SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – The Portland Pilots had four players earn All-WCC Honors in men's soccer, with Nick Fernandez making the first team, Joe Highfield making the first team and the freshman team, Miguel-Angel Hernandez and Sebastian Nava making the second team and Jose Olmos and Diego Rosas earning honorable mention.
Fernandez becomes the first Pilot to be a three-time All-WCC First Team selection since Benji Michel in 2018. Fernandez had a career-high four goals on the year as well as four assists, dominating in the midfield for the Pilots. Playing in 16 games with 13 starts, Fernandez had three game-winning goals, the third-most in the WCC.
Highfield becomes the first Pilot to make both the freshman team and the first team since 2016. Highfield was the points leader for the Pilots this season with 17, notching seven goals and three assists on the year. His seven goals were tied for the fourth most in the conference. Four of those goals as well as three of his assists came against WCC opponents, ranking him second in the conference in points against WCC opponents.
Hernandez went an unbeaten 3-0-1 in this starts in goal for the Pilots against WCC opponents. Overall, he played in seven matches for the Pilots, taking a loss in just one of those matches. His three shutouts also led the team, with two of those shutouts coming against teams that at the time ranked no lower than third in the national rankings.
Nava earns All-WCC honors for the fourth time in his career, becoming the first Pilot to earn five All-WCC honors in four years since Rey Ortiz did so in 2019. Nava posted 13 points on the year with three goals and seven assists, his assist total ranking second on the team and third in the WCC. His 25 career assists ranks eighth all-time for Portland.
Olmos earns All-WCC recognition for the first time in his career. He was a stout defender for the Pilots, playing in 17 matches with 16 starts. He played the third most minutes of any Pilot this year at 1,424. He was named the WCC Defensive Player of the Week on Nov. 9 after playing the full 90 minutes in a shutout win over the No. 3 San Diego Toreros.
Rosas earns honorable mention as well, marking the second year he's earned All-WCC recognition. Rosas was the leader for Portland in assists with eight on the season. He had three assists in one match against LMU, making him just the third Pilot since 2017 to record at least three assists in a match. His assist total ranked second in the WCC and eighth nationally.
The Pilots finished the season at 7-4-7 overall and 4-0-4 in WCC play, ending the year on a 10-game unbeaten streak that was the longest on the West Coast and the third longest in the country. They earned four wins over teams that finished in the top 35 in RPI this season as well.
Below are the full awards for All-WCC this year.
2024 West Coast Conference Men's Soccer All-Conference Awards
WCC Coach of the Year
Brian Quinn, San Diego
WCC Offensive Player of the Year
Sergi Solans, Oregon State
WCC Midfielder of the Year
Arnau Farnos, Oregon State
WCC Defensive Player of the Year
Reid Roberts, San Francisco
WCC Goalkeeper of the Year
Donovan Parisian, San Diego
WCC Freshman of the Year
Sergi Solans, Oregon State
WCC All-Conference
First Team
Cesar Bahena, M, San Diego
Arnau Farnos, M, Oregon State
Nick Fernandez, M, Portland
Joe Highfield, F, Portland
Samy Kanaan, F, San Diego
Nicklas Lund, D, Oregon State
Donovan Parisian, GK, San Diego
Reid Roberts, D, San Francisco
Gabriel Bracken Serra, M, San Francisco
Sergi Solans, F, Oregon State
Ethan Warne, D, San Diego
Second Team
Luca Baltzer, Pacific
Tomas Bedouret, Oregon State
Ky Mani Dade, LMU
Isaiah Easley, San Francisco
Naji Elder, Santa Clara
Miguel-Angel Hernandez, Portland
Sebastian Nava, Portland
Enzo Newman, Oregon State
David Raphael, San Francisco
Jack Sandmeyer, San Diego
Fabian Straudi, Oregon State
Will Wiersdorf, Santa Clara
Honorable Mention
Ben Augee, Gonzaga
Cesar Batres, Saint Mary's
Pere Belmonte, Oregon State
Alejandro Fuentesal-Atalaya, LMU
Adrien Gameiro, LMU
Alvaro Gironda, Santa Clara
Jacob Heisner, Pacific
Josh Moya, Pacific
Wade Muttitt, Saint Mary's
Jose Olmos, Portland
Steven Ramirez, San Diego
Oliver Rhoades, San Diego
Diego Rosas, Portland
Ian Smith, Saint Mary's
Rylan Smith, San Francisco
Ellis Spikner, Oregon State
Tyler Trusner, LMU
Eric Waltz, San Francisco
WCC All-Freshman Team
Cesar Batres, Saint Mary's
Mathias Bauer, San Diego
Brayden Beason, San Francisco
Luca Fava, San Diego
Joe Highfield, Portland
Daniel Idiakhoa, LMU
Ismail Nieves, LMU
Joseph Ogwang, Oregon State
Junhwan Park, San Francisco
David Raphael, San Francisco
Sergi Solans, Oregon State
Get Your Tickets Now!
Secure your spot now for any upcoming Portland Pilots ticketed home event by visiting PortlandPilots.com/Tickets or by downloading the Portland Pilots App. For group and fan experience package information, email pilotsboxoffice@up.edu.
Donate Today
Fans interested in making a contribution to the Pilot Athletic Fund can do so by clicking here. Your gift directly helps our nearly 300 student-athletes as they strive to make a difference in our community and achieve academic and athletic excellence. Thank you for support of Pilot Athletics!
Follow Along With the Action
Get the latest news and information about your favorite University of Portland athletic programs by visiting PortlandPilots.com. You can also follow along for the most dynamic coverage and team-centric content by following us on Twitter, liking us on Facebook, and following us on Instagram.