Sockers Grunt Way Past Blast : MSL:Fourteenth consecutive home victory accomplished with some brilliant teamwork.

By drubbing the Baltimore Blast, 8-4, at the Sports Arena Saturday night, the Sockers showed they have been able to win 14 consecutive home games not only because of what they can do with the soccer ball, but because of what they can do without it.

Perhaps most illustrative of that was the run Brian Quinn made before taking a pass from Branko Segota that led to the Sockers’ sixth goal early in the final period.

Quinn gained control of the ball at his defensive red line and sent a long pass to Segota. He then followed the pass, and as Segota used his upper-body strength to hold off defender Mike Reynolds, he ran by Segota.

“I faked to me left before changing directions,” Quinn said. “That gave me an extra step on (my defender).”

So there was Quinn going in alone on goalie Scott Manning. Segota pushed the ball up to him and Quinn redirected it inside the left post to make it 6-3.

Segota finished with two goals and two assists. Quinn added two assists to his goal to emerge from a slump in which he had passed for only two assists in the past six games (compared to 34 assists in the previous 24 games).

But Quinn took exception to the word “slump.”

“My game revolves around the team,” Quinn said. “I try to make passes every game. It just seems that when we do the grunt work and make the runs, then we play much better.”

The Sockers went up, 1-0, late in the first quarter because defender Kevin Crow, who seems to be getting stronger as the season grows older, did some grunt work. Crow slipped between three Blast defenders and into the penalty area, where he accepted a short pass from Quinn and slid it underneath the on-coming Manning.

But it wasn’t just their work ethic that propped the Sockers over the Blast. It was also a little savvy.

That savvy is coming more and more often from Paul Wright, who is losing his image as a goal-scorer who relies solely on speed.

In the third quarter, with the Sockers up, 3-2, Wright showed how to play the boards when he let a long pass from David Banks get by him and carom off the end boards. He then took the pass with his back to both the goal and defender Mark Mettrick, turned, dribbled by Mettrick and beat Manning to the far post.

That was the second of the three goals that came in the first 45 seconds of the second half.

Quinn set up the first one by sneaking a pass to Kevin Crow, who was standing just off the right post. Crow, however, restrained himself from taking an easy shot and instead quickly sent the ball across the goal mouth to Wes Wade at the other side of the net. Wade had no one to beat as he put the Sockers up, 3-2.

Only eight seconds later, Wright scored.