By Elliot Boswell
The University men's soccer team got its season off to a slow start last Friday, losing to the Portland Timbers of the United Soccer League's First Division by a score of 2-1 at Merlo Field.
After going up by a goal in the first five minutes of the exhibition match, the Pilots let in two goals and were outshot 18-4 in the second half.
UP had taken an early lead when an attempted save by Timbers' defender Cameron Knowles went awry and resulted in an own goal.
Knowles made contact with a Pilot cross into the box in the fifth minute and tried to head it back to his goalkeeper Bayard Elfvin, but the ball slipped by Elfvin and into the goal.
The Pilots' lead stood for the remainder of the half as each team totaled only three first-half shots.
In second half action, the Timbers evened the score in the 60th minute when former Pilots standout, defender Garrett Marcum, blocked an attempted clear from Pilot goalie Nick Comstock and chipped it past the far post from the right corner of the box.
After a quick threat from the Pilots, the Timbers scored their second goal when second half substitute David Hague took a long feed from midfielder Tom Poltl, beat a University defender and rocketed a top-shelf strike into the back of the net from five yards out to seal the victory.
For the game, the Timbers kept Comstock on the ropes, outshooting the Pilots by a total of 22-7, five of which came from second-half substitute Chris Bagley.
Comstock amassed nine saves for the contest while Elfvin was credited with three.
The match was the first of the spring exhibition season for the men's squad, and the first time they have played the Timbers in head to head competition.
The Timbers are part of the USL First Division, the country's second tier of professional soccer after Major League Soccer, and have featured numerous former UP players in their lineup, including World Cup goalkeeper Kasey Keller, UP Hall of Famer Scott Benedetti, and Marcum.
In other soccer news, the women's soccer team will kick off their season against the Canadian National team this Friday at Merlo Field.
The contest signals the return of the most celebrated women's soccer player in UP history, 2006 graduate Christine Sinclair, who, in her time on The Bluff, was a three-time National Player of the Year for women's soccer and was named the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year her senior season.
She is already second in Canadian history with 66 goals and currently captains a Canadian squad that is ranked 10th in the world in the most recent FIFA rankings.
UP freshman Sophie Schmidt, who redshirted the fall season due to national team commitments, will play on the Canadian side as well.
