PORTLAND PILOTS (2-3-0, 0-0-0 WCC)
WEEK 4: vs. Colorado College

Colorado College Tigers (0-4-0, 0-0-0 MWC)
Day: Saturday
Date: Sept. 11, 2021
Time: 7:00 PM
Place: Portland, Ore.
Pitch: Merlo Field
Video/Stats: PortlandPilots.com

POR vs. CC
Overall Series: 4-3-0
H: 3-0-0  •  A: 0-3-0 •  N: 1-0-0
Last: POR 2, CCU 0 (Sept. 4, 2009)

THIS WEEK 
• The Pilots are back home for their match against the Colorado College Tigers.
• The two teams will play on Saturday, Sept. 11 with kickoff set for 7 p.m.
• Live stats and video will be available at PortlandPilots.com.

PROMOTIONS/TICKETS
• During Saturday's match, which takes place on the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, the Pilots will take time recognize and honor our first responders.
• For Saturday's match, all first responders will be offered a 2-for-1 deal on all tickets, with the purchase of one ticket netting you another for free.
• For ticket information for every Pilot home game, please visit PortlandPilots.com/Tickets or call or text 503-943-GoUP.

NEXT WEEK
• Portland will play one game on the road and another at home, traveling to Eugene for a matchup against the Oregon Ducks and returning to Merlo Field for a game against the North Dakota Fighting Hawks.
• Kickoff for the Oregon match is set for 7 p.m. while the North Dakota showdown will commence at 4 p.m.
• Check PortlandPilots.com for live video and stats options as well as for tickets.

ABOUT THE PILOTS 
• Portland so far is 2-3-0 on the season, most recently splitting their two games up in Seattle.
• They earned a big win over the Washington Huskies on Sept. 2 but fell to the Seattle Redhawks on Sept. 5.
• The Huskies were receiving votes to be ranked in the top 25 to start the season and had yet to be shutout this season before playing the Pilots.
• Sophomore forward Nedya Sawan added to her goal total against Washington, delivering the game-winner against the Huskies.
• Sawan has already surpassed her goal total from last season, scoring her third goal of the year against Washington.
• Sawan now ranks second in the WCC in total goals and first in game-winning goals (2) and shot accuracy (.733).
• Freshman goalkeeper Bre Norris helped the Pilots earn their second shutout of the season against Washington on Sept. 2.
• Norris is tied for tops in the WCC in total saves this season with 19. The other two keepers she's currently tied with -- Zoe Clevely and Marlee Nicolos -- have each played one more match than Norris.
• The Boise, Idaho native is also still the only freshman goalkeeper in the WCC so far this year to have played at least 33% of her team's minutes as a keeper.
• The Pilots are a young squad that returns all but five athletes that played with the team last season. They also add eight talented newcomers to the squad. 
• The Pilots entered the season picked to finish fifth in the conference for the second year in a row.
• Senior striker Taryn Ries was named to the All-WCC Preseason squad for the third season in a row.
• Ries finished last season with a team-leading five goals,  good for sixth in the conference. She notched a hat trick in the season opener against Oregon State (Feb. 10) and a brace against the Pacific Tigers (March 6).
• Ries was also one of four Pilots to earn All-WCC recognition last season, making the All-WCC First Team. The other three were Camille Ashe, Sophia Mattice and Elliott Winklemann.
• Ashe and Mattice both return after putting together stellar freshmen seasons.
• Ashe, who was All-WCC Honorable Mention while also making the All-WCC Freshman Team, started in all 10 matches for the Pilots as a center back. She helped the Pilots record five straight shutouts for the first time since 2010, back when they were ranked second in the nation.
• Midfielder Mattice played and started in nine matches for Portland. She recorded a goal and an assist on the season.
• Ashe and Mattice were not the only young Pilots to play a significant role with the team this past season.
• Sawan played in nine matches (six starts) for the Pilots and ranked second on the team in goals scored (2) and total points (5).
• Both of Sawan's goals came in a 3-0 victory over the San Diego Torreros on March 27. Sawan also recorded an assist against the Pacific Tigers on March 6.
• Eight of the nine Pilots who played in every match this past season -- Gabi Brummett, Jamie Rita, Ellie Walker, Emily Collier, Hannah McCord, Camille Ashe, MJ Roe and Sophie French -- will play this year for Portland.
• French and Walker both played roles in helping the Pilots secure five straight shutouts.
• Brummett and Rita each played key roles in the Pilots' offense, with Brummett notching a team-leading two assists on the year and Rita adding a goal herself.

ABOUT THE TIGERS
• Colorado College is 0-4 on the season after a difficult start to the schedule.
• The Tigers have posted a winning record in each of the past three seasons.
• Back in 2018, Colorado College became the fourth school to win the Colorado Cup, which is presented to the school from the state that accumulates the most points throughout the season.
• The Tigers went 3-0 that season against Colorado schools.
• All eight goalscorers from last season are returning to the  this year.
• The two leaders of the attack are Jacqui Hand and Kiley Suter, who each scored three goals in eight games last season
• Hand has also twice been named to the All-Mountain West Second Team.
• Geoff Bennett is in his 17th season as head coach of the .

THE STAFF 
• UP alum Michelle French is in her fourth year as head coach of the Pilots.
• French posted a 20-19-8 record in her first three years as the head coach of Portland.
• French came to The Bluff after spending 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 fourth year on The Bluff, while assistant coach and UP alum Logan Emory is in his third year on the women's side after spending the previous three seasons with the men's program.
• Molly Dwyer joins the coaching staff here at Portland after coaching stints with UNC Asheville and Racing Louisville FC.

THE HISTORY 
• Portland has a strong women's soccer tradition and is one of just five 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 OLYMPICS
• University of Portland women's soccer alums Megan Rapinoe (USA), Christine Sinclair (Canada) and Sophie Schmidt (Canada) represented their countries this past summer at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in Japan, with Sinclair and Schmidt winning their first ever gold medal and Rapinoe earning bronze.
• Sinclair, who is the all-time leading scorer in both men's and women's soccer at 187, scored one goal during the tournament. It came during Canada's July 21 match against the host country, Japan.
• Schmidt played in one match against Great Britain in group play.
• Sinclair and Schmidt's Canadian team defeated Megan Rapinoe and the United States Women's National Team 1-0 in the semifinals after Jessie Fleming scored the game-winning goal off a penalty. It was the second Olympics in a row where the U.S. failed to make the gold medal game.
• Rapinoe did, however, play a significant role in helping the U.S. get bronze, scoring two unassisted goals against Australia in their final match on Aug. 5. The U.S. won 4-3.

PILOTS IN THE PROS 
• The Portland women's soccer program has a long tradition of sending players to the pros, both in the United States and in Europe.
• The Puget Sound area has been a popular landing spot for Portland graduates as eight women's soccer alums have played for the Reign.
• Currently the OL Reign roster features Megan Rapinoe and Stephanie Cox, who came out of retirement to re-join her long-time club.
• The Portland Thorns claim the legendary Christine Sinclair, who has spent her entire NWSL career in Portland.
• Sinclair helped the Thorns win two NWSL Championships, once in 2013 and again in 2017.
• Sophie Schmidt has spent the past three seasons as a midfielder with the Houston Dash, who won the 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup.