When you think of elite soccer, the English Premier League, La Liga in Spain and maybe the Italian Serie A come to mind.

When indoor soccer is the topic? Well, not many leagues are talked about. Two that come to mind are the North American Soccer and Major Indoor Soccer Leagues that existed from the 1970s to late the 1990s.

And any time those leagues are mentioned, the San Diego Sockers have to be part of the conversation. After all, the franchise won a combined 10 titles while playing in those leagues.

The Sockers are trying to continue the franchise's legacy but this time in the Premier Arena Soccer League-Pro. San Diego is looking to win its second-straight North American Championship.

The Sockers continue to try to be kings of indoor soccer as they take their top seed and head into Friday's semifinals in Cincinnati. San Diego, which won the Western Division, had a bye into the semis and will play against the winner of Thursday's match between Calgary and Mexico City.

The final is scheduled Saturday for 4:30 p.m. (Pacific time)

That's where the Sockers want to be.

And if they are going to do it, you can credit, in part, their leading scorer and recently named league Most Valuable Player, Kraig Chiles.

The Poway High alumni is also the league's top scorer, with a career-high 33 goals in 16 regular season games. He is second on the Sockers with 12 assists, giving him 45 points this season. Veteran Paul Wright is second with 27 points.

Chiles is also a San Diego State graduate who was taken by Chivas USA in the 2008 Major League Soccer Expansion Draft. He played in five MLS games but found himself on the bench often. So, he returned to San Diego to play with the Sockers.

"We are not out there to just kick the ball around and win a couple of games," Chiles told The Union-Tribune. "There's a legacy here that's been set by the former players and it's our responsibility to live up to the reputation."

So far, so good.

But another North American Championship can only reinforce that responsibility to keep that legacy going, even if it's decades later.

Ivan.orozco@sandiegored.com