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PORTLAND, Ore. — Crossover fans of Portland State women's soccer and Portland Thorns FC will be in for a treat Wednesday night, as Viking head coach Laura Schott steps in as an analyst for Thorns FC's match against the Seattle Reign at 7 p.m. at Providence Park.
 
The analyst role will be Schott's first experience in the broadcast booth, though the eight-year head coach has years of playing and coaching experience to draw on.
 
"This is something I've been interested in doing for some time, Schott said. "I'd like to thank the Thorns organization for the opportunity. I am looking forward to analyzing the game. It is a unique match in that it is a rivalry game coming on the heels of such outstanding world cup performances by many of the athletes who will be active for the match."
 
Wednesday's game will be the first match back for several of the Thorns' international players, including Tobin Heath of the World Cup-winning U.S. Women's National Team, and Christine Sinclair of World Cup host Canada. Seattle also hopes to have several of its own international players back from the World Cup, including U.S. stars Hope Solo and Megan Rapinoe. The promise of those players' returns should amount to an electric atmosphere in the Providence Park stands, as over 20,000 tickets have already been sold.
 
Schott can offer a unique perspective on the match in her role as analyst, as in addition to turning Portland State into a perennial Big Sky title contender as a coach, Schott also has a wealth of playing experience to draw from. Schott played for the Washington Freedom in the WUSA – a precursor to the NWSL that the Thorns and Reign play in – and won the 2003 league title with the Freedom before the league folded that same year. Schott then played professionally for the California Storm of the WPSL in 2004 and won another league title with them while also leading the league in scoring.
 
In college, Schott earned five caps for the U.S. Women's Senior National Team at the 2001 Algarve Cup, and scored a goal in a match against Norway. Those appearances came in the middle of a standout collegiate career at the University of California that included two All-American honors and four All-Pac 10 honors for Schott. Schott was also a Hermann Trophy finalist in 2001, and finished her career as the Golden Bears' all-time leader in goals scored with 56. Schott's goal total beat the mark of 55 that U.S. Women's National Team veteran Joy Fawcett set originally, and still ranks her ahead of current U.S. and Portland Thorns player Alex Morgan, who had 45 goals in her collegiate career (Morgan will sit Wednesday's match as she recovers from an injury).
 
Meanwhile, since entering the coaching ranks, Schott has won four Big Sky titles with the Vikings, including three straight from 2011-13, and has never led the Vikings to lower than a second-place finish in the conference standings. Schott also led the Vikings to a Big Sky Conference record 16-match unbeaten streak from Sept. 15, 2013 to Aug. 29, 2014, and stands as the Vikings' all-time leader in career wins (62) and career win percentage (.537).
 
Those interested in hearing Schott's call of the match can watch the Thorns' live web stream at http://www.timbers.com/thorns-live.

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