Christine Sinclair scores two goals on senior night to break the UP single season goals record with her 31st and 32nd tallies

PORTLAND, Ore. - The No. 2 Portland Pilots celebrated their eighth West Coast Conference title after shutting out Saint Marys (8-8-3, 2-3-2 WCC) by a 3-0 margin Saturday evening in front of 1,836 fans at Merlo Field. Christine Sinclair, who entered the contest tied for the UP single-season goals scored record of 30, put on a show for senior night with two goals in the first 12 minutes. Sophomore midfielder Angie Woznuk notched her fourth goal of the season between Sinclair’s strikes as the Pilots (18-0-1, 6-0-1 WCC) cruised to victory.

Portland will enter the 2005 NCAA playoffs as one of only two undefeated teams in the nation, joining Penn State which suffered its first blemish with a 3-3 tie against unranked Michigan on Thursday. Portland had actually clinched the outright league title before kickoff as Pepperdine downed Santa Clara in an afternoon match, but Sinclair again stole the headlines by tying Tiffeny Milbrett and Mia Hamm for No. 2 in NCAA Division-I history with 103 career goals.

“Christine deserves everything she gets,” Portland coach Garrett Smith said. “She put us on her shoulders early tonight and there was no stopping her.”

Saturday marked the final regular season game in the career of Sinclair, as well as fellow seniors Lindsey Huie, Kelsy Hollenbeck and Colleen Salisbury. The four seniors are the last remaining members of the 2002 NCAA Championship squad and were honored in an emotional ceremony before kickoff.

“What an unbelievable night,” said Hollenbeck, who has started all 19 games this season at right back. “This team is like a family to me, so it’s sad to see this chapter of my life ending, but it was great to get the win on senior night. Now we have to focus on the playoffs and keep winning.”

Portland opened the scoring at 7:22 when sophomore forward Natalie Budge led Sinclair into a one-on-one with Gaels’ goalkeeper Alicia Artuso. Sinclair took a touch and then finished a 16-yard shot from the right to the left side netting.

Budge tallied her seventh assist of the season less than two minutes later, sending a short cross to Woznuk just inside the penalty box. Woznuk settled with one bounce and sent a side volley, right-footed shot over the head of Artuso for a 2-0 lead.

Sinclair made it 3-0 at 11:52 with a blast from the top of the box that deflected off of a Saint Mary’s defender and snuck inside the right post.

Portland outshot the Gaels 13-2 in the match and 6-1 in shots on frame. Junior goalkeepers Cori Alexander and Ruth Gilliam each played a half in recording the Pilots 13th shutout of the 2005 season.

The Pilots will now eagerly await the announcement of the 2005 NCAA Women’s Championship bracket, scheduled for Monday, Nov. 7 between 2-2:30 p.m. on ESPNews. NCAA first round action begins on Friday, Nov. 11 and second round play will be Sunday, Nov. 13.

 Saint Mary's (8-8-3, 2-2-2 WCC) vs. Portland (18-0-1, 6-0-1 WCC)
 Date: Nov 05, 2005  Attendance: 1836
 Weather: Showers

 Goals by period       1  2  Tot
 -------------------------------
 Saint Mary's........  0  0 -  0
 Portland............  3  0 -  3
 
 SCORING SUMMARY:
  1.   7:22 POR SINCLAIR, Christine (31) (BUDGE, Natalie) - slot pass, 16yd finish to left
  2.   9:09 POR WOZNUK, Angie (4) (BUDGE, Natalie) - side volley, top shelf
  3.  11:52 POR SINCLAIR, Christine (32) (unassisted) - shot deflected off defender to rt post

 Shots: Saint Mary's 2, Portland 13
 Saves: Saint Mary's 3 (ARTUSO, Alicia 2; TEAM 1), Portland 1 (GILLIAM, Ruth 1)