PORTLAND PILOTS (9-3-1, 3-0-0 WCC)
WEEK 10: vs. LMU / vs. San Diego
 
Loyola Marymount Lions (7-7-0, 1-2-0 WCC)
Day: Friday
Date: Oct. 28, 2016
City: Portland, Ore.
Time: 7:00 PM
Pitch: Merlo Field
Video: TheW.tv
Stats: PortlandPilots.com
 
POR vs. LMU
Overall Series: 21-14-3
H: 10-6-3  •  A: 11-8-0  •  N: 0-0-0
Last: @LMU 3, POR 0 (10/18/2015)
 
San Diego Toreros (5-5-3, 2-1-0 WCC)
Day: Sunday
Date: Oct. 30, 2016
City: Portland, Ore.
Time: 2:00 PM
Pitch: Merlo Field
Video: TheW.tv
Stats: PortlandPilots.com
 
POR vs. USD
Overall Series: 17-20-5
H: 10-8-2  •  A: 6-11-2  •  N: 1-1-1
Last: @USD 3, POR 2 (10/16/2015)
 
THIS WEEK
• The Pilots return to The Bluff this weekend after spending the first few weeks of conference on the road.
• First on Friday, the Pilots will host the Loyola Marymount Lions in a WCC game at Merlo Field, with kickoff set for 7 p.m.
• The San Diego Toreros, who sit just behind the first-place Pilots in the league standings, then visit Merlo Field on Sunday for a 2 p.m. fixture.
 
LAST WEEK
• The Pilots last played during the weekend of Oct. 14-16 when they swept a pair of WCC games in the Bay Area.
• First on Friday, Oct. 14, Portland freshman Benji Michel scored twice as the Pilots jumped out to a 3-0 lead at San Francisco; the Dons scored two goals during the final minutes, but the Pilots held on 3-2.
• Eddie Sanchez assisted on two of Portland's three goals.
• On Sunday, Oct. 16 at Santa Clara, Portland defender Geoffrey Dunn provided the only goal of the game, as well as the defensive play of the game, as the Pilots shutout the Broncos 1-0.
• In the 84th minute, Dunn headed in the game-winner on a perfectly placed corner from Eddie Sanchez to send the Pilots to their fifth straight win.
• In the 66th minute, Dunn cleared a Santa Clara shot off the goal line to keep the game scoreless.
 
ABOUT THE PILOTS...
• The Pilots have won five straight games, which is the program's longest such streak since the Pilots won six straight in 2011; Portland also posted a five-game unbeaten streak (4 wins, 1 tie) earlier this season (Aug. 28 - Sept. 11).
• The 9-3-1 start to the season is the best for the Pilots since 1999, and the 3-0 record in conference is the program's best beginning to the WCC schedule since 2002.
• The Pilots rank seventh in the nation in both goals (29) and goals per game (2.23), are 13th in points per game (5.85) and are 18th in total points (76).
• Portland currently sits just outside the NSCAA Top 25, and the Pilots are ranked No. 22 in the latest Hero Soccer Rankings.
• During a recent four-game stretch (Sept. 22 - Oct. 14) the Pilots scored 15 goals, which was the most goals scored during a four-game span since Portland collected 17 goals over four contests in 1999.
• Senior Eddie Sanchez was the WCC Player of the Week (Oct. 10) for the second time this season after notching a hat trick at Gonzaga on Sunday, Oct. 9; he also landed on Top Drawer Soccer's Team of the Week for a second time.
• Sanchez's hat trick is the first for a Pilot since teammate Brandon Zambrano accomplished the feat in 2014.
• Freshman Benji Michel leads the WCC with eight goals, was named to Top Drawer Soccer's Team of the Week (Oct. 17) and was tabbed the No. 24 freshman in the country by Top Drawer Soccer.
• Eddie Sanchez had quite the weekend in Evansville, Ind. (Sept. 9-11), scoring two goals and ending up on SportsCenter as the Pilots won the 2016 ProRehab Aces Classic.
• Sanchez also was named the WCC's Player of the Week, he nabbed the tourney's offensive MVP award and he was voted to Top Drawer Soccer's Team of the Week.
• Sanchez, who landed All-WCC First Team accolades a year ago, was selected to the preseason all-conference team for the third straight year.
• Center back Lionel Mills was the ProRehab Ace's Classic Defensive MVP, and both he and Sanchez were joined on the all-tourney team by Benji Michel and Matthew Coffey.
• Previously, the Pilots were co-champions at the 2016 Nike Invitational (Sept. 2-4), and Coffey was named the tournament's defensive MVP.
• Coffey, Erik Edwardson, Paul Christensen and Geoffrey Dunn were all named to Nike Invitational's All-Tournament Team.
• Sophomore Jackson Jellah played a part in Portland's first five goals of the season, which included beginning the year with three straight goals; Jellah scored one goal against Wright State and he netted a pair during a 2-1 win over DePaul; he then assisted on UP's two goals against No. 25 Ohio State.
• The Pilots are under the guidance of first-year head coach Nick Carlin-Voigt, who was hired to lead the program in January; Carlin-Voigt spent the past four years as the associate head coach for the UCLA Bruins.
• With the Bruins, he helped put together the nation's number one recruiting class in 2013, 2014 and 2015, and in 2014 he helped lead the Bruins to the No. 1 ranking nationally and to the NCAA College Cup Championship.
• Joining Carlin-Voigt on the bench are first-year assistant coaches Leonard Griffin, who came with Carlin-Voigt from UCLA, and UP alum Logan Emory, who spent time with Toronto FC of the MLS after graduating from Portland in 2009.
• Volunteer assistant coach Emerson De Oliveira and undergraduate assistant coach Steven Evans, a former Pilot standout, complete the staff.
• Portland features a group of nine newcomers, who were tabbed as the No. 17 recruiting class in the nation by Top Drawer Soccer.
• The Pilots claim renowned men's soccer alums Kasey Keller, Steve Cherundolo, Conor Casey, Nate Jaqua, Heath Pearce, and reigning MLS Goalkeeper of the Year Luis Robles.
 • In 1988, legendary coach Clive Charles led Keller and the Pilots to the school's first ever NCAA College Cup.
• Portland has been to two NCAA College Cups ('88 & '95) and has made 14 trips to the NCAA Postseason.
 
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS
• The Lions split their most recent games, dropping a 2-1 decision in OT at Pacific before defeating Saint Mary's by the same margin, also in OT.
• Freshman defender Garrett Amador, who nabbed WCC Player of the Week honors on Oct. 17, is one of five Lions with a team-best two goals; junior GK Collin Partee has four shutouts and a GAA of 1.29.
• Head Coach Paul Krumpe is in his 19th season with the Lions.
• Pacific handed the Toreros their first conference loss with a 1-0 defeat in San Diego on Oct. 16.
• USD Senior Michael Turner and freshman Miguel Berry both have a team-best four goals, while junior keeper Thomas Olsen has a GAA of 1.43 and one shutout.
• Seamus McFadden is in his 38th year as head coach of the Toreros.