No. 19 Men’s Soccer to take on No. 10 William Carey in NAIA National Championship Opening Round

MILLIGAN, Tenn. (November 13, 2023) – The No. 19 Milligan University men's soccer team will travel to No. 10 William Carey in the NAIA National Championship Opening Round on Saturday at 4:00 p.m.

Milligan makes its fourth-straight appearance in the NAIA men's soccer national championship tournament. The Buffs earned an automatic bid to the tournament field as the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) regular season champions. Milligan also went on to win the AAC Tournament title for the first time since 2006.

The Buffs finished No. 19 in the final NAIA national top-25 coaches' poll. The Buffs were unbeaten in their 17 games of the 2023 season and carry a 16-2-3 record into the national tournament. Milligan claimed the AAC regular season title with a 10-0-3 record and stormed through the AAC Tournament with three shutout victories, including a 4-0 triumph over (RV) Tennessee Wesleyan in the AAC final. In six games against 2023 NAIA National Tournament qualifiers, Milligan posted a 4-1-1 record.

A league-high eight players earned all-conference status with graduate forward Inaki Moreno claiming AAC Player of the Year honors and head coach Paddy Sweeney collected AAC Co-Coach of the Year laurels.

William Carey was tabbed as the No. 9 seed in the tournament field and was an at-large selection to the postseason field. A member of the Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC), the Crusaders went 16-4-1 in the regular season, 8-2 in SSAC play and reached the SSAC Tournament championship game. William Carey reached the NAIA National Championship Final Site last season and spent the entire 2023 campaign ranked in the top 10, peaking at No. 6 in the nation.

The winner of Buffs and Crusaders will advance to Wichita, Kan., the final site of the 2023 NAIA Men's Soccer National Championship.