Milligan University

Milligan University Buffaloes
1 Blowers Boulevard PO Box 500 Milligan University, TN 37682

NAIA Tennessee Southeast

Private Small Competitive team

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Coaches

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John Newbery

Began: 2022 | Season: 2024 is his 3rd season

Overall record at Milligan entering 2024 season: 15-18-5

John Newbery was hired as the head coach of the Milligan women's soccer team in summer 2022 after over a decade of coaching in the NAIA. He spent the preceding two seasons as the head coach of Point Park University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

In 2023, Newbery’s Buffs doubled their win total and finished with a 10-9-1 record. Milligan posted an 8-6 conference record to earn the No. 7 seed in the AAC Tournament. The Buffs defeated Pikeville in the first round of the conference tournament before bowing out against NAIA national qualifier Tennessee Wesleyan in the quarterfinals.

Milligan had one of the most improved teams it the AAC in 2023 as the Buffs went from the No. 9 scoring offense (1.39 GFA) to a top-five unit (2.75) in one season. Freshman Natalie Roper was honored as the AAC Freshman of the Year, the program’s first such selection since 2009.

In his first year with the Buffs, Milligan used a 1-0 win over Johnson on the final day of the regular season to qualify for the final spot in the AAC Tournament. Milligan advanced past Point in penalty kicks before falling to top-seeded No. 18 Truett McConnell in the quarterfinals.

Eight Milligan women’s soccer student-athletes have earned Academic All-District honors from the College Sports Communicators in 2022 and 2023.

Newbery owned a 16-14-3 record in two seasons at Point Park as the Pioneers earned top-four conference finishes in the River States Conference (RSC) in 2020-21 and 2021. Against RSC opponents, Newbery’s squad boasted a 14-4-3 mark and made two trips to the RSC semifinals.

Point Park claimed the top overall seed in the RSC Tournament with an 8-2 RSC record in 2020-21 but had its season in the conference semifinals end due to a COVID no contest. This past fall the Pioneers placed fourth in the league standings, defeated IU Kokomo to reach the RSC semifinals and fell to the eventual RSC champions Ohio Valley.

Prior to Point Park, Newbery was the lead assistant for coach Steve Hamilton at the University of the Cumberlands (Ky.) from 2015-2019. He assisted in all aspects of the program and established himself as a key recruiter for the Patriots’ success in the early 2020s, which included an NAIA national championship in 2023. He served as the junior varsity head coach and goalkeeper coach. In his final season at Cumberlands, he also assisted the men’s soccer team as a goalkeeper coach.

During his five seasons with Cumberlands, the Patriots owned a 57-30-8 record and spent time in the national rankings in 2018 and 2019. In 2019, Cumberlands earned a spot in the NAIA Women’s Soccer National Championship, won a game in the national tournament and finished the year ranked No. 18 in the nation. Goalkeeper Nicole Panis was named an NAIA All-American in 2019 after posting a record of 15-2-1.

Newbery had coaching stops at Northwest University, Everett Community College and Trinity Lutheran University, all in Washington state, from 2011-2013.

Newbery hails from Westport, Kentucky and graduated from Cumberlands with a degree in biology in 2009. He spent four years as a goalkeeper with the Patriots and went on to play semi-professionally for the Snohomish Skyhawks in the PASL-Premier League (2010-2015) and the Tacoma Stars in the PASL-Pro League (2012). He owns master’s degrees in Christian studies, education and coaching. He owns a USSF National “C” Coaching License.

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Bradley Bizzell

Bradley Bizzell became Milligan women's soccer's full-time assistant prior to the 2024 fall campaign.

Bizzell comes to East Tennessee from Kansas, where he served as a graduate assistant coach for the Tabor College Bluejays men's soccer program in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) at the NAIA level. He assisted the head coach in planning and producing practice plans for the first team, while also serving as the head coach of the reserve squad. Prior to that, he was a boy's soccer assistant coach at Tunstall High School for the spring season of 2022.

His collegiate playing career was spent at NCAA Division III Averett University in Danville, Va., where he played fullback and wingback. He was a team captain in both his junior and senior years with the Cougars.

He possesses a grassroots license for US soccer coaching courses and earned his D License in May of 2024.

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Sara Loichinger

Loichinger entered the fray at Milligan as a graduate assistant prior to the 2024 fall season.

Loichinger comes to Milligan as a graduate from fellow NAIA institution, Olivet Nazarene University. She played soccer as a member of the Tigers, and was a standout, earning All-Conference and All-American awards during her time at ONU. She was a captain of the team in her final four seasons out of five with the program.

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Juan Manuel Noel

Noel became a graduate assistant at Milligan prior to the start of the 2024 fall season.

Noel hails from Peru, having come to the United States to play soccer at Bethel University in McKenzie, Tenn., from which he graduated in Spring of 2024. He spent his time between the pipes, and will serve as the Buffs' goalkeeping coach.