PORTLAND, Ore. --- The 2017 season is officially here as the Portland Pilots men's soccer team held their first training of the new year Wednesday morning at the Clive Charles Soccer Complex. The Pilots are coming off a historic season that saw them return to the top of the West Coast Conference.
 
Nick Carlin-Voigt, now in his second year as head coach on The Bluff, guided the Pilots back to the NCAA Playoffs in 2016, while setting some milestones along the way. The then first-year coach was also tabbed the WCC's Co-Coach of the Year as the Pilots nearly swept the league's annual post-season awards. Eddie Sanchez was named the conference's player of the year, becoming the first Pilot to do so since 2002. Paul Christensen nabbed the goalkeeper of the year honor, and Benji Michel, who led the league in goals, was voted the WCC's top freshman.
 
The WCC title was the program's first since 2002, and the Pilots reached the NCAA Postseason for first time since 2009. They also posted the most wins (12-5-2) since 2009, and the 6-1 conference mark was Portland's best since 1989. This came after the program only won one WCC game the previous two seasons combined.
 
This fall Carlin-Voigt brings in a sizeable recruiting class that is ranked No. 5 in the country by College Soccer News and sixth nationally by Top Drawer Soccer. Portland also returns 16 letterwinners, including Christensen and Michel, along with four other Pilots (Matthew Coffey, Lionel Mills, Gio Magana-Rivera, and Kris Reaves) who earned all-league recognition last season.
 
The UP program is rich in tradition as the Pilots claim men's soccer alums Kasey Keller, Steve Cherundolo, Conor Casey, Heath Pearce, and 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 and has made 15 trips to the NCAA Playoffs.
 
The Pilots open the 2017 season at home vs. UNLV on Friday, Aug. 25 at 7:00 p.m. Portland is also scheduled to play three exhibition matches, beginning with a game on Aug. 13 at Stanford, who are the two-time defending national champions and ranked No. 1 in the country. The Pilots will also host Corban on Aug. 16 and Washington on Aug. 19 in a pair of friendlies at Merlo Field.