BOX SCORE

ASHLAND – The 16th-ranked Southern Oregon volleyball extended its winning streak to nine matches and 21 consecutive sets as the Raiders swept Northwest Christian (26-24, 25-19, 25-22) Saturday night at Bob Riehm Arena.

With the win, Southern Oregon improves to 15-4 overall and 12-2 in conference play. Northwest Christian falls to 11-13 overall and 5-10 in the CCC. The Raiders return to action next weekend, when they will travel to Washington for a pair of conference matches against Evergreen State and Northwest.

Southern Oregon took an early 5-2 lead in the opening set, but Northwest Christian tied it up at 6-6 on an SOU service ace, and the Beacons led by as many as three points at 20-17 and 21-18. The Raiders scored a pair on kills by Liz Madden (Manson, Wash./Manson) and Natalie Scheller (Bend, Ore./Bend) to make it 21-20, and after an NCU point, SOU scored two more to tie it up at 22-22. Southern Oregon eventually took a 24-23 lead, and following Janel Fetters' kill to tie it at 24, Sarah Holgen (Honolulu, Hawaii/Ashland) put the Raiders up 25-24 with a kill, and an NCU attack error finished off the 26-24 SOU victory.

The Raiders used a 10-1 run to pull away in the second set, turning a 7-6 advantage into a 17-7 lead. Northwest Christian responded with a 12-6 run to pull within four at 23-19 on Lindsey Young's kill, but back-to-back Holgen kills closed out the set at 25-19, giving the Raiders the 2-0 match advantage.

The third set looked like it might be a blowout early, as SOU built an 8-2 lead. But Northwest Christian battled back to within one point at 13-12 and again at 14-13. Southern Oregon scored the next four points to cushion the lead, but a 9-6 NCU run pulled the Beacons to within two at 24-22 before Megan Bartling (Medford, Ore./North Medford) ended the match with a set-clinching kill for the Raiders.

Holgen led the way for the Raiders with 15 kills on a .379 attack percentage. Madden added 11 kills and a .444 percentage, and Bartling finished with 10 kills and an even .500 hitting mark. Caryn Westrick (Bonney Lake, Wash./Bonney Lake) led SOU with 26 assists, with Angela Spieker (Bremerton, Wash./Central Kitsap) adding 17 in the win. Becky Johnstone (Lake Arrowhead, Calif./Rim of the World) posted 12 digs and Renee Yomtob (Boise, Idaho/Centennial) totaled 11.

For Northwest Christian, Maren Mansfield's nine kills led the way. Cori Wallace tied Westrick for the match-high with 26 assists, and Janel Fetters added eight kills in the loss.