PORTLAND PILOTS (4-4-3, 0-2-1 WCC)
WEEK 9: vs. #20 Santa Clara (8-5-1, 2-0-1 WCC)
Day: Saturday
Date: Oct. 19, 2019
Time: 7:00 PM
Place: Portland, Ore.
Pitch: Merlo Field
Online: Video I Stats
 
POR vs. SCU
Overall Series: 15-20-3
H: 9-7-1  •  A: 4-13-2 •  N: 2-0-0
Last: @SCU 3, POR 2 - OT (10/19/2018)
 
THIS WEEK
• The Pilots return to The Bluff this week to host the No. 20 Santa Clara Broncos in a West Coast Conference match at Merlo Field on Saturday night.
• Kickoff for the Pilots and Broncos is set for 7 p.m.
• Links for a video stream and live stats for the game can be found at PortlandPilots.com.
 
PROMOTIONS/TICKETS
• For information on fan promotions, please visit PortlandPilots.com/Promotions.
• Fans can also visit PortlandPilots.com/Tickets or call/text 503-943-GoUP for information on tickets for Saturday night and every Pilot home game.
 
LAST WEEK
• The Pilots dropped a close one to Gonzaga at home last Wednesday night before picking up a point on the road with a draw at Saint Mary's on Saturday.
• During the match with the Bulldogs, Gonzaga scored the night's only goal on a penalty  in the 73rd minute.
• The Pilots out-shot the visiting side 17-15.
• Against the Gaels, Portland attempted a season-high 19 shots, and Taryn Ries gave the Pilots a late lead with a goal in the 88th minute.
• On the goal, Kimberly Hazlett found Ries with a nice pass inside the 18; Ries then took a touch before burying a shot into the top shelf.
• But with only 13 seconds left in regulation, the Gaels somehow found the back of the net on a corner kick, and the two teams would eventually play to a 1-1 tie.
 
ABOUT THE PILOTS
• Nine of Portland's 11 games this season have been decided by one goal or less.
• Portland's wins at San Jose State (Sept. 20) and at Cal (Sept. 22) was the program's first two-game, weekend sweep on the road since winning back-to-back games at Saint Mary's and at Pacific in 2015.
• The win over then-No. 21 Cal on Sept. 22 was Portland's first win over a ranked opponent since 2013, which also came on the road (at Santa Clara).
• The Pilots are tied for second in the WCC in fewest goals allowed (15).
• Taryn Ries ranks fifth in the WCC in game-winners (2), she's sixth in assists per game (0.36), seventh in overall assists (4), and she's eighth in points per game (1.09).
• Freshman goalkeeper Jenny Wahlen recorded back-to-back shutouts to begin her career with the Pilots, and she leads the WCC with three clean sheets this fall.
• Wahlen was stellar in her collegiate debut, which was a 0-0 shutout at Washington (Aug. 23), and she followed that with a 1-0 shutout of New Mexico (Aug. 29); she opened her career with 228 consecutive scoreless minutes.
• Wahlen ranks second in the league in saves per game (4.18) and she's third in save percentage (.754).
• Eight players have scored a goal for the Pilots, with Taryn Ries leading the way with four.
• The Pilots have 11 assists on their 13 goals; Ries also leads the Pilots in this category with four assists.
• Portland returned 17 letterwinners and eight starters from 2018.
• Taryn Ries was voted to the 2019 All-WCC Preseason Team, and the Pilots were picked to finish fourth in a vote by the league's 10 head coaches.
 
THE OPPONENTS
• The Santa Clara Broncos are ranked 20th in the latest United Soccer Coaches Poll.
• They've won two straight, by a combined score of 9-0, and their 2.71 goals per game average ranks seventh nationally.
• Kelsey Turnbow is ninth in the country with nine assists, and Izzy D'Aquila's 10 goals rank 20th nationally.
• The Broncos have out-scored opponents by a 38-17 margin, they've recorded five shutouts, and keeper Courtney Ogren has a GAA of 1.33 and a .734 save percentage.
• Head coach Jerry Smith is in his 32nd season at Santa Clara; the Broncos won the national title in 2001 and have been to 26 NCAA Tournaments.
 
LAST SEASON
• Senior Kimberly Hazlett (Honorable Mention), and juniors Olivia Dendinger (Second Team) and Taryn Ries (First Team) all earned All-WCC last season; Ries also nabbed all-region honors.
• Ries ranked seventh nationally in goals (15) and was ninth in game-winners (6), and she led the league with 33 points.
• Ries also registered a pair of hat tricks, and her 15 goals are the most in a season for a Pilot since 2009 (Danielle Foxhoven).
• Dendinger, a junior center back, helped the Pilots produce eight shutouts in 2018, which are the most clean sheets for Portland since 2013.
• A senior, Hazlett has earned all-conference recognition every year on The Bluff.
• She was second on the team in points last season, finishing with five goals and six assists.
• Senior midfielder Larkin Russell recorded eight assists last fall, which is the most assists for a Pilot in a season since 2012 when Amanda Frisbie claimed nine.
• The Pilots also exploded for 30 goals overall last fall, nearly tripling the goal output from 2017.
 
THE STAFF
• UP alum Michelle French is in her second year as head coach of the Pilots.
• In her first season, French guided the Pilots to 11 wins, which was more than double the previous year's total.
• French came to The Bluff after spending the previous 12 years coaching in the U.S. Soccer system, most recently as an assistant coach with the Senior Women's National Team.
• With the Pilots, French (1995-98) was an All-American defender, a four-year starter, and a finalist for National Player of the Year as a senior in 1998; she led the Pilots to three NCAA Final Four appearances as a player, including the NCAA title game in 1995.
• Assistant coach Maite Zabala is in her second year on The Bluff, while assistant coach and UP alum Logan Emory is in his first year on the women's side after spending the previous three seasons with the men's program.
• Elli Reed, another Portland alum, is in her second year as the director of operations; Reed returned to The Bluff following a lengthy pro career, which ended with a five-year stint with the Seattle Reign in the NWSL.
 
THE HISTORY
• Portland has a strong women's soccer tradition and is one of just four programs to win multiple NCAA Championships in the sport (2002, 2005).
• The Pilots have made eight Final Four appearances (1994-96, 1998, 2000-02, 2005) and they've won 13 WCC Championships.
• The Pilots have advanced to the post-season 21 times overall.
• The Pilots led the nation in attendance for 10 consecutive seasons (2005-14); in 2018 UP ranked fourth in the country in attendance per game (1,679) and were sixth in overall attendance (18,474).
 
THE WORLD CUP
• University of Portland women's soccer alums Megan Rapinoe (USA), Christine Sinclair (Canada), and Sophie Schmidt (Canada) represented their countries last summer at the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup in France, with Rapinoe taking the world by storm to claim the Golden Ball and Golden Boot awards.
• The Golden Ball award goes to the tournament's best player, while the top scorer receives the Golden Boot.
• In her third career World Cup, Rapinoe collected six goals and three assists as the U.S. won their second straight title and fourth overall.
• Rapinoe was also selected as the 2019 FIFA Women's Player of the Year.
• This was the fifth straight world cup for Sinclair, and the fourth straight for Schmidt.
• Additionally, Sinclair inched closer to becoming the all-time leading scorer in international women's soccer, producing her 182nd career goal; American Abby Wambach is the all-time leader with 184.