No. 18 PORTLAND PILOTS (3-0-1, 0-0-0 WCC)
Week 3: vs. Jacksonville
 
Jacksonville Dolphins (0-4-0, 0-0-0 ASUN)
Day: Saturday
Date: Sept. 8, 2018
Time: 7:00 p.m.
City: Portland, Ore.
Pitch: Merlo Field
Live Video: PortlandPilots.com
Live Stats: PortlandPilots.com
 
POR vs. JU
Overall Series: 0-0-0
H: 0-0-0  •  A: 0-0-0  •  N: 0-0-0
Last: N/A
 
THIS WEEK
• The Pilots play one game this week when they host the Jacksonville Dolphins on Saturday night at Merlo Field.
• Kickoff is set for 7 p.m., and live video and stats can be found at PortlandPilots.com.
• This is the first meeting ever between the Pilots and Dolphins, who hail from the Atlantic Sun Conference.
 
LAST WEEK
• The Pilots won both their games at last weekend's Nike Portland Invitational at Merlo Field, registering a 1-0 shutout of UCSB on Friday night before defeating Cal Poly 2-1 on Sunday.
• Against the Gauchos, Benji Michel scored the game-winner in the 57th minute, and goalkeeper Kienan Weekes made five saves to preserve the clean sheet, and earn a spot on Top Drawer Soccer's Team of the Week.
• On Sunday, the Mustangs took a 1-0 lead in the first half before the Pilots scored twice after the break to claim the comeback victory.
• The equalizer came on an own-goal, and Michel once again scored the game-winner, this time finishing with a header on a perfect ball sent in by Rey Ortiz.
 
NEXT WEEK
• Portland continues their lengthy stay at home to open the season when they host No. 23 Washington at Merlo Field on Friday, Sept. 14.
• This will be the 50th meeting all-time between the Pilots and Huskies, and the game follows the UP women's team, who host the Oregon Ducks as part of the double header.
• Portland then meets American University for the first time ever at home on Sunday.
 
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...
• The Pilots jumped into the national rankings for the first time this season at No. 18 in the most recent United Soccer Coaches' poll; Top Drawer Soccer has the Pilots ranked 22nd.
• At 3-0-1 Portland is off to its best start since 2011 when the team also opened the campaign 3-0-1.
• Benji Michel, who has scored 10 goals during each of the past two seasons, has score one goal in every game this season; his four on the season are tied for the most in the West Coast Conference.
• Goalkeeper Kienan Weekes landed on Top Drawer Soccer's Team of the Week after registering his first career shutout with five saves last Friday night during a 1-0 win over UCSB.
• 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 0.46 assists per game is tops on the program's all-time list in the modern era (1986-2017).
• Michel was among the nation's leaders in goals for most of last fall before ending the year with a team-best 10, which ranked second in the WCC.
• He also was second in the league with 22 points, which were behind only Ortiz's 25.
• Michel earned WCC All-First Team and all-regional honors, and he 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.
• The Pilots returned 12 letterwinners this season, which includes five starters.
• 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 Jacksonville Dolphins are still searching for their first win of the year as they enter the weekend 0-4-0.
• Their last two games were against two top-10 teams in UNC Wilmington and North Carolina.
• Ignazio Muccilli and Igor Ferreira have scored JU's two goals, and keeper Patrick Harding has played every minute in goal.
• JU has won 10 conference championships during their extensive history, most recently in 2016, but they've never advanced to the NCAA Postseason.
• Last year the Dolphins went 6-10-1 overall and 2-3-1 for a fifth-place finish in the ASUN.
• Mauricio Ruiz is in his sixth year as head coach.