Milligan Notes: Buffs receive at-large bid to NAIA tournament

Despite winning the Appalachian Athletic Conference regular-season title, Milligan's baseball team wasn't guaranteed a spot in the NAIA Baseball National Tournament field after bowing out of the AAC tournament short of the title game. It wasn't until the brackets were unveiled on Wednesday evening that the Buffs could officially breathe a sigh of relief. The Buffs received an at-large bid and will open up play as the No. 2 seed in the four-team opening round bracket against No. 3 British Columbia on Monday, May 11 in Lakeland, Florida. Milligan is one of four AAC teams to make the 46-team field that will vie for a national championship. The Buffs are joined by AAC tournament champion Tennessee Wesleyan, tournament runner-up Bryan and Johnson University, which also received an at-large bid. The opening round will be double elimination, and the champion of the four-team bracket will advance to Lewiston, Idaho on May 22-30 for the Avista NAIA World Series. The Buffs won 40 games this season, tying them with the 2009 squad for the most wins in a single season in program history. Additionally, Milligan won the AAC regular-season title for the second time in program history and for the first time in 25 years. Milligan's Skyler Barnett picked up his 200th career victory as a head coach this season and has guided the Buffs to winning seasons in each of his six seasons at the helm. Flag Football After making it all the way to the championship game of the NAIA Independents Tournament, postseason honors are rolling in for the Buffs. A pair of Milligan players were named to the first-ever NAIA Women's Flag Football All-American List. Sophomore wide receiver and safety Krista Quinn and freshman linebacker and wide receiver Parker Bridges both earned spots on the second team after outstanding 2026 campaigns. Quinn hauled in a team-high 120 passes this season, wracking up 1,293 receiving yards and 27 touchdowns. Defensively, she had 40 flag pulls, an interception and four pass breakups. Bridges was a leader on the defensive side of the ball, grabbing 10 interceptions and breaking up 13 pass attempts. She was far and away Milligan's leader in flag pulls with 122 with five quarterback sacks and 11 flag pulls for a loss. Track & Field The Buffs made history by sweeping the AAC men's and women's outdoor track and field championships late last month, making Milligan the first school in conference history to sweep all six championships across men's and women's cross country, indoor track and field and outdoor track and field. Ellen-Mary Kearney captured individual conference titles in the women's 800m, the women's 3000m steeplechase and the women's 1500m. Brayden Simpson earned a pair of individual titles, winning the men's 110m hurdles and the men's 400m hurdles. Trevor Sinard won the men's discus, Aleah Soderman won the women's 400m hurdles and Luis Peralta won the men's 400m. Milligan put forth a strong effort in the 4x800m relays. Carter Windham, Marti Molins, Aaron Gottlied and Luis Peralta cruised to victory in the men's event. The women's team followed suit as Kaylee Coll, McKenzie Fitzgerald, Gabriella Hoover and Kearney won their event. The Buffs are now gearing up for the NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, which will be held in Asheville, North Carolina, form May 20-22.