Highlights of the Clive Charles Era

1986: Clive Charles launches his collegiate career as head coach of the Portland men's team. The Pilots finish 8-8-3 as Scott Benedetti and Wade Webber gather first team all-Northwest Collegiate Soccer Conference honors.

1987: Portland finishes third in the WCC and 13-7-1 overall. Garrett Smith earns all-league honors. Junior Scott Benedetti scores 17 goals and adds 10 assists while taking first team all-NSCAA Far West Region honors.

1988: Portland, ranked as high as No. 2 nationally, wins its first 21 games before falling 1-0 to Indiana at the Final Four. Four players make the all-WCC first team: player of the year Scott Benedetti, Rob Baarts, Kasey Keller [at right], and Smith. Charles is honored as the NCSC, WCC and Far West Region Coach of the Year.

1989: Charles, named the University's director of soccer, takes over as head women's coach and leads the women to a 10-6-0 season. The men's team climbs to No. 2 in the polls and earns its second NCAA berth, reaching the second round. Keller posts a 0.40 goals-against average.

1990: Harry A. Merlo Field opens for play. The men win the WCC title, but lose in the first round of the NCAA playoffs. Kasey Keller is a nominee for Missouri Athletic Club Player of the Year and the Hermann Trophy. The women win the Northwest Collegiate Soccer Conference Championship and appear in the national top 20 for the first time, reaching No. 12. Tiffeny Milbrett [at left] is named the NCSC Player of the Year and is the Soccer America Freshman of the Year.

1991: The men reach postseason's second round and finish with a 13-7-0 overall record. Kasey Keller is named the Adidas Goalkeeper of the Year and also is a first team NSCAA All-American for the second straight year. The women's program goes 13-2-2 as Milbrett rakes in All-America honors.

1992: Charles pulls off a rare coaching feat, leading two teams to the NCAA playoffs in the same year. Charles leads his men to a No. 1 national ranking and the women to a No. 3 rating. The women's team earns its first NCAA playoff berth. A crowd of 5,596, then the largest in U.S. women's soccer history, witnesses the first meeting between Portland and top-ranked North Carolina at Merlo Field.

1993: The Pilot women's and men's teams both earn NCAA playoff berths. The men finish 9-3-6, losing to St. Louis 0-0 on penalty kicks, in the first round. The women lose in the quarterfinals at Stanford, 1-0. Charles is named head coach of the U.S. U-20 Women's National Team.

1994: Andrew Gregor becomes the first Pilot to be named the WCC Freshman of the Year. The Pilot women reach the NCAA Final Four, staged at Merlo Field. The season ends with a 1-0 loss to Notre Dame in the semi-finals. Tiffeny Milbrett and Shannon MacMillan are finalists for the Missouri Athletic Club Player of the Year and Hermann Trophy.

1995: Charles becomes only the second coach in history to lead two teams to the NCAA soccer semifinals in the same year. The men fall 1-0 to eventual NCAA champion Wisconsin in the semifinals. The women lose 1-0 in overtime to Notre Dame in the championship game, finishing the year with a school-record 20 wins. Shannon MacMillan [below] is named the Missouri Athletic Club's player of the year and presented the Hermann Trophy. Charles is named assistant coach of the U.S. Men's National Team.

1996: The UP men go 8-2-1 over their final 11 games, but miss an NCAA playoff berth. The Pilots lead the nation in average home attendance (2,554). Clive Charles is named head coach of the U.S. Men's Olympic Team. The Pilot women reach the NCAA Final Four, losing 3-2 to No. 1 Notre Dame in the semifinals. Justi Baumgardt becomes the fifth consecutive Pilot to garner WCC Player of the Year honors after guiding UP to its second undefeated conference season.

1997: Defender Steve Cherundolo is named the WCC Freshman of the Year and Chris Brown gathers second team All-America honors from Soccer News. Senior Justi Baumgardt earns her fourth all-WCC first team honor, becoming just the fourth female WCC player to accomplish that feat. The women lose at home to UCLA in the first round of the playoffs. The UP women rank second nationally in home attendance average (1,834).

1998: Charles earns his 300th career win, just the 11th coach in NCAA history to amass that many wins. The Pilot women advance to their fourth NCAA semifinal in five years, but lose 1-0 in four overtimes in the semifinals to No. 1 North Carolina in the longest game in playoff history. Angela Harrison sets a school record with a 0.30 GAA, and Michelle French is a consensus All-America pick. Chris Brown and Steve Cherundolo repeat as first team all-WCC players.

1999: The Pilot men, led by All-American freshman forward Conor Casey, ended a three-year playoff drought, but lose 3-2 to No. 10 Washington. Casey leads the nation in scoring, and Portland (12-5-2), was among the nation's leaders in attendance at 1,712. Six men are named to the all-WCC team. The Pilot women finish with a 12-7-1 record. Seven players earn all-WCC honors, including first-teamers Susanna Heikari and Erin Misaki.

2000: After leading the U.S. men's team to the country's first Olympic medal round appearance, Charles returns to direct the Pilot men to a No. 3 ranking, but Portland misses the playoffs. Nate Jaqua [right] is named WCC Freshman of the Year, and Conor Casey repeats on the all-WCC first team. The women, unheralded as the season begins, advance to the NCAA semifinals, only to lose 1-0 to UCLA. Portland finishes with an 18-4-0 record. Erin Misaki is the WCC Co-Player of the Year, and Lauren Orlandos is WCC Defender of the Year.

2001: The men's team wins four of its final five regular season games to get back into the NCAA Playoffs, then upset Gonzaga and Washington by 1-0 scores, before dropping a third round contest at Stanford, 3-1. The Pilots finish the season 13-6-1 overall. Nate Jaqua and Kelly Gray are named All-Americans, and Gray is the fifth pick in the MLS SuperDraft, going to the Chicago Fire. The women ramble through the NCAA Playoffs, winning their first four games by a 15-1 margin, before falling 2-1 to North Carolina in the semifinals. The Pilots tie a school record with 20 wins (20-4-0), and tie for second in the WCC at 5-2-0. Freshman scoring sensation Christine Sinclair is named the national freshman of the year, and is joined on several All-America teams by junior defender Lauren Orlandos.

2002: The Pilot men claim the first WCC title since 1992 finishing 13-6-1 overall, and 5-1-0 in the WCC. Portland beats NCAA first round opponent Oregon State 2-0 before falling to Stanford for the second year in a row, 10-9 in a shootout. Nate Jaqua is named an All-American and is drafted third overall in the MLS Superdraft by the Chicago Fire. Curtis Spiteri is also named an All-America, while Alejandro Salazar earns WCC Freshman of the Year honors and Clive Charles is the WCC Coach of the Year. The Pilot women win their first national championship by defeating Santa Clara 2-1 in double overtime in the College Cup Final. Portland finishes the year 19-4-3 and sophomore striker Christine Sinclair is recognized as one of the premier collegiate soccer athletes, leading the nation with 26 goals. Sinclair is named the WCC Player of the Year, wins the Honda Award for the best woman's collegiate soccer player, and is joined on various All-America teams by senior defender Lauren Orlandos. Midfielder Lindsey Huie is named the WCC Freshman of the Year and a first team Soccer America Freshman All-American.