Complete 2010 Schedule
PORTLAND, Ore. --- The Portland Pilots will kick-off the 2010 men’s soccer season by hosting the Nike Invitational on September 3-5 at Merlo Field. The Invite, which will feature Washington, Evansville and Northern Illinois, follows an exhibition home match against the Oregon State Beavers on Wednesday, August 25.
The Huskies, who have participated in every Portland Invitational save two, will start things off with a match against Evansville on Friday, Sept 3 at 4:30 p.m. Portland will follow with its season-opener against Northern Illinois. UW will then face the Northern Illinois Huskies on Sunday, Sept. 5 before UP concludes the invite against the Aces.
The Pilots will then return to Albuquerque, N.M., the scene of last year’s thrilling 2-1 overtime victory over the New Mexico Lobos in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament. This time around the Pilots will face the Lobos and the Denver Pioneers as part of New Mexico’s tournament. UP and UNM will play on Friday, Sept. 10, while the Pilots are set to face the Pioneers on Sunday, Sept. 12.
Washington then makes a return trek to The Bluff for its annual non-conference game against the Pilots on Saturday, Sept. 18. This will be the 45th meeting between the northwest rivals, who have played each other at least once every year since UP began its men’s soccer program in 1977.
Portland then returns the favor by playing in UW’s Husky Fever Classic the weekend of Sept. 24-26 in Seattle, Wash. While in Seattle, the Pilots will play UC Davis on Friday and Seattle University on Sunday.
The Pilots close the month of September by opening play in the West Coast Conference with a road game against the Gonzaga Bulldogs in Spokane, Wash., on Wednesday the 29th.
October begins with a visit by the Santa Clara Broncos to Merlo Field on Sunday, Oct. 3. The game, which will begin at 2:30 p.m., is a part of the first of three scheduled double-headers with the UP women.
The Pilots will then play three straight opponents who advanced to the NCAA Postseason in 2009. First it’s a two-game swing through Southern California, where Portland will battle the San Diego Toreros on Oct. 8 and the Loyola Marymount Lions on Oct. 10. USD won the WCC’s regular season crown last fall to nab the conference’s automatic playoff bid, while LMU received an at-large bid.
The Saint Mary’s Gaels, who also advanced to the tourney last year as an at-large team, then come to the Clive Charles Soccer Complex for a match on Friday, Oct. 15. The match against the Gaels will kick-off at 5:00 p.m. and will precede a women’s game against LMU. Sunday (Oct. 17) also features a double-header, with the women facing Pepperdine at 12:00 p.m. and the men taking on San Francisco at 2:30 p.m. at Merlo Field.
The month ends with a road trip to Northern California. UP will face USF for the second straight game, this time in San Francisco on Friday, Oct. 29. Then it’s on to Moraga for a game against Saint Mary’s on Oct. 31.
Portland opens November with three home games before concluding the regular season on the road. LMU will be in town for a game on Nov. 6, San Diego visits on Nov. 7 and Gonzaga will be here on Nov. 12.
UP ends the regular season with a showdown against Santa Clara in Santa Clara, Calif., on Nov. 12.
Portland will be looking to make its second straight and 15th overall appearance in the NCAA Playoffs, which begin with first and second round games on Nov. 19-21. The College Cup is set for Dec. 10-12 in Santa Barbara, Calif.
The Pilots advanced to the Third Round of the playoffs in 2009, defeating New Mexico and N.C. State before dropping a hard-fought 1-0 match to eventual national champion Virginia. UP advanced farther than any WCC team and played all three post-season games on the road.
Portland season tickets will go on-sale to the public on June 8. Mini packages will be available on June 22, while single-game tickets go on-sale Aug. 4 at 11 a.m. Packages can be purchased in person or over the phone at the Pilot Box Office at the Chiles Center (503) 943-7525. Single-game purchases are also available at the Pilot Box Office or through all Ticketmaster outlets, online at www.ticketmaster.com or over the phone at (800) 745-3000.
