7:30 p.m. Friday – College of Idaho at SOU – Live Stats | Live Stream
7 p.m. Saturday – #6 Eastern Oregon at SOU – Live Stats | Live Stream

ASHLAND – Southern Oregon's four-match win streak will be put to the ultimate test this weekend when the Raiders complete the first half of their Cascade Conference schedule at Ashland High's Mountain Avenue Gym.

The three teams that have accounted for the CCC's last 13 regular-season titles will be on display: The Raiders (9-6 overall, 6-2 CCC), who are currently locked in a three-way tie for second place, host College of Idaho (10-6, 5-3) at 7:30 p.m. Friday and sixth-ranked Eastern Oregon (15-1, 8-0) at 7 p.m. Saturday.

C of I hasn't gone a year without winning either a CCC tournament or regular-season championship since 2004. EOU, which has won the last two regular season titles (and shared with SOU in 2014), enters the weekend having won 45 of 47 sets since a season-opening loss to third-ranked Westmont (Calif.). SOU has swept this particular homestand twice in the last five years and split the other three years.

Blocking Up: While EOU is, for the most part, dominating the conference leaderboards, SOU has the Mountaineers edged in one category: blocks. And with some of the CCC's top hitters coming to town, including eight players standing at 6-foot or taller on the EOU roster, the Raiders will need to be especially sharp defensively. At the moment, they rank sixth in the NAIA at 2.6 blocks per sets. Individually, Emma Gasman ranks 12th (1.3), Courtney Macklin 23rd (1.1), and Lauren McGowne leads all CCC setters (0.7). That trio, along with improved play in the back row, has helped SOU hold its last four opponents to a combined attacking average of .084, while the Raiders have hit .199.

Close Calls: If recent history is any indication, Friday's match is a leading candidate to go down to the wire; SOU and C of I have gone to five sets in five of their last eight meetings. The Raiders are 3-0 in five-set matches this year, they've won 10 straight CCC regular-season matches that have gone to a tiebreaker dating back to 2014, and they've won 20 of their last 21 dating back to 2009.

McGowne on the Move: Thanks to her steady excellence, setter Lauren McGowne only needed one set of work to move up to No. 2 on SOU's career assists list in last Saturday's sweep of Walla Walla. With 13 against the Wolves, the All-American brought her career total to 3,880 and surpassed Jamie McCreary (3,868, 2002-05) in the process. She'd need the benefit a deep postseason run and several long matches to approach the top spot, which is held by Erin Lytle (4,764, 1996-99). McGowne was second in the NAIA at 11.6 assists per set last year, and currently ranks 30th at 9.7 in 2016.

More Love for Gasman: For the second week in a row, senior middle Emma Gasman was voted the CCC's attacker of the week Monday. Gasman had 20 kills last Wednesday against Oregon Tech, making her the first Raider in Josh Rohlfing's 10 years as head coach to go for 20 or more in three straight matches. She also had five blocks, and in Saturday's sweep of Walla Walla she contributed 12 kills and four blocks. In CCC play she ranks first in kills per set (3.8), second in blocks per set (1.3) and third in attacking average (.358).

Home History: Since the start of the 2006 season, the Raiders are 90-8 at home in conference play. They're 24-2 at home over the last three seasons, and they haven't lost back-to-back home matches in CCC regular-season play since 1990.

About College of Idaho: SOU leads the all-time series with the Yotes, 62-30, but the teams have split the last 18 meetings. C of I won two of three in 2015, including a five-set decision in the CCC tournament semifinals… The Yotes pose two consistent threats on the outside, as senior Randi Sturtz ranks eighth in the CCC with a .290 attacking average – second among outside hitters – and junior Brenna Meehan is fourth with 3.6 kills per set. Jayden Folsom, a senior setter, average 9.2 assists per set, but the Yotes have recently utilized a two-setter rotation… As a team, the Yotes hit .207 and allow a .189 clip.

About Eastern Oregon: SOU leads the all-time series with the Mountaineers, 73-30, but has dropped six of the last eight meetings, including both in a total of seven sets last year… On the NAIA list, the Mountaineers are third in attacking (.294), and they lead the CCC in that category and opponents' average (.098). If the season ended today, their attacking average would easily be the CCC's best in the last decade and their average against would be the best since 2009… Junior middle Madisen Garlie, a transfer from Oregon Tech, leads the CCC by nearly with a .429 attacking average and Amanda Miller (3.7 kills per set) is second at .367. Makayla Lindburg, a transfer from University of Portland, is adding 2.2 kills per set on a .260 attack.