2018 Season

UP Athletics wrote: For the third straight year, Portland men's soccer head coach Nick Carlin-Voigt and his staff have brought in a nationally ranked recruiting class, this time signing the No. 1 group in the country, according to Top Drawer Soccer in January. The class, which includes five recruits who are ranked nationally in the top 100 players in the country, is comprised of seven student-athletes from across the country that will come to The Bluff and help continue the recent success of the men's soccer program.

http://portlandpilots.com/news/2018/2/12/msoc-brings-in-top-ranked-recruiting-class.aspx

With the exception of one, GK Victor Juarez, the entire list as previously disclosed is planning to come to UP this spring or summer.

Welcome:
D/MF Jake Arteaga
D Kelee Cornfield-Saunders
GK Georges El-Khoury
F Alejandro (Ale) Pereira
MF/F R.J. Stretch
MF Greg Tracey
MF Tristan Weber

Previously welcomed, and already enrolled at UP are defenders BJ O'Hara and Francesco Tiozzo.

A top ranked recruiting class nationally has to be a first for us across all sports, correct? I think Coach Carlin-Voigt has already earned himself a bonus/raise.

I know nothing about college soccer. Is the Top Drawer rating the most accepted rating, or is it more like the organization that did the rating the basketball team got last year, which many people said they had never heard off.

Either way, welcome to all the new Pilots.

Top Drawer is one of the better soccer recruit rankings. It’s respected by the media and coaches alike. They also have a Top 25 poll that belongs in the top 3-4 rankings I would say (United Soccer Coaches poll is probably the most respected and Soccer America publishes a poll as well).

Definitely a far cry from our “top 10” men’s basketball recruiting class. This is legitimately one of best classes in the nation per all of the experts. Get excited!

Go Pilots!

Here is a place with some discussion on the recruiting class rankings and such:

http://www.bigsoccer.com/threads/2018-mens-college-soccer-recruitng-classes.2080301/

I got a rumor of UP vs Sounders this Saturday at Merlo.

Anybody have anything specific?

Geezaldinho wrote:I got a rumor of UP vs Sounders this Saturday at Merlo.

Anybody have anything specific?

I think I posted earlier that UP is playing Timbers 2 at 5pm at Merlo on Saturday.

I'll try to get clarification....

They are playing Sounders on Saturday, sounds like a 5pm start

soccernut99 wrote:They are playing Sounders on Saturday, sounds like a 5pm start

Thanks! Yup it's  a 5pm start against the Sounders, with men's basketball at 7pm.

Nick tells me the spring schedule should be up on the UP website tomorrow...

Haven't seen the promised spring schedule yet, but this article from the Portland Tribune confirms the Pilots will take on the Sounders II team on Saturday at 5pm at Merlo.

The article and interview with Nick discusses his recruiting of student-athletes to the Bluff, and his desire to sign a few more players before the coming season.  He still wants to add another experienced goalkeeper and two field players to the 2018 recruiting class, and he's seeking experienced international players or transfers to bring maturity to the roster.

Also mentioned is something Nick has been talking about since he arrived at UP, improving the soccer experience for all WCC teams by abandoning the age-old practice of playing two conference games in three days (Friday-Sunday) and begin playing once a week. It won't happen in 2018, but Nick says all the other coaches are in favor of the idea.  (Hmm, too bad the WCC doesn't have a commissioner, maybe the new schedule could be adopted sooner).

https://portlandtribune.com/pt/12-sports/386718-262969-up-mens-soccer-steps-into-future

DoubleDipper wrote:Haven't seen the promised spring schedule yet...

Here it is...

All games at Merlo Field:
Saturday February 17 @ 5pm -- Seattle Sounders 2
Saturday February 24 @ 7pm -- Corban University
Saturday March 3 @ 1pm -- University of British Columbia
Friday March 9 @ 7pm -- Portland Timbers 2
Saturday March 24 @ 7pm -- Alumni Game
Saturday April 7 @ 4pm -- Oregon State
Saturday April 14 @ 12pm and 4pm -- two games including Gonzaga vs. UP or Seattle Pacific vs. UP. (OSU will play either GU or SPU in the other game...and I'm guessing that the women's team will play Western Washington University @ 2pm).

Changing the schedule to one match per week would actually dramatically improve the soccer, in my opinion. I hope they are able to change that in the future. It would also probably mean less academic-related stress from missing class and not having time for homework.

Pilots 2, Sounders t2 1

UP looked more dangerous for large portions of the game amd had several close chances.

T2 opened the scoring in the 34th off a corner, but a while later Rey Ortiz converted a free kick.

With a couple minutes left, Benji Michelle beat their keeper at the top left corner of the box and passed into the middle but the shot was cleared off the line.

In the 90th minute UP returned the score off the corner. I’m not sure who scored.

Pilots looked composed and quick. Let’s hope this carries forward.

Geezaldinho wrote:Pilots 2, Sounders t2 1

In the 90th minute UP returned the score off the corner. I’m not sure who scored.

I was rushing to get to the MBB game, but it looked to me like Benji scored the winning goal...

Yes, an impressive "still-winter" game, but I'm told Coach Nick is still looking for another goal keeper...Kienan Weekes was in goal this afternoon.

Was hoping someone would update. Sounds like they were trying out a new formation with 2 wing backs and 3 centerbacks. could have been what made them look quicker.

Good win for the team. How did the keeper look?

Keeper looked good.

Some good stops. Goo disibution.

The only score was a header off a corner, which I’m not sue you can pin on him.

Tomorrow's (Saturday) game against Corban has been canceled... something to do with the weather, apparently.

Pilots website now says that the game WILL be played but at Harmony Sports Complex in Vancouver at 7:30 tomorrow night.

"The scheduled exhibition soccer game between the Portland Pilots and Corban Warriors on Saturday night has been moved to Harmony Sports Complex in Vancouver, Wash., with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. The game was originally scheduled to be played at Merlo Field, but the recent winter weather forced the change of venue."

ejjqb wrote:Pilots website now says that the game WILL be played but at Harmony Sports Complex in Vancouver at 7:30 tomorrow night.

"The scheduled exhibition soccer game between the Portland Pilots and Corban Warriors on Saturday night has been moved to Harmony Sports Complex in Vancouver, Wash., with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. The game was originally scheduled to be played at Merlo Field, but the recent winter weather forced the change of venue."

Thanks for the update....makes sense to play at some other venue and save the beautiful field at Merlo from weather related game damage.

Anybody brave the trip to heathen territory to watch the games?

Geezaldinho wrote:Anybody brave the trip to heathen territory to watch the games?

Sorry, Geez, being a Vancouver resident, I must have stopped reading at "heathen territory."  

The Pilots played very well against Corban in the rain....and won!

This Friday at 7pm at Merlo, the Pilots will take on the Timbers T2 team that could include as many as 7 first-team Timbers who will not travel to New York for the Timbers game against the Red Bulls on Saturday.

It will be a very tough test for the shorthanded Pilots against the older, more experienced pros, a team made up of college All-Americans, former U20 team members and even a couple of World Cup players.

T2 beat Seattle 2, 4-0, last weekend....

T2 beat UP, 3-1 tonight, but the Pilots played very well once they figured out the referee was following MSL guidelines or was just shy about using his whistle, as too often in the first 50 minutes UP seemed to stop playing when there was an obvious foul, but no whistle.

As I recall, UP lead corner kicks 5-1 and shots, 11-7, and played the Timbers evenly over the last 40 minutes, including a very nice goal from Benji and two near goals off free-kicks, one of which went off the cross bar and the other was a wonderful diving stop by the keeper.  

This was termed a "friendly" match, and it was before and after the match, but it got a little contentious at times when the Timbers decided to use clobbering as a soccer tactic.

At the end of the match, just like the previous exhibitions, there was a shoot-out between the two sides, T2 won, 12-11.

Saw some of the MBB team there for awhile with a very tall visitor....

Looking ahead...all at Merlo Field:

Saturday March 24 @ 7pm - Alumni game
Saturday April 7 @ 6pm - Oregon State
Saturday April 14 @ noon - Seattle Pacific or Gonzaga
Saturday April 14 @ 2pm - UP Women's Team vs. Western Washington U.
Saturday April 14 @ 4pm - OSU vs. either Seattle Pacific or Gonzaga
Saturday April 14 @ 7pm - Poker Night in the Chiles Center HOF Room.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/up-alumni-poker-tournament-tickets-40879545822
www.pilotnation.net/t4957-national-alumni-board-poker-tournament

Any word on the schedule for this weekend. Update on last weekends games

soccernut99 wrote:  Update on last weekends games

The men lost to OSU 2-1. UP’s goal was late.

Large parts of the match showed dominant possession by UP without much results.

The second half was a demonstration of how thin the roster is in the Spring.

No drum squad. Maybe 40 people there. Half of which left at halftime and half of which were OSU fans/ parents.