One of my friends, ex-University of Portland administrator and golf coach Mauro Potestio, is a World War II veteran and Frank Sinatra devotee with terrific stories. He also has an unrelenting loyalty to UP, his alma mater, the small university affiliated with the Congregation of the Holy Cross, the same order that runs Notre Dame.
The last few times we talked, Mauro emphasized how grateful they are in the UP community that Colorado contributed three members to this season’s Portland Pilots powerhouse women’s soccer team. That has remained under the radar around here, but it is additional evidence of the strength of Colorado youth soccer programs.
Sophomore forward Danielle Foxhoven, from Mullen High School, had a team-high 25 goals for the Pilots and last week was named a second-team All-American. The other two Pilots from Colorado are juniors. Heritage product Kendra Chandhoke was the Pilots’ fifth-leading goal-scorer, with nine, and she also was on the all-West Region first team with Foxhoven. Midfielder Keelin Winters is from Regis Jesuit.
The Pilots’ program has been prominent since former Portland Timbers defender Clive Charles, who was from London and had the accent to prove it, coached the men’s and women’s teams to elite status before he died of cancer in 2003. National team pioneers Shannon MacMillan and Tiffeny Milbrett were among his UP stars in the early 1990s. This season, the women’s team drew a near-capacity average of 3,472 to the on-campus Harry Merlo Field — more than doubling the men’s team average.
The Pilot women beat Denver, Washington and Virginia Tech in the NCAA playoffs before falling 2-1 to UCLA in the quarterfinals in Los Angeles. (Foxhoven had the only goal.) The Pilots finished 21-2 for the season.
UP, the women’s NCAA champion in 2002 and 2005, and other schools have shown that women’s soccer can be a showcase. In the Title IX world, women’s soccer universally should be considered the “companion” program for football, with “proportionality” adjusted for the smaller roster size in soccer.
The relatively new program at the University of Colorado, with Nikki Marshall providing star power in a terrific four-season career, was 9-10 this season and plays on the East Campus.
As a CU alum, I’d prefer that the women’s program move to the main campus and hope that it will be more embraced by the university community. Even if it means this state sends fewer stars to Portland.
Terry Frei: 303-954-1895 or tfrei@denverpost.com
