On Wednesday, May 27, at 2:00 p.m., the four Varsity Soccer Captains—Siun Salmon ’27, Ethan Fine ’27, Nicholas Pittarelli ’27, and Isa Cavallini-Hsu ’27—hosted a 5v5 soccer tournament on Berlyson Turf Field. Fine hoped that, through the tournament, the captains could help “engage the campus community through soccer.” At the end of a long game stood not a tangible prize but, Fine said, “the bragging rights of the 2026 5v5 champion.”
However, this tournament did not just aim to connect Milton’s community; it also focused on bringing the community together to support a larger cause: Ascent Soccer, an organization that empowers young athletes in Southeast Africa. Milton has had a long-standing relationship with this organization. The program, Fine explained, “provides boys and girls from Malawi an opportunity to attend and compete at premier boarding schools in the United States.” Over the years, Milton has welcomed several students through this partnership. For every team that signed up for the 5v5 tournament, $30 was raised. Interest in the event was high, with twelve teams competing. The organizers estimated they raised between $300 and $400 for Ascent Soccer. While fundraising was the central purpose of the event, the joy was an added bonus.
The structure of the tournament was designed to maximize both the excitement of the game and inclusivity for players of all skill levels. Team rosters could include no more than eight players, and no more than three players of the same gender could be on the field at one time. Moreover, as the official rules state, “no team [could] have more than two [Boys’ Varsity Soccer] or two [Girls’ Varsity Soccer] players on their roster, and no more than four varsity players total.” “Varsity” was defined as having played for or trained with (on multiple occasions) varsity squads. Games were played across two five-minute halves on smaller 20-by-40-yard fields to create a fast environment and reward decisive play.
After the initial round-robin stage, an elimination bracket began, where matches were meant to produce a clear winner. If the score was tied at the end of the match, a sudden-death format would begin: the number of players on the field would be gradually reduced, and the games would culminate in a 1v1 match until a winner emerged. If a match was still tied, a shootout would determine the winner. This invigorating format added to the tournament’s excitement and gave everyone a chance to participate in a fun, competitive setting.
In the end, twelve teams participated in the preliminary rounds. As William Lara McCannon ’28 reflected, “[the event brought] big hype and people were really into it.” After all teams played five games each across six different “mini-fields,” the playoffs commenced with the top eight teams advancing. Team “MLS NEXT/GA,” consisting of Dino Gavetti ’27, Nico Zozaya Berenguer ’28, Salmon, Andrew Hsu ’29, Henry Stamler ’29, Sonny Della Santa ’28, and Deacon Evriviades ’27, claimed victory in the final game with a score of 3-2. While there was only one winner, as Sam Breyer Essiam ’28 summed up, “it was chaos but a lot of fun for everyone!”