BLACK MOUNTAIN, N.C. (Sept. 16, 2015) â€" After losing its first six matches of the season, the Milligan College men's soccer team has now won two straight matches and is trending in the right direction after defeating Montreat College 3-2 Wednesday night on Howard Fisher Memorial Field.
 
In addition to the second consecutive win, the Buffaloes (2-6 overall) are now 1-0 in the Appalachian Athletic Conference, while Montreat suffered its first loss of the season to drop its record to 2-1 overall and 0-1 in the league.
 
Milligan was led offensively by its top three goal scorers this season, Jonathan Colson, Zana Ali and Tapiwa Kaseke, all who found the back of the net for the Buffs tonight.
 
The Buffs struck first as within the first 15 seconds of the match, Colson scored his team-leading sixth goal of the season. After Montreat tied it at 1-1, Kaseke scored his fourth goal of the season, on a header, to send Milligan into the locker room with a 2-1 lead.
 
Early in the second, Montreat scored again to tie it at 2-2, but Ali was able to corral a pass on the wing and dribble by a couple of Cavalier defenders before scoring his fifth goal of the season, the match winner.
 
With that tally, Ali has now scored in three straight matches for Milligan, including his first collegiate hat-trick last time out against Johnson.
 
Head Coach Adam Laney said, "We did a good job of executing our game plan which is what led to our goals. It's nice to see the tactical awareness of our guys applied during a close game."
 
In addition to scoring three or more goals for the fourth time this season, the two goals allowed by the defense is the fewest total so far.
 
"Nazren Habte had a great game defensively," added Laney. "He did a great job shutting down one of their best players."
 
Next up, the Buffs continue AAC play on Saturday, Sept. 19, against the Bulldogs of Union College in Barbourville, Kentucky, and then head to Beckley, West Virginia, for a nonconference tilt with the West Virginia Tech Golden Bears on Sept. 22. Milligan then returns home on Sept. 26 to host Tennessee Wesleyan College and kick off a three-match home stand, all against AAC opponents.