No. 4 Milligan Men’s Soccer Ties Truett-McConnell on the Road

CLEVELAND, Ga. — Game number one of the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) slate for the No. 4-ranked Milligan University men's soccer squad took place on Wednesday evening at Truett-McConnell University. After erasing a 1-0 deficit with two second-half goals, the Buffs conceded an equalizer in the 89th minute to finish in a 2-2 tie.

Milligan's record for the season is now 2-0-2, 0-0-1 AAC, while Truett-McConnell sits at 3-0-2, 1-0-1 AAC.

The first half started strong for TMU, as they benefitted from a 12th-minute tally to take the early lead. It was mostly a feeling-out period for both squads in the opening half, as Milligan took just four shots, with three of them being saved. On the other side, the Bears took six shots, but only tested Ludvig Willie with three of them.

In the second half, it was more of a mad dash for the net, especially for the Buffaloes. Four of Milligan's nine shots in the period were on frame. In the 54th minute, Alex Panner netted the equalizing tally, unassisted. Twenty minutes down the line, Unai Cruz broke the tie on an assist by Clay Gallant to give the Buffs a one-goal advantage at 2-1. In the waning moments, however, TMU was able to snatch their own equalizer to seal a 2-2 draw for the home squad.

Cruz took six of the Buffs' 13 shots in the match, and notched the second Milligan goal in the matchup. Panner, Kai Slinn and Justin Madejski took two shots apiece and went on net once each. Johnny Salgado was responsible for the remaining shot by the Buffaloes.

Wille stopped three of the five shots that he faced in the bout, and his record now matches the 2-0-2 season mark for the Buffs.

Next on the docket for Milligan is a home matchup with the Columbia International University Rams on Saturday, Sept. 14 at Anglin Field at 4 p.m.