Friday • Oct. 9 • 7:00 p.m. • Portland, Ore. (Merlo Field - 4,892)
Live Audio/Stats: PortlandPilots.com
Live Video: PilotsVideo.com
Series: USD leads 14-13-3
Last Season: Split 1-1; @USD 3, POR 2 • @POR 3, USD 2
No. 16 Pilots (6-1-2, 1-0-1) vs Loyola Marymount (6-3-0, 1-0-0)
Sunday • Oct. 11 • 12:00 p.m. • Portland, Ore. (Merlo Field - 4,892)
Live Audio/Stats: PortlandPilots.com
Live Video: PilotsVideo.com
Series: POR leads 18-6-2
Last Season: Split 1-1; @LMU 1, POR 0 • @POR 1, LMU 0
This Week in Pilots Soccer...
The 16th-ranked Portland Pilots (6-1-2, 1-0-1 WCC) return home for the first time in a month as they host San Diego and Loyola Marymount at Merlo Field this weekend in two key West Coast Conference matches. Both USD (5-3-0) and LMU (6-3-0) enter the weekend with 1-0-0 league marks, while UP is riding an eight-game unbeaten streak. The Pilots and Toreros are set to go at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, while Sunday’s tilt with the Lions is scheduled for 12:00 p.m.
Game Day Coverage
All non-nationally televised home soccer matches will be video streamed live at www.PilotsVideo.com. A season pass is available for $50, while single-game matches are $8. Free audio streams and live stats will continue to be available at www.PortlandPilots.com.
Stay Connected
Fans can now follow the Portland Pilots like never before. Just visit Twitter (@PortlandPilots), facebook (facebook.com/PortlandPilots) and YouTube (youtube.com/UPPurplePride) for access to everything Pilots.
A Brief Look Back
Portland opened play in the WCC last weekend by defeating the Santa Clara Broncos 1-0 on Friday night in Santa Clara, Calif. The game was the usual physical match between the Pilots and Broncos, with the two teams combining for just 13 shots. Portland senior Collen Warner drilled the game-winner on a penalty kick in the 77th minute. UP was awarded the PK after junior Ryan Luke was tripped up inside Santa Clara’s 18-yard box. Portland junior goalkeeper Austin Guerrero made two saves on the night to record his third shutout this season and 14th for his career.
On Sunday, the Pilots had to overcome a 1-nil first-half deficit to earn a 1-1 draw with the Saint Mary’s Gaels in Moraga, Calif. Junior Jarad vanSchaik netted the equalizer in the 69th minute. The goal came after a lengthy UP possession that resulted with Warner slotting a pass to vanSchaik inside the 18-yard box. vanSchaik then went top shelf for his first goal of the season.
The two teams then played to a stalemate during the next 42 minutes of regulation and two overtime periods. Neither team seriously threatened the goal during the extra time.
Scouting San Diego
Freshman forward Patrick Wallen found the back of the net in the 76th minute to help the Toreros defeat San Francisco 1-0 last weekend in San Diego. Top Drawer Soccer, which projects the NCAA’s 48-team postseason field, has the Toreros ranked 41st this week.
USD has outscored its opponents 13-7 this season, with Wallen leading the way with a team-high four goals. The Toreros lead the league with five shutouts this fall, while senior keeper Kelin Briones boasts a goals against average of 0.88.
Head coach Seamus McFadden has racked up more than 300 wins in 29-plus years at USD. The Toreros, who were picked to finish fifth in the WCC, returned 19 letterwinners and nine starters from a team that was 6-10-4 overall and 6-5-1 in the league last season.
Pilots/Toreros Series
The Toreros hold a slim 14-13-3 advantage in the all-time series against the Pilots. UP and USD split their two meetings last year, with the home team winning 3-2 both times. The Pilots are 8-5-1 all-time against San Diego at home.
Scouting LMU
The Lions scored two goals in the second half and another in the first overtime to open the WCC season with a 3-2 win over San Francisco at home last weekend. LMU was ranked earlier this season and is currently No. 34 in Top Drawer’s post-season projection.
Junior forward Rafael Baca leads the conference with six goals and 13 points this fall. LMU has used three different goalkeepers this season, with sophomore Jack McCormack posting a team-best 1.00 GAA.
Paul Krumpe, who is in his 12th year as head coach at LMU, recorded his 100th career win earlier this season. The Lions, who were picked to finish third this season in the WCC, went 7-8-5 last season (5-6-1 WCC) and returned 17 letterwinners and seven starters.
Pilots/Lions Series
UP owns an 18-6-2 lead in the all-time series with LMU. Each team won at home last season, while the Pilots are 10-1-2 all-time against the Lions in games played in Portland.
Starting Strong
Portland’s 6-1-2 beginning to the season is the program’s best start after nine games since the 2000 squad opened with an identical mark. UP’s best start ever came in 1988 when the Pilots won their first 21 games.
Nationally Recognized
After their impressive road trip to open the WCC slate last weekend, the Pilots moved up in all five national rankings. Soccer America has Portland rated the highest at No. 16. The Pilots are 17th in the NSCAA poll, 18th in the Soccer Times rankings and No. 27 in the College Soccer News top 30. Portland also jumped into Top Drawer Soccer’s ratings for the first time this season, currently sitting at No. 35.
WCC Player of the Week
Portland junior goalkeeper Austin Guerrero was named the West Coast Conference Men’s Soccer Player of the Week (Sept. 28) after helping the Pilots win the 2009 Husky Fever Classic in Seattle, Wash. Guerrero made ten saves and allowed just one goal during the weekend as the Pilots defeated Cal Poly 2-0 on Sept. 25 and No. 17 Creighton 2-1 on Sept. 27.
The 2-0 blanking of Cal Poly was Guerrero’s second shutout of the season. The Chula Vista, Calif., native then made a season-high nine stops against the Bluejays on Sunday, including two in the closing minute to preserve the upset.
At Home on the Road
With seven of their first nine games away from the friendly confines of Merlo Field, the Pilots are becoming quite comfortable on the road. So far, Portland is 2-0-2 in away games and 3-0-0 in matches played at neutral locations. Portland has also won two tournaments this fall, claiming the Smith Barney Classic (Sept. 11-13) in Burlington, Vt., and the Husky Fever Classic in Seattle (Sept. 25-27).
In addition, UP made what’s believed to be the second longest road trip in program history when it traveled 2,382 miles to Burlington, Vt. The visit back east marked Portland’s longest road trip since the Pilots traveled to Piscataway, N.J., for a tournament hosted by Rutgers in 1999.
Pick Your Poison
So far this season, Portland has spread the wealth on offense with eight different players scoring UP’s 13 goals. Junior Jarad vanSchaik was the latest Pilot to join the scoring party with his first goal of the fall during Portland’s 1-1 tie at Saint Mary’s last weekend. Senior Collen Warner leads the way with a team-high three goals, while sophomores Ryan Kawulok and Michael Nielsen and freshman Colin Barich have each scored two goals. Junior Ryan Luke and freshmen Ricardo Carrillo and Keith Grubisich have each found the back of the net once.
The Show Stopper
All-conference goalkeeper junior Austin Guerrero has been stellar between the pipes this season. He already has three shutouts, has lowered his GAA to 0.85 and ranks second in the West Coast Conference with 35 saves. After helping Portland win the 2009 Husky Fever Classic, Guerrero was named the WCC Player of the Week (Sept. 28) and he landed on Soccer America’s Team of the Week. He was also named the defensive MVP of the Smith Barney Classic (Sept. 11-13) to help the Pilots win the tourney title. Guerrero currently ranks No. 5 all-time in UP program history with 14 career shutouts, while his 211 career saves rank sixth.
Guerrero, who posted three shutouts and led the league in saves for the second consecutive season with 91 stops last year, was named All-WCC Honorable Mention in 2008. The Chula Vista, Calif., native was also voted to the WCC’s 2009 Preseason All-Conference Team.
The Not-So-Newcomers
So far this season, Portland’s nine freshmen have looked like veterans as the Pilots have began the season in impressive fashion. Freshman forward Ricardo Carrillo has been right at home up front for the Pilots with a goal and an assist this season. His goal came with the Pilots trailing 1-0 in game against Vermont in Burlington, Vt., on Sept. 11. UP would tie the Catamounts 1-1 on its way to the tourney title.
That same weekend, Colin Barich nailed the game-winner during Portland’s 1-nil win over New Hampshire. Barich tallied his second career goal during Portland’s 2-0 win over Cal Poly on Sept. 25. Keith Grubisich found the back of the net for the first time on Sept. 17 as UP picked up a big 2-1 road win at Washington. He also picked up his first career assist during the 2-1 win over Creighton on Sept. 27, as did Marc Tonkel.
Man in the Middle
Senior Collen Warner owned the midfield last season for the Pilots and he’s doing the same this fall. Warner currently leads the team with nine points, three goals, three assists and 28 shots. During Portland’s 1-0 at Santa Clara last weekend, Warner notched his first game-winner of the season on a penalty shot in the 77th minute.
Warner led the league with eight assists in 2008 and was Portland’s top returning scorer after notching five goals during his junior campaign. The native of Denver, Colo., landed on the All-WCC First Team for the third consecutive season in 2008 and he was voted to the league’s preseason all-conference team this year.
Merlo Magic
Merlo Field at the Clive Charles Soccer Complex has proven to be tough on opposing teams as Portland has compiled an all-time record of 116-40-13 (.725) at the friendly confines.
Since its opening in 1990, the UP men have consistently brought in some of the biggest men’s soccer crowds in the country to Merlo Field. The Pilots have ranked in the top 15 in home attendance in 12 of the past 14 years, including the nation’s top attendance in 1996 when they averaged 2,554 fans per game. In 2006, 26,919 fans turned out to 11 men’s soccer home games to set a new all-time attendance high.
Portland went 6-3-1 at Merlo in 2008.
WCC Coaches Preseason Poll / All-Conference Teams
Portland midfielder Collen Warner and goalkeeper Austin Guerrero were voted to the WCC’s Preseason All-Conference team, while the San Francisco Dons garnered the maximum six first-place votes to earn the top spot in the 2009 West Coast Conference preseason coaches poll, as voted on by the league’s head coaches. The Pilots were picked to finish sixth.
