Gurman Sangha Signs MLS NEXT Pro Contract With Charlotte FC
Date Posted: 7/3/2023
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Portland Pilots winger Gurman Sangha has signed an MLS NEXT Pro contract with Charlotte FC, the club announced on Wednesday. Sangha becomes the third Pilot this offseason to sign with an MLS club.
Sangha becomes the 24th Pilot to sign an MLS contract and the seventh under Portland head coach Nick Carlin-Voigt. Benji Michel, Rey Ortiz, Kris Reaves, Paul Christensen, Brandon Cambridge and Delentz Pierre were the other six to sign. Cambridge and Pierre were the other two Pilots to sign MLS deals, with Cambridge also signing a contract with Charlotte FC and Pierre signing a homegrown contract with RSL. Carlin-Voigt has coached 32 players across his career that have signed an MLS contract.
Sangha joined the Pilots as a transfer from Memphis ahead of the 2021 fall season. At Memphis, Sangha was a two-time All-AAC selection, making the rookie team in 2018 and the second team in 2019. With the Pilots, he had a stellar 2022 season, tallying six goals and six assists for 18 points. He was 14th in the nation in game-winning goals with four and conference-wise ranked third in points, fifth in assists and sixth in points.
The Pilots put together their best season in 27 years, with the Pilots finishing 15-3-3 and advancing to the NCAA Tournament quarterfinal for their best postseason finish since 1995. They led the WCC in 14 different statistical categories and finished top 10 in the nation in goal differential (third, 32), total goals (fourth, 51), total points (fourth, 154), won-lost-tied percentage (seventh, .786), goals per game (eighth, 2.43), points per game (ninth, 7.33) and total assists (ninth, 52).