By Jinseong Kim
To those fans and supporters who warmly welcomed the return of the USL W and USL2 season earlier this month, hold on tight - it is not over yet, as another familiar competition is coming around the corner. On this upcoming Friday, May 27, AFC Ann Arbor hosts Inter Detroit for the first round of the men’s bracket of the Michigan Milk Cup.
Inter Detroit is a community soccer club based in the Metro Detroit area. Founded in 2017, the club has served as a community for minorities and youth in Southwest Detroit through soccer. Sharing the same values, mission, and attitudes towards the sport and community engagement, Inter Detroit and AFC Ann Arbor agreed to strengthen the partnership between the two parties in 2021. The partnership, made possible partially in part thanks to the former AFCAA Goalkeeper Tito Jimenez, consists of assisting in the sponsorship of athletes, community engagement activities, and exchanging ideas on diversity and equality.
Michigan Milk Cup, sponsored by Milk Means More, is a Michigan-specific tournament for amateur and pre-professional teams based throughout Michigan, including Metro Detroit, Ann Arbor, Kalamazoo, Lansing, and Grand Rapids, among others. It was established in 2017 and later expanded to the women and youth division in 2019.
The inaugural edition of the Michigan Milk Cup was slightly different from what the fans are now used to. It began not as a knock-out tournament, but calculated based on points earned from NPSL encounters between participating teams. The founding members were AFC Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids FC, Kalamazoo FC, Lansing United, and Michigan Stars, teams that all competed in the NPSL Great Lakes Conference back then. AFCAA lifted the inaugural trophy, confirming their crown with three games remaining.
The 2018 edition is when the Milk Cup switched as a knock-out tournament and settled the base of how it became in following years. With a revised format and logo, Milk Cup welcomed Force FC, Oakland County FC, Livonia City FC, and Muskegon Risers in addition to four returning NPSL teams - AFC Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids FC, Kalamazoo FC, and Lansing United. The year 2018 is when the competition started to truly tie Southern Michigan semi-pro and amateur teams across various divisions.
After the drawing process, AFCAA was paired up with then-UPSL side Oakland County FC. OCFC is a familiar name to all Ann Arbor supporters, but this was the official encounter between the two. In a two-legged first round matchup, AFCAA comfortably topped OCFC 4-1 in aggregate, 2-0 at Oakland and 2-1 at home. Some nostalgic names, like Kyle Breitmeyer, AZ Liadi, and Alec Lasinski gave The Mighty Oak a comfortable quarter-final win on a hot Memorial Day classic.
A journey to Kalamazoo for the semifinals was full of drama. Not only that it was against the long-time rival Kalamazoo FC, but it was a trip to a place that the side would be held to a 0-0 draw at in the league. But, on this evening, a stoppage time screamer from Brandon Katona turned a stale 0-0 game into AFCAA’s favor. The KZFC away game wasn’t an easy task, especially as the hosts dominated the field and were awarded a spot kick in the mid-second half. But Nick Barry, one of two stand-out keepers on that 2018 side alongside Mike Novotny, proved himself in assertive fashion by denying the penalty. A dramatic ‘buzzer beater’ victory earned by a hard-fought team consisting of players eagerly wishing to earn more play time and earn a piece of silverware for their club proved why this tournament stands out in the history of the club.
The finale of AFCAA’s dramatic run ended in 3-2 defeat to Lansing United in an eventful affair. The capital side grabbed an early 2-0 lead in the first half, but soon went down to ten men before the half. Ann Arbor tried to turn an outnumbering advantage to fruition by dominating the possession and testing the goalie several times. A late penalty was awarded as a result at the 87th minute mark, and Yuri Farkas comfortably converted Ann Arbor’s lifeline goal.
From the Mighty Oak’s spot kick, it was a steep roller coaster ride for AFC. To simply put in numbers, two goals from two more penalties (one from each side), and an additional red card shown to a Lansing player, all happened in the last three minutes. Nick Barry’s initial spot kick save on the eventual Lansing rebound winner and another pair of chances for The Mighty Oak in the waning moments of the match were some late-late-game, bittersweet, highlights.
After an unfortunate fallback in the 2018 edition, AFCAA returned positively to the 2019 Michigan Milk Cup. The tournament itself an huge expansion in size from eight teams to twelve. As a result, AFCAA, as one of the semi-finalists last year, was given a direct bye to the quarterfinals, along with Grand Rapids FC, Kalamazoo FC, and the newcomer Flint City Bucks.
The quarter-finals opponent was the UPSL side BiH GR. Participating in the tournament for the first time, the Grand Rapids-based club beat Bafana United in the first round and advanced to the round of eight. The game took place on a cloudy afternoon on, but there was no rain on AFCAA’s parade, as the match ended in a comfortable 2-0 win with Andres Chalbaud and Will Eskay on the scoresheet.
AFCAA hoped to keep the positive run through the final, but the Milk Cup adventure in 2019 would halt at the semi-finals. The Mighty Oak took the 2-1 lead in the first half thanks to goals from Henry Ramirez and Will Eskay, but allowed OCFC a comeback. An equalizer in the 60th minute and the 88th minute goal that put the visitors in lead, for good, but has hopefully ensured a 2022 men’s team eager to make amends for the heartbreak of years’ past.
As mentioned, the Michigan Milk Cup in 2019 wasn’t just for the AFCAA men, as the women also participated in the inaugural women’s iteration of the tournament. With eight other Michigan-based sides, the AFCAA women not only just competed, but wrote an invaluable history that will cherish forever.
The very first match for the women against North Oakland was full of delight. The massive 6-1 scoreline currently stands as the biggest win in still-brief women’s side’s history–but this was only part of this memorable day. Emily Eitzman would stamp her name into the AFCAA recordbooks for setting the record of youngest goalscorer in the club’s five-year history, and she remains second on the list alongside 2022 teammate Chloe Ricketts (14 at the time of her goal). Despite the loss in the semis against Detroit Sun (eventually crowned as the champions), the first Milk Cup journey for the women was an exciting start to the club’s history in the tournament.
Throughout its six years of history, Michigan Milk Cup has served as a platform, festival, and community event not only to fans in Ann Arbor, but clubs throughout the entirety of Michigan. As a founding member of the tournament, AFC Ann Arbor has been an integral part of the Michigan Milk Cup history, and has enjoyed plenty of memories that will forever remain in the club's legacy and mission as a community club.
About AFC Ann Arbor
Association Football Club Ann Arbor (AFC Ann Arbor) was founded in 2014 and competes in USL2 (men’s) and USLW (women’s) national amateur leagues. We are a community-based club, focused on equity, justice, and anti-racism. We consider all of our stakeholders, including supporters, players, staff, and ownership to be part of the #AFCAAFamily. Come On You Mighty Oak!