Lady Yotes Clinch CCC Title with Win over NW Christian
EUGENE, Ore. - Jessie Link recorded ten kills as The College of Idaho clinched their third-consecutive Cascade Conference title with a 25-17, 25-18, 25-16 victory over Northwest Christian at the Morse Center.
The win for the No. 21 ranked Lady Yotes (21-7, 18-2 CCC) was their tenth in a row and 18th in their last 19 matches - finishing the CCC season with 18-straight victories. With the outright title, The C of I will host the 2008 CCC Tournament, beginning Friday in the J.A. Albertson Activities Center.
Despite the lopsided scores, the match was much closer, as the Beacons (12-16, 5-14) used a 7-0 push in the opening set to build a 9-5 lead. The Yotes would come right back, getting two Link spikes and a Madie Machurek ace as part of a 9-0 run to take control. Set 2 saw The C of I lead just 18-16, before the Yotes closed the period on a 7-2 run, keyed by a pair of Megan Spinks kills. The Coyotes never trailed in the finale, as Kristin Henning recorded four kills in the deciding set.
Sarah Buhler had eight kills and Henning added six in the win, with Machurek recording a double-double with 11 kills and 11 assists. Whitney Owen led all players with 21 digs. Brooke Stribling led NCU with eight kills and 11 digs, with setter Whitney Hoff recording 17 assists and 13 digs.
The Lady Yotes and Southern Oregon each earned quarterfinal byes - with SOU playing the 4 p.m. match and The C of I the 7 p.m. match Friday night. Oregon Tech will host Corban in one quarterfinal on Tuesday night, with the site of the Eastern Oregon-Concordia match to be determined on Saturday - with the winners advancing to the weekend tournament in Caldwell.