By Chris Slack, Sports Info Grad Assistant

4 p.m. Friday – Evergreen State at SOU – Live Stats | Live Stream
7 p.m. Saturday – Northwest at SOU – Live Stats | Live Stream

ASHLAND – If the Southern Oregon men's soccer team was irked by a Cascade Conference preseason poll that had the Raiders picked to finish eighth, now is the time to prove any remaining doubters wrong.

Going into their final seven regular season games, the Raiders (6-2-1 Overall, 4-1-1 CCC) have taken care of business against the bottom half of the circuit – the lone exception being a hard-fought, 2-1 overtime loss to 14th-ranked Corban. Coming up, though, is a long line of tough tests, including six against teams that were picked to finish ahead of SOU and another against first-place Oregon Tech, the surprise of the CCC.

SOU starts the stretch this weekend at Raider Stadium, 4 p.m. Friday against Evergreen State (4-0-2, 3-0-2) and 7 p.m. Saturday against Northwest (8-2, 4-1).

A Fresh Spark: During the offseason, the Raiders picked up 12 freshmen and five transfers. With new faces all around, the upperclassmen were counted on to help the incoming Raiders get acclimated to the college game.

And while they've done their jobs, a couple new leaders have also emerged.

"It's funny, our vocals leaders on the team are two freshmen," coach Biniam Afenegus said. "One is Kelly Gieber; I thought he'd play a little bit, but I didn't think he'd be a starter early on. Now, he's started almost every game as a right-back. The other one is our-left back: With Johnnie Workman being hurt, Gonzalo Garcia has come in and brought that leadership and confidence on the field. And for two freshmen to step up and be the vocal leaders on our team, this program's headed in the right direction."

With their new look, this weekend the Raiders have an opportunity to surpass last season's CCC win total of five.

Briefly:
– Jonathan Morales was named the CCC defensive player of the week Monday after recording his fifth and sixth shutouts of the season in 1-0 wins against Warner Pacific and Eastern Oregon. He's made 17 saves and allowed just one goal in conference play.
– With their sixth shutout of the season, the Raiders have surpassed last year's total of five.
– In CCC play, SOU has out-shot its opponents 96-65 and outscored them 19-4.
– Dakota Scott and Carlos Magana have team-highs of four goals each in conference action. Mitchell Pinney has three, and Sean McManamon owns two goals and two assists.
– Newcomers have accounted for 18 of the Raiders' 27 goals and 12 of their 19 assists.
– The Raiders have a 43-19 advantage in corner kicks.
– SOU is 5-4-1 the last two years at Raider Stadium.

About Evergreen:
– Coming off a 13-3-2 regular season, their best since going 14-6 in 2004, the Geoducks were projected to finish fifth in the preseason poll.
– SOU dropped a 2-0 decision last year on Oct. 9 in Olympia
– With an undefeated record of 4-0-2 overall, the Geoducks only played one non-conference game this season, defeating Puget Sound 4-3.
– Evergreen's ties, both 1-1, occurred in back-to-back home games against Eastern Oregon and Warner Pacific.
– Geoducks coach John Purtteman is in his 11th season (77-85-20 Overall, 65-57-15 CCC).

About Northwest:
– Northwest is off to a surprising start this season. After a 10-9 season in 2015, the Eagles have lost only two games this season.
– In 2014, the Eagles posted a program best 15-5 record.
– SOU traveled to Kirland last year and lost 3-0 on Oct. 10.
– The Eagles are 4-1 on the road, but this is their first road trip of the season against CCC competition.
– Daniel Christenson's .891 save percentage is the CCC's highest. He's only allowed five goals this season.
– Of NU's 25 goals, 22 have been assisted. Of the unassisted goals, two were on free kicks.
– Eagles coach Gary McIntosh is in his 14th season (112-116-18 Overall).