BRISTOL, Tenn. – The (RV) Milligan men's soccer team's third counting match of the 2026 campaign came Tuesday on the campus of King University in Bristol, Tenn. against the Tornado. The NCAA Division II opponent matched up with the Buffaloes, as MU was in search of their second win against a Division II opponent this season. After a quiet first half, five goals were scored between the two sides in the second, as the Buffs capped off those tallies with a 90th-minute game-winner to win 3-2 over King.
The teams had seven combined shots in the first half, with each goalkeeper having to make a single stop. King outshot the Buffaloes 5-2 in the opening 45 minutes of action.
It looked like the contest was going to follow a similar script to Milligan's first two of the campaign after the opening half, but the last 45 minutes proved that theory incorrect.
Just 30 seconds into the second half,
Marco Lattanzi received a long ball over the top of the defense from
Zak Kersey into the goal box, which he promptly deposited into the back of the net to make it 1-0. The Tornado equalized in the 52nd minute, scoring the first goal against the Buffs in 2026. In the 61st minute, Lattanzi earned his team another opportunity to score when he was tripped in the box. He ended up taking the penalty kick and drilling his second goal of the contest into the bottom-left corner. King equalized, yet again, in the 85th minute, meaning the Buffaloes had limited time to respond with a winner. After a King throw-in in their attacking third with 15 seconds left,
Luiz Pereira launched a pass beyond all the King defenders that Lattanzi chased down and scored with only four seconds left on the clock. That tally, which completed Lattanzi's second hat trick in his MU career, gave the Buffs their second win of the season in unlikely fashion.
Each side ended up with 11 shots, while seven of Milligan's were on net and just three of King's ended up on frame. All three of Lattanzi's shots taken in the game ended in goals, as he scored the first hat trick by a Buffalo since he did it back in 2024 against Warren Wilson College.
Ilija Dordevic came through with a pair of shots on net, and
Isaac Lizotte and
Noé Bandi added the other two that were saved. Pereira,
Freddie Zinn,
Javier Salgado and
Trotter Jones each took shots that ended up missing the frame.
Adrià Allés played in his first match of the year, earning the victory, though he allowed two goals and stopped the other shot that was put on goal against him. He is now 1-0-0 on the season.
Milligan (2-0-1) now looks ahead to this Saturday, Sept. 5, when they will head to Mount Vernon, Ga. to battle the Brewton-Parker Christian University Barons. Kick off is set for 1:30 p.m.
