SAN BRUNO, Calif. -- The No. 7 Portland Pilots had four players earn WCC All-Academic First Team honors, with Efetobo Aror, Michael Dunne, Joe Highfield and Christian Mendoza all making the team. It's the highest number of first team honorees in program history and the most of any WCC team this season.
Six other Pilots also earned WCC All-Academic Honorable Mention: Nicky Dunbar, Miguel-Angel Hernandez, Anton Hjalmarsson, Ritvik Karra, Alex Waggoner and Ethan Zamora. To qualify for the WCC All-Academic First Team, a student-athlete must post at least a 3.20 cumulative GPA while having spent a year in residence at their current institution while being in their second year of competition and at least a sophomore academically. All who qualify earn honorable mention, with the first team being selected later.
Aror makes the team for the second straight season. Aror, who was also All-Academic honorable mention in 2024 and a CSC Academic All-District selection in 2025, played 15 matches with 13 starts, recording two goals and an assist while manning the midfield for the Pilots as a crucial player on both sides of the ball. Aror had one game-winning goal against Saint Mary's as well. This is the first time in his career he's had multiple goals in a season.
Dunne makes the team for the first time as a Pilot. Dunne is one of just four players to play in every match for Portland this season, with his 14 starts on the back line ranking second among all Pilots. He's guided the defense to seven shutouts this year as well as the best goals-against average in the conference (1.188) and also added an assist against Saint Mary's.
Highfield has been dominant as one of the best offensive players in the country. He has 11 goals and 11 assists on the year, the only player in the country to have at least 11 goals and 11 assists. His 33 points are the most by any Pilot since 1993 and his back-to-back seasons of 11 goals are a first for the program since 1987. He is fourth in the country in total points, third in assists and 14
th in goals. He is first in the WCC in points and second in both goals and assists. Highfield was an All-Academic First Team and CSC Academic All-District selection last season.
Mendoza rounds out the first team selections, garnering All-Academic honors in his first year eligible. Mendoza has been a crucial piece in the midfield both as a starter and off the bench, playing in 15 matches and tallying two goals and one assist in that span. He's one of eight Pilots this season to have multiple goals on the year.
It's been a dominant end of the season for the Pilots, who hold the longest winning streak in the nation at 10 straight victories. That winning streak is also the longest since 1988. Portland has already claimed the WCC regular season title with a perfect 8-0-0 record in WCC play. They are the first WCC team to go undefeated with no losses since 2019, the only one to do so with eight wins ever and the first team since 2012 to post eight WCC wins in a season. It's the first time since 1988 as well that Portland has gone undefeated in WCC play without a draw. They are 11-3-2 overall this year.
The Pilots are hosts for the inaugural 2026 WCC Men's Soccer Championships, with Merlo Field as the site for both the semifinals and final of the tournament. The tournament will take place over two days on Nov. 11 and Nov. 14. The San Diego Toreros and Denver Pioneers are the first match at 2 p.m. on Nov. 11 followed by the Pilots vs. the San Francisco Dons at 7 p.m. Check PortlandPilots.com/WCC for tickets and PortlandPilots.com for live stats and video options.
See below for the full All-Academic team.
2026 WEST COAST CONFERENCE MEN'S SOCCER ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM
| Name |
School |
Class |
GPA |
Major |
| Kaleb Afsari |
San Francisco |
Sr. |
3.99 |
Physics |
| James Andrew |
Pacific |
Jr. |
3.96 |
Business Administration - Finance & Business Analytics |
| Efetobo Aror |
Portland |
Sr. |
3.89 |
Finance |
| Niv Berkovitz |
Santa Clara |
Sr. |
3.84 |
Finance |
| Michael Dunne |
Portland |
Jr. |
3.96 |
Business Administration |
| Massimo Erfani |
Pacific |
Sr. |
3.86 |
Business Administation - Finance |
| Joe Highfield |
Portland |
Sr. |
3.84 |
Marketing |
| Christian Mendoza |
Portland |
So. |
3.96 |
Business Administration |
| Jameson Raby |
San Francisco |
So. |
3.96 |
Biotech/BioEntrepreneurship |
| Alex Solomis |
San Francisco |
Sr. |
3.82 |
Economics |
| Iain Wagner |
San Diego |
Jr. |
3.91 |
Finance/Real Estate |
All-Academic Honorable Mention
Denver
Erik Collins
Luke Schultz
Hudson Tate
LMU
Anthony Boyadjian
Lewis Clutton
Ismail Nieves
Portland
Nicky Dunbar
Miguel-Angel Hernandez
Anton Hjalmarsson
Ritvik Karra
Alex Waggoner
Ethan Zamora
Saint Mary's
Surafel Abebe
Henry Beatty
Sam Bentley
Rafael Suarez
San Diego
Lucca Adams
Mathias Bauer
Taj Eagleston
Luca Fava
Jaxson Findlay
Conner Gardenhour
Ethan McNaughton
Steven Ramirez
Oliver Rhoades
Elijah Zelkind
San Francisco
Lucas Jones
Chris Maldonado
Rylan Smith
Jaedyn Walters
Santa Clara
Ezana Alemayehu
Moises Almontes
Alejandro Arenas
Jackson Blake
Diego Diaz
Jackson Ozburn
Khalil Rashad
Andrew Sullivan
Tyler Tipton
Will Wiersdorf
Yu Yokokawa
Seattle U
Dylan Wojdyla
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