PORTLAND, Ore. --- The Portland Pilots Volleyball team kicked off their 2019 campaign with their first round of practices this weekend in the Chiles Center. The Pilots will have nine returning letterwinners this season, and seek to continue their climb in the West Coast Conference
 
Last year's historic season featured 20 wins season and a 12-match winning streak to open the season, both records for the program. The Pilots also reached the post-season for the first time in program history, advancing to the semifinals of the National Invitational Volleyball Championships.

After a strong first season leading the Pilots, second year head coach Jeff Baxter seeks to build upon his program's resurgence. "We have high expectations for how we improve and the effort we give," Baxter said. "That never waivers whatever season we are in. We expect everyone to improve throughout the season, returners, newcomers, and coaches alike. We are excited to grow in all aspects."

Too improve on their 2018 performance, Baxter believes continuing to emphasize their strengths will only lead to more success, stating they're "looking to attack teams from the baseline with our serve, it was a strength of ours last season and we are working on sharpening that sword."

Amongst the returning letter winners, four starters return to the mix, including seniors Katie Barker and Shayla Hoeft, and juniors Liz Reich and Carey Williams. All four played in all 124 sets in each of Portland's 33 matches from 2018.
 
Barker shall be seeking to capitalize on her record-breaking 2018 season, where she recorded more block assists (128) than any Pilot has ever had in a single season. Her efforts did not go unnoticed, and she was named to the 2018 All-WCC Honorable Mention list.
 
Hoeft and Reich, first and third in kills for the returning players, respectively, will continue to rack up points for the Pilots. Williams led the WCC in digs with 534, recording a career-high 28 digs against the University of Hawai'i.

The offseason brought with it a few new faces joining the coaching staff, as former University of Nevada assistant coach Megan Burton and former University of Washington player Justice Magraw have become Pilots. Assistant coach Dylan Hamilton returns for his second season, and former Pilot Morgan Robinson has been brought on as a grad assistant.

The Pilots will start the 2019 season on the road in Ogden, Utah at the Wildcat International. Their first game will be against CSU Northridge on August 30th at 11:00 AM, followed with a night cap against host's Weber State at 6:30 PM. Portland will then face UNLV at 10:00 AM, a rematch of the Pilots last match of the season in 2018 where they fell to the Rebels in the quarterfinals of the 2018 National Volleyball Invitational Challenge.

Scroll down for photos from Portland's first official practice.