ASHLAND, Ore. - The 20th-ranked Southern Oregon volleyball team’s win streak will come full circle this weekend, as the Raiders will host the teams they have to thank for getting them hot in search of their ninth- and tenth-straight victories.
Almost a month ago, the Raiders (11-7 overall) lost a four-set match at Western Oregon, but on the ensuing two nights swept at Evergreen State and Northwest and haven’t lost since en route to a league-best 9-1 record.
On Friday and Saturday, the Washington schools will visit Ashland to kick off the second half of Cascade Conference play. Southern Oregon currently sits tied with Oregon Tech atop the standings, and the Raiders host Northwest on Friday and Evergreen on Saturday.
Both matches start at 7 p.m. and Saturday’s match will be part of Raider “Blackout” and fans are encouraged to wear black to the match.
Junior Lindsey Stone earned her fourth-straight conference Setter of the Week award for her efforts in Portland last weekend, totaling 74 assists in the two matches.
Stone had 36 assists on Friday at Warner Pacific when the Raiders bounced back from an opening set loss - their first dropped set since the win-streak began - and won in four games.
“I felt like we had trouble getting off the bus and playing, and Warner Pacific really got after it,” SOU’s Josh Rohlfing said. “But we pulled it together and left feeling like we stole one.”
The Raiders swept Cascade the next night as senior Mia Wortel notched 10 of her 19 weekend kills and Maggie Rivers had a match-high eight digs after posting a career-high 22 the night before. Wortel’s 19 kills came on only 33 attempts, raising her second-best league hitting percentage to .440.
“Mia’s been our stalwart, she’s just been so consistent,” Rohlfing said. “She’s definitely our go-to hitter right now.”
Northwest (6-11, 3-7) has lost 25 of 26 matches in the series against the Raiders including the last seven straight. Sophomore Lauren Holtz leads the Eagles with an average of 2.68 kills per game in conference play, and Andrea Cotton adds 3.56 digs per game.
“We know what they’re capable of and with good, young athletes and three solid hitters they can beat anyone,” added Rohlfing. “If we don’t come out with intensity and set the tone, we could be in for a long night.”
The Raiders have defeated Evergreen (1-14, 1-9) 10 straight times, and the Geoducks’ lone win this year came against Cascade. Kandice Gleaves paces the team with a 2.52 kills-per-game clip.
“We’re all excited to come back home and play with the students here for the first time this year,” Rohlfing said. “Hopefully we’ll come out and be entertaining.”