PORTLAND, Ore. – The Portland Pilots men's soccer team is back home at Merlo Field for their second WCC match of the season on Sunday against the Loyola Marymount Lions. Kick-off is set for 1 p.m. and live video and stats will be available at PortlandPilots.com.

The Pilots were picked to finish third in the WCC in the annual preseason coaches' poll and had two players named to the 2021 All-WCC Preseason Men's Soccer Team: midfielder Luke Hendel and defender Delentz Pierre. The Pilots are 1-2 this season with their lone victory coming in their spring opener against the George Fox Bruins in a dominant 9-0 showing.

In their most recent matchup, the Pilots fell to the Pacific Tigers 2-1 in Stockton, Calif. in their WCC opener. The Tigers took a 2-0 lead with goals in the 19^th and 51^st minute, but the Pilots had control for most of the second half. Buba Fofanah launched a beautiful ball into the back of the net in the 72^nd minute to cut Pacific's lead down to one, but the Pilots just could not close the gap.

Meanwhile, the Lions are 3-0 to start their season and 2-0 in conference play, putting them at the top of the WCC standings. LMU was picked to finish first in the conference and had three players selected to the All-WCC Preseason Team: defensive midfielder Noel Caliskan, defender Gerardo Lopez and midfielder Bastien Oberli. They are currently ranked 11^th in the nation.

In their most recent match, the Lions took down the Gonzaga Bulldogs 2-1 on March 7. They outshot the Zags 20-10 with eight shots on goal and scored twice in the second half to secure the win. Duhaney Williams was named WCC Offensive Player of the Week for his efforts after earning two assists on the day.

The Pilots trail the Lions in the all-time series, posting a record of 9-13-1. In their most recent match on Oct. 19, 2019, LMU came out on top with a 2-1 victory at Sullivan Field in Los Angeles, Calif. Portland, however, has won three of the last four matches, with their last victory over the Lions being a 4-0 rout at home on Oct. 12, 2018.

After this match, the Pilots will stay home for a non-conference matchup against the Seattle Redhawks. That game is set to take place on Wednesday, March 17 at 4 p.m.