No. 20 PORTLAND PILOTS (4-0-1)
Week 4: vs. No. 9 Washington / American
 
No. 9 Washington Huskies (5-1-0)
Day: Friday
Date: Sept. 14, 2018
Time: 7:30 p.m.
City: Portland, Ore.
Pitch: Merlo Field
Live Video: PortlandPilots.com
Live Stats: PortlandPilots.com
 
POR vs. UW
Overall Series: 18-27-4
H: 10-14-1  •  A: 8-13-3  •  N: 0-0-0
Last: POR 0, @UW 0 (9/27/2015)
 
American Eagles (1-2-1)
Day: Sunday
Date: Sept. 16, 2018
Time: 7:00 p.m.
City: Portland, Ore.
Pitch: Merlo Field
Live Video: PortlandPilots.com
Live Stats: PortlandPilots.com
 
POR vs. AU
Overall Series: 0-0-0
H: 0-0-0  •  A: 0-0-0  •  N: 0-0-0
Last: N/A
 
THIS WEEK
• The No. 20 Pilots play two more home games at Merlo Field this week, first hosting the No. 9 Washington Huskies on Friday night.
• Kickoff for the two long-time, northwest rivals is set for 7:30 p.m.
• The game is part of a soccer double header on The Bluff and will be preceded by the women playing Oregon at 5:00 p.m.
• Sunday brings the first ever meeting with American University, with kickoff set for 7 p.m. at Merlo Field.
• Live video and stats for the match are available at PortlandPilots.com.
 
LAST WEEK
• The Pilots stayed unbeaten on the year with a 4-1 win over the Jacksonville Dolphins Saturday night at Merlo Field.
• Rey Ortiz tallied a goal and an assist, while Benji Michel scored late to extend his streak of a goal scored in each of the team's first five matches.
• Junior transfer Esteban Calvo and freshman Alejandro Pereira also scored their first career goals for the Pilots, with Pereira's going into the books as the game-winner.
 
NEXT WEEK
• Portland extends its lengthy home stand to begin the season when they host Oregon State next Friday night at Merlo Field.
• The Pilots then embark on their first road trip of the year to battle No. 20 Coastal Carolina on Monday, Sept. 24 in Conway, S.C.
 
DYNAMIC DUO EARN PRESEASON HONORS
• Portland juniors Benji Michel and Rey Ortiz both received a handful of preseason honors, including being named to the initial 2018 MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List.
• Portland was one of only two schools (FIU) to have more than one player named to the list, and the trophy is handed out annually to the best collegiate player in the nation.
• Ortiz was also named to Top Drawer Soccer's Preseason Best XI First Team, while Michel landed on the second team, and both were voted to the All-WCC Preseason Team.
 
MORE ABOUT THE PILOTS...
• At 4-0-1 the Pilots are off to the program's best start since 2000, when Portland also began the season with a 4-0-1 mark.
• After jumping into the national rankings for the first time this season last week, the Pilots are currently No. 20 in the most recent United Soccer Coaches' poll; Top Drawer Soccer has the Pilots ranked 15th.
• Benji Michel has started the season by scoring one goal during all five games; that streak is the longest to begin a season for a Pilot since at least 2001.
• Michel is currently tied for tops in the conference with five goals, with ranks 10th nationally; he's also No. 9 in the country in game-winners (2), is 11th in goals per game (1.00), and ranks 17th in points per game (1.00).
• Rey Ortiz landed on the most recent Top Drawer Soccer National Team of the Week after registering a goal and an assist during Saturday's 4-1 win over Jacksonville.
• Goalkeeper Kienan Weekes was named to the Top Drawer Soccer Team of the Week after registering his first career shutout with five saves last during a 1-0 win over UCSB on Aug. 31.
• The Pilots were selected by the league's eight coaches to finish second in the West Coast Conference behind Pacific.
• Pacific received four first-place votes and totaled 44 overall points, while the Pilots collected two first-place votes and 41 points.
• Rey Ortiz ranked second nationally last season in assists per game (0.76) and he was third in total assists with 13; his 13 assists missed matching a program record by one.
• Ortiz also had six goals to lead the WCC with 25 points.
• Following the 2017 season, Ortiz was named to Top Drawer Soccer's Best XI Second Team, nabbed all-region honors, and landed on the All-WCC First Team.
• Ortiz's career mark of 0.45 assists per game is tops on the program's all-time list in the modern era (1986-2017).
• Michel, who earned WCC All-First Team and all-regional honors last season, 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.
• As a team in 2017, the Pilots ranked in the top 25 nationally in several statistical categories: assists per game (2.24, No. 9), points per game (6.35, No. 9), goals per game (2.06, No. 12), total assists (38, No. 14), and total points (108, No. 24); Portland also led the WCC in each of those categories.
• 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.
• The Pilots have made 15 appearances in the NCAA Postseason all-time, which includes two appearances in the College Cup (1988 & 1995).
 
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS
• The Washington Huskies are ranked ninth in the United Soccer Coaches poll, and they've only suffered one defeat, which was a 3-2 setback in double overtime at No. 5 Denver.
• UW ranks 13th nationally with 13 goals, and they've produced four shutouts.
• Five different Huskies have found the back of the net, led by Kyle Coffee and Scott Menzies with four goals each.
• Goalkeeper Saif Kerawala has a GAA of 0.65 and four clean sheets.
• Seventh-year head coach Jamie Clark has led the Huskies to the NCAA five times.
• The American Eagles, who first play at Oregon State on Friday, come to the Pacific Northwest with a 1-2-1 record.
• The Eagles have been out-scored 13-4 on the year and are led by Fabio Massaro, who has a team-best two goals.
• Todd West is in his 19th year as head coach at American, and he's guided the Eagles to three NCAA Tournaments.