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PORTLAND PILOTS (1-0-0, 0-0-0 WCC)
vs. PORTLAND STATE (0-1-0, 0-0-0 Big Sky)
Date: Friday, August 26, 2016
Location: Portland, Ore.
Kick-off: 5:00 p.m.
Pitch: Merlo Field (4,892)
TV: CSN-NW (Ch. 737)
Online Video: TheW.tv
Live Stats: PortlandPilots.com
 
POR vs. PSU
Overall Series: 6-0-0
Here: 5-0-0
There: 1-0-0
Neutral: 0-0-0
Last: @POR 1, PSU 0 (Aug. 20, 2010)
 
PORTLAND PILOTS (1-0-0, 0-0-0 WCC)
at #21 CAL GOLDEN BEARS (1-1-0, 0-0-0 PAC-12)
Date: Sunday, August 28, 2016
Location: Berkeley, Calif.
Kick-off: 12:00 p.m.
Pitch: Edwards Stadium (22,000)
Live Video: N/A
Live Stats: CalBears.com
 
POR vs. CAL
Overall Series: 6-4-2
Here: 4-1-1
There: 2-3-1
Neutral: 0-0-0
Last: POR 3, @CAL 1 (Sept. 23, 2010)
 
THIS WEEK
• The Pilots first host crosstown rival Portland State on Friday night before embarking on their first road trip of the season, which takes them to Berkeley, Calif., for a tilt with No. 21 California on Sunday.
• Kickoff for the Pilots and Vikings at Merlo Field on Friday is set for 5 p.m., and the game will be shown live on Comcast SportsNet, which is channel 737 in the Portland metro area.
• The UP-PSU match is also part of a soccer double header as the men's team follows with their season opener against Wright State at 7:30 p.m.
• Kickoff at Cal on Sunday is set for 12 p.m. at Goldman Field at Edwards Stadium.
 
FRIDAY NIGHT FESTIVITIES
• Friday night should be an epic night on The Bluff as the University of Portland welcomes all new students to campus for orientation.
• In addition to what should be one of the largest crowds of the year at Merlo Field, the festive night will also include the 8th Annual Bite on The Bluff, which kicks off at 3:30 p.m. in the Chiles Center Plaza adjacent to the soccer stadium.
• This year's Bite, which is always a fan favorite, will feature local food vendors Voodoo Doughnuts, Churros Locos!, Koi Fusion, TNT Kettlecorn, Dano's Dogs, The Hot Box, Moberi, Aybla Grill, Taste Buds, Bunk Sandwiches and Thrive.
• This year's Bite on The Bluff will also feature a Pilot Club Beer Garden.
 
LAST WEEK
• The Pilots opened the 2016 campaign with a convincing 2-1 win over Washington last Friday night at Merlo Field.
• Freshman Larkin Russell opened the scoring with her first career goal in the 19th minute; the goal was unassisted and came from just outside the 18-yard box.
• UW followed with a PK one minute after Russell's goal, which evened the score 1-1.
• The score remained tied until the 65th minute when freshman Kimberly Hazlett whipped a perfectly placed ball into the box, where Hannah Griffiths Boston finished with a half volley; the goal is Griffiths Boston's first career game-winner.
 
ABOUT THE PILOTS
• Despite adding seven newcomers to the roster, the Pilots feature a veteran squad returning 14 letterwinners and eight starters.
• Leading the list of returners is 2015 All-WCC Second Team selection Allison Wetherington, a senior midfielder from Acworth, Ga.; Wetherington, who was voted to the Preseason All-WCC Team for the second straight year, led the Pilots in points (11) and assists last year (5).
• Fellow senior Ellie Boon was also selected to the all-league second team last year, and both Boon and Wetherington were part of a recruiting class that was ranked fifth in the nation back in 2013.
• Senior goalkeeper Hanna de Haan ranks ninth all-time at Portland with a career saves percentage of .802; she's also currently 10th all-time in overall career saves with 81.
• Five of Portland's seven newcomers hail from the Portland metropolitan area.
• Lucy Davidson (Scappoose, Ore./Scappoose HS), Rachel Khaw (Hillsboro, Ore./Liberty HS), Brianna Miyama (Hillsboro, Ore./Hillsboro HS), Natalie Muth (Scappoose, Ore./Scappoose HS) and Rylee Seekins (Vancouver, Wash./Hockinson HS) all call the Portland/Vancouver area home, while Larkin Russell (Spokane, Wash./Gonzaga Prep) and Kimberly Hazlett (Bellingham, Wash./Squalicum HS) hail from Washington.
• The Pilots will be looking to return to the playoffs in 2016 after advancing to the post-season during 21 of the past 24 seasons.
• Portland won the NCAA National Championship in 2002 and in 2005, and the 2005 team will be inducted into the UP Athletics Hall of Fame in October.
• The Pilots were selected to finish sixth in the WCC Preseason Coaches' Poll.
• Head coach Garrett Smith, who has been named WCC Coach of the Year six times, enters his 14th year at the helm of the Pilots.
• Smith, a Portland men's soccer alum, has posted a career overall record of 209-58-20 (.763), while guiding the Pilots to a remarkable 73-18-8 (.778) mark in the WCC.
• Also back on the Portland bench is former Pilot midfielder Lisa Chambers, who enters her 10th year as an assistant coach; goalkeeping coach and UP alum Angela Harrison returns for her second season on the women's soccer staff.
• Currently, four of Portland's 2016 opponents are ranked in the NSCAA coaches' poll, while one other is receiving votes.
• The Pilots have led the nation in attendance during 10 of the last 11 years.
 
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS
• Portland State began the season with a 1-0 loss to CSUN last Friday in Hillsboro; the Matadors outshot the Vikings 16-5.
• PSU returns 15 letterwinners and six starters from a team that went 5-13-0 last year.
• The Vikings have won four Big Sky titles during the nine years under the guidance of head coach Laura Schott.
• The No. 21 Cal Bears opened the season with a 1-0 home win over Cal Poly before succumbing 1-0 at No. 21 Santa Clara in double overtime.
• Senior forward Ifeoma Onumonu scored the game-winner vs. Cal Poly, and Santa Clara's goal came in the 107th minute.
• 10th-year head coach Neil McGuire is 112-59-22 all-time at Cal and needs just 13 more wins to become program's all-time winningest coach.
• Fun fact: The last time the Pilots played PSU during the regular season in 2010, they also played at Cal; Portland won both those games 1-0 and 3-1, respectively.

For tickets to all upcoming Portland soccer home games, please visit PortlandPilots.com/Tickets.