#21 PORTLAND PILOTS (12-3-3)
NCAA Second Round: at #3 Kentucky
 
No. 3 Kentucky Wildcats (17-1-1)
Day: Sunday
Date: Nov. 18, 2018
Time: 1:00 p.m. (Pacific)
City: Lexington, Ky.
Pitch: Bell Soccer Complex
Live Video: PortlandPilots.com & Watch ESPN
Live Stats: PortlandPilots.com
 
POR vs. UK
Overall Series: 1-0-0
H: 0-0-0  •  A: 0-0-0  •  N: 1-0-0
Last: POR 2, UK 1 (ot) (2003 at Seattle)
 
THIS WEEK
• The No. 21 Pilots travel to Lexington, Ky., this weekend for an NCAA Second Round match-up with the No. 3 Kentucky Wildcats, which is scheduled for Sunday at the Bell Soccer Complex.
• Kickoff for the Pilots and Wildcats is set for 1 p.m. (Pacific), and the game can be viewed online at PortlandPilots.com and via the Watch ESPN App.
• The winner will advance to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen, where they'll face either Central Florida or Lipscomb.
• The University of Portland will be hosting a watch party on Sunday, which is open to the public and will take place in the Pilot House; food and drinks will be provided.
 
LAST WEEK
• The Pilots held off the UCLA Bruins 1-0 on Thursday in the NCAA First Round at Merlo Field.
• The Pilots, who were playing their first home playoff game since 2002, got a goal from Benji Michel in the 31st minute, and goalkeeper Kienan Weekes matched a career-high with six saves to preserve the clean sheet.
• Portland's goal was set-up by Alejandro Pereira, who gained possession just outside the 18 before playing a through ball to Michel.
• Michel then took a couple of touches before burying what would prove to be his seventh game-winner of the season.
 
THE NCAA'S
• This is the Pilots' second trip to the NCAA Men's Soccer Championships in the past three years, and it's the program's 16th visit overall to the NCAA Postseason.
• It's also Portland's first time advancing to the NCAA Second Round since 2009.
• Portland has an all-time playoff record of 15-12-3, and they've been to two College Cups, in 1988 and 1995.
• Portland's most recent postseason visit was in 2016 when they traveled to Albuquerque to battle the New Mexico Lobos; after playing to a 0-0 tie, the Lobos advanced 6-5 on PK's.
• The first-round home match vs. UCLA ended a string of 10 straight road postseason games for the Pilots.
 
THE WCC'S
• Juniors Benji Michel and Gio Magana-Rivera were named to the All-West Coast Conference Men's Soccer First Team as seven Pilots total earned all-league postseason recognition.
• Michel has been selected to the All-WCC First Team all three of his seasons on The Bluff, while it's the first time on the league's top team for Magana-Rivera.
• Portland's Rey Ortiz landed on the All-WCC Second Team, Esteban Calvo, Malcolm Dixon, and Lionel Mills all received honorable mention, and Jake Arteaga was named to the conference's all-freshman team.
 
ABOUT THE PILOTS...
• The Pilots began the playoffs ranked 21st in the country in the United Soccer Coaches Poll.
• The Pilots first entered the rankings during week three of the season and have stayed there since; at one point they reached a season-best No. 7 ranking.
• The Pilots didn't suffer their first loss of the season until their 14th match, which is the longest unbeaten streak to start a year since 1995.
• The 13-match unbeaten string is also the longest for the Pilots since that '95 team went 14 games without a blemish.
• The 10-0-3 open to the season ranks as the program's third best start ever, behind only 1995 and the 1988 squad.
• The 1988 team, led by legendary goalkeeper Kasey Keller, own the program's best start ever as they won their first 21 games before succumbing to Indiana in the College Cup Semifinals.
• Portland features the No. 27 offense in the country, averaging 1.89 goals per game; the Pilots rank 28th in points per game (5.44).
• The Pilots have battled through significant injuries, including to key players Rey Ortiz and Benji Michel, who were both named to the Mac Hermann Trophy Preseason Watch List.
• Benji Michel started the season by scoring a goal in six straight games.
• Michel's goal streak was the longest to begin a season for a Pilot since at least 2001.
• Despite missing some time and playing limited minutes, Michel still ranks third nationally with seven game-winners; he's No. 23 in goals per game (0.65) and 25th in total goals with 11.
• The junior forward landed Top Drawer Soccer Team of the Week Honorable Mention following his one goal, one assist performance at Gonzaga, and he was previously the Top Drawer Soccer National Player of the Week (Oct. 1) and WCC Player of the Week after providing two game-winners and an assist as the Pilots won at Coastal Carolina and defeated Northern Illinois at home.
• Gio Magana-Rivera, who had an assist at Coastal Carolina and two against NIU, also landed Top Drawer Soccer Team of the Week Honorable Mention accolades after the Pilots went 2-0 against the No. 24 Chanticleers and Huskies.
• Redshirt-senior goalkeeper Kienan Weekes nabbed WCC Player of the Week honors after the Pilots shutout the No. 9 Washington Huskies 1-0 on Sept. 14.
• It was the first conference honor for Weekes, who also landed on the Top Drawer Soccer Team of the Week earlier this season when he registered his first career shutout with five saves during a 1-0 win over UCSB on Aug. 31.
• Rey Ortiz was named to Top Drawer Soccer's National Team of the Week (Sept. 10) after registering a goal and an assist during a 4-1 win over Jacksonville.
• Portland ranks seventh nationally in attendance.
• Michel made history when he registered a hat trick during the first 26 minutes of a 6-0 win over Fairfield (Aug. 27); the hat trick was the first at Merlo Field since UP's Alejandro Salazar accomplished the feat in 2003.
• Portland's newcomers were ranked as the No. 3 class in the nation, according to Top Drawer Soccer.
• Freshman midfielder Jake Arteaga was named to Top Drawer Soccer's Preseason Best XI Freshman Team.
• Head coach Nick Carlin-Voigt is in his third year at the helm of the Pilots, and in his first year on The Bluff he led Portland to an improbable turn-around en route to the 2016 WCC title and an NCAA Playoff berth.
• It was the program's first WCC Championship since 2002, and it was their first trip to the NCAA postseason since 2009.
• In 2016 Carlin-Voigt became the program's first WCC Coach of the Year since Clive Charles in 2002.
• Carlin-Voigt, who came to The Bluff from UCLA during the winter of 2016, was named one of the Top 10 American Coaches under 40 by Top Drawer Soccer in 2017.
• The Pilots claim renowned men's soccer alums Kasey Keller, Steve Cherundolo, Conor Casey, Nate Jaqua, Heath Pearce, and 2015 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; the Pilots returned to the College Cup in 1995.
 
ABOUT THE OPPONENT
• The Kentucky Wildcats are the overall No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament and received a bye in the first round.
• The Wildcats only have one loss this season, and they enter Sunday riding an eight-match winning streak.
• Kentucky ranks seventh nationally in goals per game (2.26), and they're No. 3 in goals allowed (0.46); they've out-scored opponents by a 43-9 margin.
• Individually, junior forward J.J. Williams is second in the country in game-winners (9) and ranks third with 16 goals, sophomore midfielder Kalil ElMedkhar is No. 6 in assists (10), and sophomore keeper Enrique Facusse is tops nationally with 13 shutouts, is No. 4 in GAA (0.465), and is ninth with a .842 save percentage.
• Seventh-year head coach Johan Cedergren has led the Wildcats to five NCAA visits.
• This is only the second meeting ever between Portland and Kentucky, with the Pilots claiming a 2-1 overtime win in Seattle in 2003.