PORTLAND PILOTS (4-2-0)
Week 5: at UCSB / at Cal Poly
 
UC Santa Barbara Gauchos (1-4-2)
Day: Saturday
Date: Sept. 23, 2017
Time: 7:00 p.m.
City: Santa Barbara, Calif.
Pitch: Harder Stadium
Video: BigWest.com
Stats: UCSBGauchos.com
 
POR vs. UCSB
Overall Series: 3-1-1
H: 1-0-0  •  A: 0-0-1  •  N: 2-1-0
Last: UCSB 1, POR 0 (9/11/05 @UNLV)
 
Cal Poly Mustangs (2-4-0)
Day: Monday
Date: Sept. 25, 2017
Time: 7:00 p.m.
City: San Luis Obispo, Calif.
Pitch: Spanos Stadium
Video: BigWest.com
Stats: GoPoly.com
 
POR vs. CP
Overall Series: 8-1-1
H: 4-0-1  •  A: 3-1-0  •  N: 1-0-0
Last: POR 2, CP 0 (9/25/09 @UW)
 
THIS WEEK
• The Pilots remain on the road this week when they travel south for a pair of non-conference games against the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos and Cal Poly Mustangs.
• First on Saturday night, the Pilots will be in Santa Barbara for a match at 7:00 p.m. at Harder Stadium against the Gauchos.
• Portland then heads to San Luis Obispo for a 7 p.m. game against the Mustangs on Monday night at Spanos Stadium.
• A live stream for both contests can be found at BigWest.com
 
LAST WEEK
• The Pilots went on the road and dominated the Oregon State Beavers en route to a 1-0 win in Corvallis on Sunday night.
• Rey Ortiz provided the game-winner, with an assist from Jason Romero, in the 73rd minute of a game during which the visitors out-shot the home side 20-7.
• OSU didn't have a single shot on-goal, and the Pilots and senior goalkeeper Paul Christensen recorded their third shutout of the season.
 
ABOUT THE PILOTS...
• The Pilots are receiving votes in the most recent United Soccer Coaches' Poll.
• As a team, the Pilots rank in the top 15 nationally in several statistical categories: goals per game (2.89, No. 2), points per game (8.33, No. 3), shots on-goal per game (8.17, No. 5), total goals (17, No. 5), assists per game (2.67, No. 6), total points (50, No. 6), total assists (16, No. 9) and total shots (96, No. 11).
• Sophomore Rey Ortiz is tied for No. 1 in the country in assists per game (1.00) and is fourth in overall assists (6).
• Fellow sophomore Benji Michel is second nationally in goals per game (1.00) and fourth in overall goals (6).
• Michel was the initial WCC Player of the Week (Aug. 28) after a four-goal performance during the opening weekend, which included a first-half hat trick vs. Fairfield; Michel also landed on the Top Drawer Soccer National Team of the Week.
• Michel, a sophomore forward, made history on Sunday (Aug. 27) when he registered a hat trick during the first 26 minutes of a 6-0 win over Fairfield; the hat trick was the first at Merlo Field since UP's Alejandro Salazar accomplished the feat in 2003.
• Jason Romero also tallied a hat trick during the win, which featured the most goals scored by the Pilots since a 6-0 win over Marshall in 2006.
• Senior goalkeeper Paul Christensen has three shutouts this season, giving him 17 in his career, which ranks sixth all-time at UP; he's seventh all-time with 246 career saves.
• 4,385 fans, which included a remarkable 2,113 students, packed Merlo Field when the Pilots hosted UNLV in their home-opener on Friday, Aug. 25; it's the second largest men's soccer crowd in program history.
• The Pilots are the reigning West Coast Conference Champions after claiming the program's sixth league title last season and their first since 2002.
• Portland picked up two first-place votes and was slated to finish second in the WCC this year.
• A league-best three Pilots were voted to the Preseason All-WCC team as Paul Christensen, Benji Michel and Kris Reaves were selected by the conference coaches.
• Portland returned 16 letterwinners and seven starters, and joining Christensen, Michel and Reaves are three other Pilots (Matthew Coffey, Lionel Mills, Gio Magana-Rivera) who earned all-league recognition last season.
• The 2017 recruiting class, which features 12 incoming newcomers, was ranked fifth in the country by College Soccer News and No. 6 by Top Drawer Soccer.
• Second-year head coach Nick Carlin-Voigt led the Pilots to an improbable turn-around in 2016 as he guided the team to the top of the WCC, a year after a last-place showing.
• Milestones from 2016 include:
      -A seven-game winning streak (Sept. 22 - Oct. 30), which is the program's longest winning streak since 1995.
      -The 5-0-0 start in the WCC matched the legendary 1988 Portland squad for the best start to a conference schedule in program history.
      -Won first WCC Championship since 2002.
      -Reached NCAA Postseason for first time since 2009.
      -Posted most wins (12) since 2009.
      -6-1 conference mark is the best since 1989; this came after the program only won one WCC game the previous two seasons combined.
      -Worst to First: Pilots went 1-12-1 in the WCC during the previous two years.
      -10th in the country in average attendance (2,298).
      -Nearly swept WCC individual honors, as then-senior Eddie Sanchez was named WCC Player of the Year, Benji Michel was the league's freshman of the year, Paul Christensen was selected as goalkeeper of the year, and Nick Carlin-Voigt was tabbed as the co-coach of the year.
      -Carlin-Voigt is the program's first league coach of the year since Clive Charles in 2002.
• Carlin-Voigt, who came to The Bluff from UCLA during the winter of 2016, was recently named one of the Top 10 American Coaches under 40 by Top Drawer Soccer.
• The Pilots claim renowned men's soccer alums Kasey Keller, Steve Cherundolo, Conor Casey, Nate Jaqua, Heath Pearce, and 2015 MLS Goalkeeper of the Year Luis Robles.
 • In 1988, legendary coach Clive Charles led Keller and the Pilots to the school's first ever NCAA College Cup; the Pilots returned to the College Cup in 1995.
• The Pilots have made 15 appearances in the NCAA Postseason all-time, which includes two appearances in the College Cup (1988 & 1995).
 
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS
• The UCSB Gauchos won the NCAA National Championship in 2006 and have reached the postseason in 12 of the past 14 years.
• The Gauchos picked up their first of the year at home last Friday with a 1-0 decision over Pacific, which was the Tigers' first loss.
• Rodney Michael and Ignacio Tellechea both have two goals for the Gauchos, and goalkeeper Alan Carillo has a goals against average of 1.01, a .750 save percentage and three shutouts.
• Five-time Big West Coach of the Year and 2006 National Coach of the Year Tim Vom Steeg is in his 19th season at UCSB.
• The Cal Poly Mustangs have been to the playoffs three times, most recently in 2015.
• Cal Poly has won two straight and junior goalkeeper Simon Boehme is the reigning Big West Defensive Player of the Week; Boehme is No. 3 nationally in saves per match (6.33), and also claims a 1.31 GAA, two shutouts and a .826 save percentage.
• Four different players have scored the Mustangs four goals.
• Steve Sampson, former manager of the U.S. Men's National Team and the Los Angeles Galaxy, is in his third year as head coach at Cal Poly.