on goals by midfielder Waad Hirmez and rookie forward Rod Castro. Hirmez, who has 20 goals this season, scored a hat trick Wednesday and has five goals in his past three games.

Storm midfielder Claudio De Oliveira, the leading rookie point-scorer in the MISL, scored early in the fourth quarter to tie it. He scored again on a power play with 4:43 remaining after defender George Fernandez was whistled for elbowing. Newman said De Oliveira grabbed Fernandez’s jersey to foil a breakaway, and Fernandez was merely attempting to pull free.

Just 24 seconds later, Storm midfielder Emil Dragicevic scored off an assist from Thompson Usiyan to make it 4-2. Socker midfielder Ben Collins closed out the scoring with 1:46 remaining off Castro’s assist.

Newman said Sockers’ shots hit the post five times.

“We’re not talking about the outside of the post,” Newman said. “We’re talking about the inside of the post.”

The Sockers, now third in the Western Division, a game ahead of Tacoma and 6 1/2 games behind first-place Dallas, are home tonight at 7:35 against the Cleveland Crunch, whom they have defeated in four of five meetings this season.

St. Louis (18-17) is second in the Western Division, 3 1/2 games ahead of the Sockers and three behind Dallas.