KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Portland Pilots had four players earn All-West Region honors from United Soccer Coaches on Tuesday, with Miguel-Angel Hernandez, Joe Highfield and Diego Rosas all making the first team and David Ajagbe making the second team.
This is the highest total of Pilots to earn All-West Region honors since 2022 and the first time ever that they've had three players earn first team honors in the same year. They had the most first team selections of any west region team and the most total selections of any West Region team.
Hernandez was stellar between the pipes for Portland this season, earning All-Region honors for the first time. Hernandez played and started 19 games for the Pilots, posting a .786 save percentage and allowing just 12 goals for a .624 goals-against average. He was first and second in those categories respectively among WCC goalkeepers and also 28
th and eighth nationally. His nine shutouts in goal were the most by a Pilot goalkeeper since 2022 and ranked ninth nationally along with first in the WCC. He earned All-WCC Second Team recognition earlier this year.
Highfield piloted the offense for Portland, scoring a team-high 11 goals with five assists for 27 points to make All-Region for the first time. He ranked second in the conference this year in both goals and points, ranking 19
th and 18
th nationally in those respective categories. His four game-winning goals also ranked 15
th nationally. An All-WCC First Team selection, WCC All-Academic Team pick and College Sports Communicators All-District team honoree, Highfield's 18 goals in his first two years are the most by a Pilot in his first two seasons since Benji Michel (2016-17).
Rosas was one of the best passers in the nation, posting two goals along with 15 assists en route to his first All-Region selection. His 15 assists both led the nation and broke a record set by Joe Leonetti in 1991 for assists by a Pilot in a single season. The WCC Midfielder of the Year as well as an All-WCC First Team selection, Rosas had the most assists by any WCC player since 1994, and his eight assists in conference play were the most since 2005.
Ajagbe rounds out the all-region honorees for Portland with his first selection. Ajagbe had 10 goals and four assists for 24 points this year, ranking third in the WCC in both goals and points. He was 28
th and 37
th nationally in those respective categories. His five game-winning goals led the conference and also ranked sixth nationally. He had the most goals by a first-year Pilot since Michel in 2016.
Portland put together one of the best seasons in program history this year. Their 14-2-4 record gave them their best winning percentage since 1988 (.800) and helped them earn the 8-seed in the NCAA Tournament. It's the third time in program history the Pilots have earned the first-round bye and the second time under Carlin-Voigt. They advanced to the Elite Eight for the second time under Carlin-Voigt and third time since 1995.
The Pilots ranked as high as first in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 poll, their first time atop those rankings and the first time atop any poll since 1992. They were one of the best teams statistically this season, third in assists (56), fourth in assists per game (2.75), fifth in goal differential (31), sixth in win-lost-tied percentage (.800) and team goals-against average (.624), seventh in points (142) and points per game (7.05), 12
th in total goals (43) and 13
th in goals per game (2.15). Their 56 assists broke a program record set two years prior.
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