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THE 2014 NIKE PORTLAND INVITATIONALPORTLAND (0-0-0) • OREGON STATE (0-0-0)UCF (0-0-0) • EVANSVILLE (0-0-0) Date: Friday, Aug. 29, 2014
Teams: Portland vs. UCF
Location: Portland, Ore.
Pitch: Merlo Field (4,982)
Kick-off: 7:00 p.m.
Live Video: PilotsVideo.comLive Stats: PortlandPilots.comOverall Series: 2-0-0
Last: @POR 3, UCF 0 (Sept. 2, 2002)
Teams: OSU vs. Evansville
Kick-off: 7:30 p.m.
Location: Corvallis, Ore.
Pitch: Lorenz Field (1,500)
Live Stats: OSUBeavers.com
Date: Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Teams: Portland vs. Evansville
Location: Portland, Ore.
Pitch: Merlo Field (4,982)
Kick-off: 1:00 p.m.
Live Video: PilotsVideo.comLive Stats: PortlandPilots.comOverall Series: 5-1-0
Last: @POR 2, UE 1 (Sept. 5, 2010)
Teams: OSU vs. UCF
Kick-off: 12:00 p.m.
Location: Corvallis, Ore.
Pitch: Lorenz Field (1,500)
Live Stats: OSUBeavers.com
THIS WEEK • The Pilots open the 2014 season by hosting the Nike Portland Invitational this weekend.
• Portland will first host the UCF Knights on Friday night at 7 p.m. at Merlo Field.
• The Evansville Purple Aces will then visit for a 1 p.m. match on Sunday.
• Oregon State is the fourth team participating in the Invite and the Beavs will share in hosting duties; OSU will play Evansville at 7:30 p.m. on Friday night and UCF at 12 p.m. on Sunday, with both matches taking place at Lorenz Field in Corvallis.
• This is the 25th Nike Portland Invitational overall and the second year in split locations.
ABOUT THE PILOTS... • Sophomore Eddie Sanchez was named to the West Coast Conference Preseason All-Conference Team, while the Pilots were picked to finish third in a vote by the league's head coaches.
• Reigning league champ LMU received six-place votes and was chosen as the favorite to claim the WCC's top spot once again.
• Portland features a sizeable roster as 13 newcomers join 15 returning letterwinners.
• Sanchez was tops in the WCC last year in overall points (27), goals (12) and game-winners (4), and he ranked sixth nationally in goals per game (0.71), was 10th in points per game (1.59) and 13th in total goals.
• Sanchez registered a hat trick during a 4-1 win at Santa Clara on Oct. 20 becoming the first Pilot to score three goals in a game since 2003.
• He was named the 2013 WCC Freshman of the Year, landed on Soccer America's All-Freshman First Team and he was named to the All-WCC First Team.
• Fellow sophomore Matthew Coffey landed on the All-WCC Second Team and joined Sanchez on the all-freshman team, while senior Derek Boggs and junior Hugo Rhoads both earned all-league honorable mention.
• The Pilots featured the most prolific offense in the WCC, leading the way with 33 goals and an average of 1.75 goals per game; UP was second in total assists (27), assists per game (1.35), total points (97) and points per game (4.85).
• Portland has been to two College Cups (1988 & 1995) and has reached the NCAA Postseason 14 times.
• Head coach Bill Irwin notched career win No. 100 on Oct. 11 last season when the Pilots defeated San Diego 2-1 at Merlo Field; Irwin is in his 12th year at the helm of the UP men's soccer program and his 28th year overall on the Portland staff.
• Assistant coach Rob Baarts is back for his 12th year on the Portland bench, while assistant coach Brandon McNeil is entering his seventh year on the staff; both Baarts (1987-90) and McNeil (1998-2001) played at UP.
FOR STARTERS • The Pilots are 23-8-6 all-time in season openers.
• The majority of UP's season openers have come at home, with the Pilots posting an 18-6-5 record when opening the season in Portland.
• In 2013, the Pilots defeated UC Davis 1-0 at Merlo Field to kickoff the season.
THAT'S A LOT OF PEOPLE • It was a record-setting night last Friday when the Pilots hosted the Linfield Wildcats in an exhibition match at Merlo Field.
• A program record crowd of 4,194, which included a record 2,205 students, watched the Pilots defeat the Wildcats 4-0 behind a pair of goals from freshman Erik Edwardson.
• The 2,205 students represent 55.6 percent of the UP student body.
EDDIE ENCORE • Sophomore Eddie Sanchez wasted little time getting acclimated to collegiate soccer as the attacking midfielder was among the nation's elite during his freshman campaign.
• The Canby, Ore., native was tops in the WCC last year in overall points (27), goals (12) and game-winners (4), and he ranked sixth nationally in goals per game (0.71), was 10th in points per game (1.59) and 13th in total goals.
• Sanchez registered a hat trick during a 4-1 win at Santa Clara on Oct. 20 becoming the first Pilot to score three goals in a game since 2003.
• He was named the 2013 West Coast Conference Freshman of the Year, landed on Soccer America's All-Freshman First Team and he was named to the All-WCC First Team.
PILOTS IN THE MLS • Five Portland men's soccer alums are currently on active rosters in the MLS, including Steven Evans here with the Portland Timbers.
• Luis Robles, a goalkeeper, plays for the New York Red Bulls, Heath Pearce is with the Montreal Impact, Collen Warner plays for Toronto FC and Conor Casey is in Philadelphia.
• Evans was on loan to the Sacramento Republic FC this season and he played in the inaugural MLS Homegrown Game, which was part of MLS All-Star festivities in Portland.
