(RV) PORTLAND PILOTS (11-3-4, 5-3-0 WCC)
WEEK 12: vs. Gonzaga Bulldogs

Gonzaga Bulldogs (9-3-5, 4-1-3 WCC)
Day: Saturday
Date: Nov. 5, 2022
Time: 7:00 PM
Place: Spokane, Wash.
Pitch: Luger Field
Video/Stats: PortlandPilots.com

POR vs. GONZ
Overall Series: 25-3-2
H: 13-2-0  •  A: 12-1-2  •  N: 0-0-0
Last: @POR 2, GONZ 3 (2021)

THIS WEEK
• The Pilots finish off the regular season this Friday with a showdown against the Gonzaga Bulldogs up in Spokane.
• They'll play on Saturday, Nov. 5 at 7 p.m.
• Links for a video stream and live stats can be found at PortlandPilots.com.

ABOUT THE PILOTS
• The Pilots most recently fell to the San Francisco Dons 1-0 on the road.
• The loss drops Portland's record to 11-3-4 on the season, their best through 17 games since 2013. They've hit 11 wins for the first time since 2018, Michelle French's first year as head coach.
• Their six shutouts in a row from 8/21 to 9/8 were the most since 2010 and their 10 shutouts this year are also the most since 2010.
• The Pilots have allowed only one goal or less in 15 of their 18 games.
• In the match prior, the Pilots defeated the Pacific Tigers 3-1 in their home finale, going undefeated at Merlo for the first time since 2010.
• Kayla Adams, Cally Togiai and MJ Roe were the goalscorers for the Pilots against Pacific. The goals were the fifth of the season for both Adams and Togiai and the third for Roe.
• Adams's performance, along with her scored goal against the Saint Mary's Gaels, was good enough to earn her WCC Player of the Week for the first time of her career.
• Adams has 13 points on the year with five goals and three assists. That's the most by any Pilot in their debut season since Danica Evans in 2013.
• For Togiai, no Pilot has earned at least five points and four assists in a season since 2018.
• The Pilots have scored multiple goals in a match nine times this season, the highest total since 2018.
• Bre Norris added five saves with no goals allowed on Saturday.
• Norris won WCC Player of the Week for the third time this season on Oct. 10, the most of any Pilot in over a decade.
• Norris was also named to the TopDrawerSoccer Team of the Week on Aug. 30. Norris leads the WCC in save percentage (.857) and shutouts (10) and is second in goals-against average (.725). She is 10th nationally in shutouts and 18th in save percentage.
• As a team, the Pilots are first in the WCC in save percentage (.845) and second in shutout percentage (.556) and goals-against average (.833) . Nationally, they're 21st in save percentage.
• This is the best save percentage they've posted since 2008.
• The Pilots are a young squad that returns 16 players from last season while adding 10 newcomers
• The Pilots enter the season picked to finish fifth in the conference. It's the fourth time in five years under head coach Michelle French they've been picked to finish in the top five.
• Forward Nedya Sawan was named to the WCC Preseason Team.
• Sawan was one of the best forwards in the conference last season, scoring 12 goals with two assists (26 points). She ranked sixth in the WCC in total points,
third in goals and first in game-winning goals (6).
• Four Pilots earned All-WCC honors last season, with Sawan making the first team, defender Ellie Walker making the second team, forward Taryn Ries earning honorable mention and goalkeeper Bre Norris making the freshman team.
• Ries and Walker are two of eight seniors to graduate, but both Sawan and Norris return for the Pilots.
• Sawan, on top of her All-WCC honors, was the first Pilot not named Taryn Ries to be named to a United Soccer Coaches All-West Region Team since 2016, making the third team.
• Norris put together a solid season between the sticks, notching 64 saves with a .771 save percentage and eight shutouts in 1,530 minutes. All of those totals were the most by a freshman Pilot 'keeper since Cori Alexander in 2003. Norris's eight shutouts ranked second in the WCC.
• Six of the Pilots returning for this season started at least 10 games for Portland last year. All returning players who actually participated in a game last season except for one played in at least 10 games last year.
• Camille Ashe is a captain for the 2022 Pilots after playing in 14 games with 12 starts as a defender. Ashe was an All-WCC Freshman Team selection in the 2020-21 spring season and also earned All-WCC Honorable Mention.
• Emily Collier is the third captain for the Pilots as the lone fifth-year senior on the team. Collier played in 14 matches with nine starts, earning an assist against Gonzaga on Oct. 6.
• Shay Adams, Sophia Mattice and Cally Togiai are the three starting returners with the most starts under their belt from last season, starting in 16, 15 and 12 games respectively.
• Adams was a part of the stout Pilots backline, starting in every match she played
• Mattice was the assist leader for the Pilots with three, earning them against San Francisco (10/9), Loyola Marymount (10/30) and Pacific (11/6).
• Togiai scored a goal and earned an assist against Colorado College (9/11).

ABOUT THE BULLDOGS
• The Gonzaga Bulldogs are 9-3-5 and 4-1-3 in WCC play.
• Last season, they finished 15-5 with a 5-4 record in WCC play.
• This year, they were picked to finish fourth in the WCC. They finished fourth last season.
• They are a potent offensive team that ranks second in the WCC in goals (36), points (104) and scoring offense (2.25). They are first in GAA at .765.
• Chris Watson is in his sixth season as head coach of the Zags.

THE STAFF
• UP alum Michelle French is in her fifth year as head coach of the Pilots.
• French has posted a 44-35-16 record in her five 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 fifth year on The Bluff, while assistant coach and UP alum Logan Emory is in his fourth year on the women's side after spending the previous three seasons with the men's program.
• Former Pilot defender Bri Miyama also joins the Pilots as the director of operations. She spent two years as a graduate assistant with sports information.

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).

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, who won a national championship with the Pilots back in 2005 and is a mainstay of the USWNT.
• 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, two NWSL Shields in 2016 and 2021 and the Women's International Champions Cup.
• Sophie French also signed with the Thorns this past summer as a national team replacement player.
• Sophie Schmidt has spent the past five seasons as a midfielder with the Houston Dash, who won the 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup.
• Taryn Ries signed a professional contract with the Swedish side IK Uppsalla this past January.
• Natalie Muth currently plays for SD Eibar, a team in Spain. Prior to that, she spent a year in Kazakhstan playing for BIIK Kazygurt
• Ellie Walker signed her first pro contract this past summer with Portugese side S.C.U Toronese.
• Former Pilot Larkin Russell has made a serious impact with AC Omonia in Cyprus, being named ot the Best 11 by the Pancyprian Footballers Association.