THIS WEEK:
Nov. 25: NCAA College Cup, quarterfinals
1 p.m.: at Penn State

PILOTS TO FACE PENN STATE IN QUARTERFINALS
Big Ten champion and No. 7 seed Penn State (22-2-1) will host Portland (17-3) in the fourth round of the 2000 NCAA Women’s Soccer Tournament.
The Pilots beat No. 2 seed Washington in third round action with a 1-0 shutout upset in Seattle on Sunday afternoon.
Penn State’s fourth round contest is slated for Saturday, Nov. 25 at 1 p.m. at Jeffrey Field. Tickets for the NCAA event are $7 for adults and $5 for students /youths/senior citizens and will be sold at the gate on game day only, beginning one hour prior to kickoff.
The game action can be heard live on State College’s WMAJ Radio (1450 AM) and the PSU website at: www.goPSUsports.com.

THE OPPONENT
Penn State: The Nittany Lions advanced to the quarterfinals with a 4-0 home win Friday over Dartmouth. Big Ten player of the Year Christie Welsh tallied the first goal of the game just 1:47 into the contest as the Nittany Lions took a lead they would not relinquish. The seventh seeded Lions (22-2-1) took a 2-0 lead into the half as freshman Heidi Drummond one-timed a Welsh cross past Dartmouth goalkeeper Kristen Luckenbill. Penn State added second half goals by senior midfielders Jeannine Verdrager and Shari Pickett. Junior Emily Oleksiuk made five saves, all in the first half, for her eighth shutout in her last nine games.
Welsh leads PSU with 17 goals and 42 points, while Stephanie Smith adds 24 points (6g-12a). Drummond has 21 points (9g-3a), and three other players have scored in double figures. Oleksiuk has a 0.38 goals against average, having allowed just nine goals in 23 games.
Portland won the only previous meeting between the two schools, a 1-0 neutral field decision in 1995 at Washington’s Husky Classic.

LAST WEEK’S RESULT
Portland 1, Washington 0: Senior forward Vanessa Talbott scored in the 78th minute Sunday, lifting Portland to a 1-0 women’s soccer victory over No. 2 seed Washington in the third round of the NCAA Tournament before 2,347 spectators at Husky Soccer Field.
The Pilots (17-3) advance to the quarterfinals to play No. 7 seed Penn State (22-2-1). The date and location of that game will be announced on Monday.
Pacific-10 Conference champion Washington (18-3) ends its finest season ever. The Huskies set school records for victories (18) and winning streak (11) while advancing to the Sweet 16 of the NCAAs for the first time ever.
“Games like this wouldn’t be any fun if they weren’t heartbreaking for the loser,” said Washington coach Lesle Gallimore. “Certainly, we are disappointed not to be moving on in the tournament, but with that said, nobody can take away from us what kind of season our kids have had. Winning a Pac-10 Championship, getting the No. 2 seed in the tournament and playing as well as they have all year has been just an honor for me to a part of.”
Talbott’s decisive tally was her 14th goal of the season and her seventh-game winner. Her brilliant 22-yard shot from the center of the field brushed the post in the upper-right portion of the goal as it went into the net at 77:16. Talbott gained possession of the ball after teammate Kylee Barton stripped it from a Husky defender.
“Kylee [Barton] and another defender got into a tackle, and the ball popped out a little bit,” Talbott explained. “I was able to pick it up and could tell a defender was coming onto me, so I shot it far-post and it went in. (Hope Solo) is an outstanding goalkeeper. She has a reach like none other, and she can get up, so if you are going to put it up in the air you’d better send it as far-post as possible because she can get a hand on it.”
Solo saved two shots for the Huskies, including a deflection of point-blank attempt by Talbott two minutes into the second half. Solo was replaced in goal by senior Leslie Weeks during the 82nd minute and played on the field as a forward. Weeks played the final eight minutes and made one save.
“Vanessa scored a fabulous goal,” said Coach Clive Charles whose Pilots are playing in their eighth NCAA Tournament. The Pilots reached the semifinals four times, including a championship-game appearance in 1995.
“It was a very good game, a tough game - a typical playoff game,” Charles added. “This was two very evenly-matched teams, and we knew that one goal would probably win it either way.”
Senior Cheryl Loveless saved two shots en route to her 12th shutout for the Pilots who outshot Washington 10-5. After a first half in which neither team had any dangerous chances, Portland posted an 8-4 shot advantage after halftime.
Sunday marked the third time these teams clashed in NCAA Tournament play. The previous two meetings, during 1995 and 1996 in Portland, also resulted in 1-0 Pilot wins. The Huskies won a 2-1 decision at Portland earlier this season on Sept. 23, their only victory in 13 all-time meetings with the Pilots.

YOU LOOK FAMILIAR - DO WE KNOW YOU?
Sophomore forward Lisa Casagrande’s long and winding road back from mysterious foot injuries finally came to an end Sunday, as the Aussie played the final 10 minutes of the first half against Washington. Making the first appearance of the season after foot surgery in Australia which dropped her from Australia’s Olympic starting lineup, Casagrande played pain-free.
As a freshman in 1999, Casa had eight goals and three assists.

MISAKI, ORLANDOS TOP WCC AWARDS
University of Portland sophomore women’s soccer players Erin Misaki and Lauren Orlandos highlighted the West Coast Conference all-league team, announced Wednesday by the WCC office.
Misaki was named co-Player of the Year (with Santa Clara’s Heather Aldama), while Orlandos was the WCC Defender of the Year. The two sophomores anchored the Pilots to a 15-3-0 overall record, which included a 6-1-0 WCC championship mark.
Pepperdine’s Lacey Ubaldi and Santa Clara’s Veronica Zepeda shared Freshman of the Year honors, while Saint Mary’s coach Paul Ratcliffe was a repeat Coach of the Year winner.
Joining Misaki and Orlandos on the all-WCC first team was senior forward Vanessa Talbott. Sophomore Betsy Barr was a second-team pick for the Pilots, as was freshman Imani Dorsey.
Misaki had four goals and seven assists this season to repeat as a first-team pick, and becomes the fourth Pilot named WCC Player of the Year (Tiffeny Milbrett, 1992, 1994; Shannon MacMillan, 1993, 1995; Justi Baumgardt, 1996).
Orlandos anchored the third-best defense in the country, leading a defense which surrendered just one goal in seven WCC games, and just seven goals all season.
Talbott topped Portland with 13 goals and six assists, and leads the WCC with 1.78 points per game.
Barr, a second-team pick last season, had seven goals and one assist, while Dorsey had two goals and one assist.
Portland has now had 34 all-WCC first team selections.
2000 WCC ALL-CONFERENCE WOMEN’S SOCCER TEAM
Portland selections
First team
Erin Misaki, So., MF, Valencia, CA
Lauren Orlandos, So., D, Lake Forest, CA
Vanessa Talbott, Sr., F, Lake Oswego, OR
Second team
Betsy Barr, So., MF, Granite Bay, CA
Imani Dorsey, Fr., MF, Santa Monica, CA
Honorable mention
Cheryl Loveless, Sr., GK, Colorado Springs, CO
Kylee Barton, Sr., F, Tigard, OR
Co-Player of the Year
Erin Misaki
Defender of the Year
Lauren Orlandos

ORLANDOS A SOCCER BUZZ P.O.Y. FINALIST
Sophomore defender Lauren Orlandos, the 2000 West Coast Conference Defender of the Year, was named one of 12 finalists for Soccer Buzz’ Player of the Year Award.

CLIVE NAMED USOC NATIONAL COACH OF THE YEAR
University of Portland head coach Clive Charles was named USOC National Coach of the Year in Soccer, the U.S. Olympic Committee announced. Charles led the U.S. men’s Olympic team to the semifinals of the 2000 Sydney Olympics, the highest ever finish by an American men’s team.
He is one of some 50 coaches from a variety of sports to receive the national award, and an overall National Coach of the Year will be named at a banquet Jan. 11-14 in New York.

A RECORD AT THIS PACE
Portland has allowed just eight goals this season, a mark which equals the school record if the season ended today. The Pilots allowed just one goal in West Coast Conference play, and gave two goals each to Washington and Florida International.
The existing record for season goals allowed is eight goals by the 1997 team, and that team allowed three goals in WCC games.
The 1996 team allowed only 10 goals - two in WCC games - but three of the 10 came in a 3-2 loss to Notre Dame in the NCAA semifinals. The 1995 team allowed 11 goals - two in conference - and allowed three goals in four NCAA playoff games. The 1998 team also allowed just 11 goals - two in WCC games - and gave up two goals in four NCAA playoff games.

PILOTS AVOID DUBIOUS MARK WITH OUTBURST
Portland scored seven goals in its final two regular season games to avoid becoming the first team since 1989 to have scored less than 50 goals. The Pilots entered that weekend with 47 goals.
In terms of goal differential, the Pilots are well off the record of +66 (77gf-11ga) set by the 1995 team, but still have a +50 margin - currently 6th on the all-time list of such number-crunching research.

PILOTS MOVE UP IN NATIONAL STAT RANKINGS
Cheryl Loveless and the Portland defense are among the nation’s best, according to the latest NCAA statistics.
Loveless is tied for fourth in goals against average (0.42), and the team’s GAA of 0.386 is third. With 13 shutouts, the Pilots are second in shutout percentage.
Despite not having a single player among the nation’s top 20 scorers, the Pilots are 11th in scoring offense at 3.00 goals per game.

NOW THAT’S MORE LIKE IT...OR IS IT?
So, you go on the road needing a pair of wins to solidify a first-round bye in the dance. That on your mind, you come home with 6-0 and 1-0 wins . . . and drop in the polls!
Soccer America actually left Portland alone at #10, but the NSCAA coaches’ poll dropped Portland a spot to #12. Soccer Buzz moved Portland up two spots to #6,
The American Soccer Writers’ final poll was last week, and had Portland at #14.
In the West Region, Portland is #3 (Soccer Buzz), and #5 (NSCAA, Soccer America and American Soccer Writers).

SENIORS CLOSE OUT CAREERS
Portland seniors Cheryl Loveless, Kylee Barton and Vanessa Talbott get at least one more shot at inching up the record charts.
Cheryl Loveless has continued her marvelous career with 12* shutouts this season, running her Portland and West Coast Conference record total to 34. At Portland, she ranks third in career goals against average (0.584), and second in career saves (183).
An all-American as a freshman when she had 13 shutouts, Loveless has twice earned all-West Coast Conference honors and ranks second all-time at Portland with 69 games in goal. She graduated cum laude last spring with a chemistry degree and earned an award in Analytical Chemistry and the American Institute of Chemists Outstanding Senior award. Cheryl is pursuing a second undergraduate degree in theology.
Kylee Barton is tied for seventh on Portland’s career assists list with 23 (needs just three more for 6th), and needs only two total points to tie for 10th on Portland’s all-time list.
A two-time all-West Coast Conference pick, Barton has totaled 19 goals in her career, and had eight goals and eight assists as a sophomore. This season, Kylee is third on the team with 19 points (8g-3a), and will graduate in the spring with a degree in organizational communication.
Vanessa Talbott is third in career goals with 45, and is also fifth in career points (98).
She scored 12 goals in each of the last two seasons, and this year leads Portland with 14 goals and 34 total points. A two-time all-West Coast Conference pick, Talbott has also earned two all-WCC Academic team awards. She’ll graduate this spring with a degree in biology.
In their illustrious careers, Loveless, Barton and Talbott have amassed a 80-19-5 record (.785), and own an 8-3 NCAA playoff ledger with two semifinal appearances.

TIME TO CHECK THE RECORDS
The Pilots became the first team in Portland women’s soccer history to start a season with five straight shutouts, beating the previous mark of four (1988). Brigham Young’s goal at 40:14 in the sixth game broke a 490:14 scoreless streak for opponents.
The record for consecutive shutouts in a season is seven (1995), and that team recorded 16 shutouts that season. Two other teams (1998, 1993), had runs of six shutouts.

TAKE ANOTHER LOOK
Of course, any time a team fires off 37 shots in a game, and a player scores a goal in the first minute of a contest, the research staff has to get busy.
Portland’s 37 shots against Texas Tech tied for sixth on the Portland all-time list, nine shots off the record 46 taken against Evergreen State in 1986.
Betsy Barr’s goal just 38 seconds into the Texas Tech match was a highlight to be sure, but it was a whopping 26 seconds off the school record 12-second goal shared by Tammy Martindale (vs. Western Washington in 1993) and Justi Baumgardt (vs. San Diego State in 1995).

PILOTS SECOND IN WCC COACHES’ POLL
Portland was picked to finish second but earned one first-place vote in the West Coast Conference coaches’ poll. Santa Clara received the other seven available first-place ballots to earn the top preseason slot. Portland was 12-7-1 in 1999, and missed the NCAA playoffs for the first time in eight years.
Portland has never finished lower than a tie for second since joining the West Coast Conference women’s soccer circuit in 1992.
Here is the result of the three preseason coaches’ poll taken recently (first-place votes in parentheses):
Women's Soccer
1. Santa Clara (7) 49
2. Portland (1) 40
3. Loyola Marymount 39
4. San Diego 29
5. Saint Mary's 23
6. Pepperdine 22
7. Gonzaga 10
San Francisco 10

SEASON OPENERS FALL PORTLAND’S WAY
After topping OSU 4-0, the Pilots have now won their last 11 season openers, with the last loss a 1-0 setback in 1989 to UC-Santa Barbara – the debut of Clive Charles as women’s soccer coach.

PILOTS OWN THE WCC OPENERS ALSO
Portland has a 45-4-1 all-time record in West Coast Conference play, so it
should be obvious that Portland has never lost a WCC opener.
After Portland’s 3-0 win over Gonzaga in 1999, the Pilots have won all eight of their WCC openers, with all eight games coming against Gonzaga.

SUMMER COMINGS AND GOINGS: As is typical for Portland players, the offseason rarely resembles a typical break from soccer. Pilots literally travel the globe for competition with various club, regional and national teams.
Junior midfielder Ana Del Bosque joined the Mexican national team, and started two of Mexico’s three games in the U.S. Gold Cup.
Sophomore Lisa Casagrande spent the spring semester and all summer training with the Australian national team in preparation for the 2000 Olympics, but foot surgery forced her off the active roster. She’ll join the Pilots next week, according to reports.
Betsy Barr, Erin Misaki and Erin Goodling all played in the U.S. Soccer Festival held in Rhode Island. Misaki and Goodling played for the champion West Region team, while Barr played for the Sacramento Storm club team.
Misaki and Goodling also played for the Mission Valley Mirage club team, which won the California State Cup and finished second in the regional tourney. Following the U.S. Soccer Festival, Goodling was named to the U.S. National ‘B’ team.
Pilot newcomers Imani Dorsey and Jennifer Bosa also had busy summers - Dorsey playing for the Region IV ODP team, while Bosa traveled to regionals with her Emerald City FC Azzurri club team.