8-Seed Pilots Host Denver in Rematch for Second Round of NCAA Tournament

PORTLAND, Ore. – Postseason play is here, with the 8-seed Portland Pilots playing host to the Denver Pioneers in the second round of the 2025 NCAA Men’s Soccer Championship. The two teams play on Sunday, Nov. 23 at 6 p.m. Check PortlandPilots.com for tickets, live stats and video options.
 
MATCH INFORMATION
Opponent: Denver Pioneers (12-7-2, 4-1-1 Summit)
Day: Sunday
Date: Nov. 23, 2025
Time: 6 PM
Place: Portland, Ore.
Pitch: Merlo Field
Video: ESPN+
Stats: PortlandPilots.com
 
POR vs. DEN
Overall Series: 3-5-4
H: 2-3-1 • A: 0-2-2 • N: 1-0-1
Last: @POR 3, DEN 2 (2025)
 
DANCING ONCE AGAIN

• Portland Pilots Men’s Soccer is back in the NCAA Tournament, qualifying for the fourth time in five seasons and the sixth time under head coach Nick Carlin-Voigt.
• Portland earned the 8-seed in the tournament, giving them the coveted first-round bye for the tournament. They will host at least through the Round of 16 should they advance that far.
• This is the 20^th time in program history the Pilots have made it to the NCAA Tournament, the third time they’ve earned a first-round bye and the second time in the last three seasons they have done so.
• The Pilots have advanced to at least the second round in five of their last six tournament appearances, including a run to the Quarterfinals in 2022. It’s the furthest they’d advanced in the tournament since 1995.

 
AWARDS SEASON

• Numerous Pilots earned All-WCC and WCC All-Academic honors this past week, including a major award win for Diego Rosas.
• Rosas was named the WCC Midfielder of the Year while also making the All-WCC First Team. He’s the second Pilot in the last three seasons as well as ever to win the award.
• Rosas, David Ajagbe, Sebastian Hernandez and Joe Highfield all earned first team honors, giving Portland their highest total of first team honorees since 1995.
• Efetobo Aror and Miguel-Angel Hernandez earned All-WCC Second Team honors, Nikos Clarke-Tosczak and Wylie Trujillo earned honorable mention and Christian Mendoza made the freshman team.
• Rosas has 14 assists on the season, which is the second most in the nation. His 14 assists also tied a program record set in 1991 by Joe Leonetti and are the most by a WCC player since 1995. His eight assists in conference play are also the most by a WCC player since 2005.
• Ajagbe led the Pilots in scoring with 10 goals and four assists on the year for 24 points. He was second in the conference in both points and goals and ranked 32^nd and 26^th nationally in those categories.
• His five game-winning goals are tied for the most in the WCC and are also tied for sixth nationally. It’s the highest total of game-winning goals for a Pilot since Brandon Cambridge in 2022.
• Ajagbe is the first Pilot to score at least 10 goals in his debut season since Benji Michel did so in 2016.
• Highfield scored nine goals and added five assists to make the first team for the second straight year. Highfield was third in both goals and points (23) in the conference, ranking 37^th and 38^thnationally in both respective categories. Three of those goals were game winners, ranking fourth in the WCC and 34^th nationally.
• With 16 goals through his first two seasons, Highfield’s got the most goals through two seasons also since Michel.
• Sebastian Hernandez, the captain for the Pilots, has helped transform the back line into a steel curtain. He’s started 16 of a possible 17 games and has guided Portland to their best defensive season since 1988.
• Portland’s allowed just nine goals this year, the third fewest in the nation. Their goals-against average of .563 ranks fourth in the nation and first in the WCC. Hernandez has two goals and two assists on the year as well.
• Aror leads off the second team selections for Portland. Aror played in 16 matches with 15 starts for Portland, notching a goal and assist while controlling the game in the midfield.
• Miguel-Angel Hernandez was a fortress in goal, posting eight shutouts with a .563 goals-against average and a .795 save percentage. His save percentage ranks first in the WCC and 25^th nationally and his goals-against average ranks second in the conference and fifth nationally.
• Hernandez has conceded the third fewest goals of any goalkeeper with more than 15 matches played this year.
• Clarke-Tosczak played the most minutes of any Pilot this year at 1,353, notching four assists playing at left back. His four assists are tied for fourth on the Pilots this season.
• Trujillo played all 17 matches for Portland with 15 starts. Trujillo has notched two assists on the year while being crucial in moving the ball forward offensively. This is the first time Trujillo has earned any All-WCC recognition.
• Mendoza rounds out the All-WCC honorees. Mendoza played in nine contests for the Pilots with three starts, notching a goal and two assists in that span. His lone goal came in a victory over Lewis & Clark, and his second assist proved to be on the game-winning goal for the Pilots against Denver.
• The Pilots have had at least one player make the All-WCC Freshman Team each of the last 10 seasons now.
• Highfield and Aror each made the WCC All-Academic First Team as well.

 
PEEK INTO THE PORT

• The Portland Pilots are 13-1-3 on the year and finished 6-1-2 in WCC play. It’s their best regular season record by win total since 1995 and their best by win percentage (.853) since 1988.
• The Pilots most recently beat the Saint Mary’s Gaels 1-0 on the road, with Joe Highfield scoring the deciding goal. Ajagbe earned the assist on the play.
• It was the ninth shutout of the year for Portland, the most for the Pilots since 2022. It was the eighth for goalkeeper Miguel-Angel Hernandez, also the most since 2022.
• The Pilots are one of the top teams in the nation statistically, ranking second in assists (54), third in assists per game (3.12) and win-loss-tied percentage (.853), fourth in points per game (7.82) and goals-against average (.563), fifth in goal differential (31), seventh in points (133), eighth in goals per game (2.35), 12^th in shutout percentage (.529) and 15^th in goals (40).
• Portland’s 54 assists matches a program record set in 2023.
• The Pilots have allowed just nine goals this year, the fewest by any Pilot team since 1988 through the regular season. It’s the third fewest in total nationally.
• The Pilots posted a 23-game unbeaten streak that stretched between last year and this year, the longest in program history and the second longest in the nation.
• Earlier this year, the Pilots were ranked No. 1 in the United Soccer Coaches Poll, their first No. 1 ranking ever in the poll and their first in any poll since 1992. They have been ranked in the top 10 for 10 straight weeks.
• Highfield and Ajagbe both made the Mac Hermann Midseason Watch List, marking the first time two Pilots have made any Mac Hermann list since 2018 (Benji Michel, Rey Ortiz).
• Both players were also named to TopDrawerSoccers Midseason Top 100 Players list, with Ajagbe ranking seventh and Highfield 75^th.
• This year, they were picked to finish third in the 2025 West Coast Conference Preseason Poll, with forward Joe Highfield and midfielder Efetobo Aror each making the preseason team.
• Highfield was the first Pilot to make the All-WCC First Team and the All-WCC Freshman Team in the same season since Benji Michel in 2016, scoring seven goals and adding three assists. His four goals and three assists against WCC opponents were the second most in the conference.
• Aror was drafted in the first round of the 2025 MLS SuperDraft this past year by the Colorado Rapids but chose to return. The WCC Freshman of the Year in 2023, he played in 10 matches with six starts, recording a goal and assist.
• Aror, along with Pilot newcomer David Ajagbe, was also named to the TopDrawerSoccer Top 100 players in the preseason, slotting in at 52nd. Ajagbe ranks 99th on the list.
• Ajagbe scored seven goals and added two assists with the Ohio State Buckeyes last season, who earned the top overall seed in the NCAA Tournament last year. Ajagbe made the All-Big Ten Freshman team and the TopDrawerSoccer Freshman Best XI Second Team.
• Last season, the Pilots were a dynamic offensive team, ranking second in the WCC in goals per game (1.78), total assists (44), total points (108), points per game (6.00) and assists per game (2.44). Their 2.44 assists per game ranked ninth nationally while their assist total ranked 14^th.
• The Pilots also were in the top 50 nationally in points per game, (21^st), total points (27^th), goals per game (44^th) and total goals (32, 46^th).
• The Pilots return 16 players from last year’s roster while welcoming 16 newcomers. The incoming class ranks fifth nationally on TopDrawerSoccer.
• Of the 16 returners, Portland returns three players who earned All-WCC honors: Highfield, Miguel-Angel Hernandez (Second Team) and Diego Rosas (Honorable Mention).
• Hernandez played in seven matches last year, posting shutouts in three of those matches. 
• Rosas led the Pilots in assists in his second season with the Pilots, posting eight assists. He was the third Pilot since 2017 to post at least three assists in a game, doing so against the LMU Lions.
• Nick Carlin-Voigt enters his 10^th year as head coach of the Pilots. He has posted a 102-47-24 record during his tenure, having led Portland to the NCAA Tournament five times during that span.
• Carlin-Voigt was at the helm when the Pilots advanced to the Elite Eight in 2022, their first appearance that deep in the tournament since 1995.
• Carlin-Voigt reached 100 career wins on Oct. 18 against the Pacific Tigers, becoming the third Pilot coach to reach the benchmark.

 
ABOUT THE PIONEERS

• The Denver Pioneers are 12-7-2 on the year after beating the UC Irvine Anteaters at home for a win in the first round of the NCAA Men’s Soccer Championships.
• Denver won the Summit League once again with a 4-1-1 record in conference play and a victory in the 2025 Summit League Tournament championship over the Kansas City Roos.
• Earlier this year, the Pilots and Pioneers played at Merlo, with the Pilots coming out on top 3-2. The Pilots are unbeaten in their last three contests against the Pioneers.
• Last season, the Pioneers went 15-3-5 and 7-1 in the Summit League, winning the Summit League Regular Season title and advancing to the College Cup in the NCAA Tournament. They lost to the Vermont Catamounts – the eventual national champions from last season – in penalty kicks.
• Denver was ranked fourth in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 preseason poll to start the year and were picked as the Summit League preseason favorites in the annual coaches poll. Centerback Trevor Wright and forward Bryce Wiloughby were named to the Summit League Preseason Watch List.
• Kyle MacGowan leads the way offensively for the Pioneers. A Portland product, he has 10 goals with two assists on the season.
• Denver is led by head coach Jamie Franks, who enters his 11^th season as head coach of the Pioneers. He’s posted a 136-46-35 record in his head coaching career at Denver. 

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