Haraldstad's PK Sends Milligan to NAIA Title Game

(Jeff Melton of the NAIA contributed to the release)

WICHITA, Kan. - Milligan is through the to 2023 NAIA Men's Soccer National Championship game, defeating No. 5 St. Thomas (Fla.) 1-0 in double overtime in the semifinal round on Saturday.

The tournament is being held at Stryker Soccer Complex in Wichita, Kan.

Scoreless for the vast majority of the game, Simen Haraldstad broke the deadlock when he converted a penalty kick in the 103rd minute. Jett Carter was substituted into the game for Milligan in the second overtime, and he used his fresh legs to draw the penalty.

Not only will this be the first appearance in the men's soccer title match for Milligan, but it marks the first time an Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) men's soccer team has advanced to the championship game.

Here are some game notes/highlights:

• Milligan (Tenn.) and St. Thomas (Fla.) both played in the semifinal round for the first time in program history
• The 45 minutes of action was played mostly in the midfield as offensive chances were held to a minimum; The Bobcats tallied five shot attempts and three were saved by the Milligan keeper Adria Alles, but the best scoring chance occurred at the 2:45 mark
• The match's first corner kick was drawn by STU in the 50th minute and booted into play by Guido Cacciabue but the Buffalo defense dispatched it
• During the middle portion of the second period, it appeared as if the field shifted to favor the Bobcats, but Milligan remained stout defensively
• No side had a better chance than in the 89th minute when STU's Angelo Bernandes slipped past the backline, but his would-be game-winner went high over the crossbar
• As the two teams marched towards overtime, the trend of the 1 pm contest of the 2023 NAIA National Championship not being decided in regulation continues
• In the back half of the first overtime, Milligan had a pair of threatening passes into the offensive third but the gaps were quickly closed by the Bobcats
• Alex Panner had the first and only attempt during OT1 at the 97:53 march, which was blocked at the point of attack
• Within 19 seconds of the second OT period, the Bobcats put a blast on frame which was saved by Alles
• Today marked the third game-winning goal for Haraldstad this season - William Carey (Miss.) and Bryan (Tenn.)
• In the loss, the Bobcats outshot the Buffs 16-5 overall and 6-2 in shots on goal; Hernando Suarez recorded a game-high four shots for STU while Niklas Hoener, Evan Bjerke, Angelo Bernandes, and Guido Cacciabue all tallied multiple attempts in the match
• Alles (W, 13-1-4) put the team on his back, helping MU upset higher-seeded St. Thomas with six saves across 110 minutes of play

Milligan will face No. 14 seed MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) on Monday at 3 p.m. ET for the championship. MidAmerica Nazarene defeated No. 7 Oklahoma Wesleyan 1-0 in double-overtime in the other semifinal match.