PAPILLION, Neb. – Recent UNC Greensboro men’s soccer team graduate Marco Milanese signed with Union Omaha of USL League One last week.
Union Omaha announced last week the signing Milanese, a defender, pending league and federation approval. Milanese reunites with assistant coach Kevin Nuss, who he played under in his time with the USL League Two side Ocean City Nor’easters.
“Marco is a cultured defender that can fill a couple of different positions on our backline,” Union Omaha head coach Dominic Casciato said. “He joins us off the back of a stellar college career at the University of Akron and UNC Greensboro and arrives in Omaha with great pedigree having played for Napoli in the UEFA Youth League during his formative years.”
“Marco is a versatile player with a ton of upside as a professional,” Union Omaha general manager Peter Marlette said. “He’s exactly the type of signing we hope to make out of the college game, and I’m really excited for what he’ll bring to us in Omaha this season.”
The Isernia, Italy, native has spent time with multiple landmark Italian clubs, including S.S.C. Napoli U-19 and Torino F.C. U-19 in Serie A, as well as Parma Calcio U-17 in Serie B. He also made six appearances for Napoli’s first team, as well as appearances with the Italian youth national team at the U-15 and U-17 levels. Milanese then put up a stunning collegiate career in the United States, first at the University of Akron, making 41 starts and helping the team to two Mid-American Conference titles and a 2018 NCAA College Cup runner-up finish.
“I am very excited to join this fantastic club and it’s amazing fans,” Milanese said. “Looking forward to giving everything I have on the field to make this club successful.”
He continued on to UNCG, where he earned back-to-back All-Southern Conference first-team selections and recorded 16 clean sheets in 40 appearances. Milanese was the third Scholar All-American in UNCG history and was named to the United Soccer Coaches All-South Region second team.
He was one of two Spartans to earn College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-American Second Team recognition, as well as one of four Spartans named to the CSC Academic All-District® Team. This year he was voted to the All-SoCon first team as a defender after playing in 21 games, starting in 20 of them, totaling 1,848 minutes to lead the team. The 2022 captain scored one goal and had two assists for four points this season.
A key piece of the Spartans' defense, Milanese won SoCon Defensive Player of the Week once this season. He assisted UNCG to allowing just 19 goals this season in 21 games for 0.89 goals against. The Spartans also totaled six shutouts this season.
UNCG earned its ninth Southern Conference SoCon regular-season title after a 4-0-1 conference mark and then won its fifth SoCon tournament title. The undefeated SoCon record was UNCG’s first since 2004, when the Spartans went 6-0-1.
The double crown was UNCG’s fourth in program history. The last time the Spartans won the double was 2006. The Spartans also won it in 2005 and 1998.
The SoCon tournament title cemented the Spartans’ 12th NCAA Division I Tournament bid. It was their 21st time in a NCAA tournament, including seven appearances in Division III and two at the Division II level.
After hosting Ohio State in the second round of the NCAA tournament and tying 1-1, but advancing on penalty kicks 6-5, the Spartans faced No. 5 Stanford in California also tying, 1-1, but advancing on penalty kicks, 3-1. UNCG, in its first NCAA Division I quarterfinals appearance, fell to No. 13 Indiana in Greensboro by a score of 2-0.
UNCG concluded the season with a 13-2-6 overall mark.
ABOUT UNION OMAHA?
Union Omaha, the 2021 USL League One Champions, is the only professional soccer team in the state of Nebraska. USL League One is a United States Soccer Federation-sanctioned professional men’s soccer league that occupies the third tier of the American soccer landscape, below USL Championship (tier two) and Major League Soccer (tier one). Union Omaha plays its home matches at Werner Park in Sarpy County, also home to the Omaha Storm Chasers of Minor League Baseball. The team is led by General Manager Peter Marlette in the front office and Head Coach Dominic Casciato on the field.