ASHLAND – After returning to the NAIA rankings earlier this week, Southern Oregon looked worthy of its No. 25 slot in a flashy 3-0 defeat of Oregon Tech on Friday night at Raider Stadium.

The Raiders were in control throughout their sixth consecutive win, which kept them atop the Cascade Conference standings at 13-2 overall and 9-1 in the circuit. The Owls (8-4-3, 6-3-2), who dropped from third place to fifth with the loss, fell behind in the 16th minute when Sky Charley-Bolyard escaped a pair of defenders and lofted a pass across the box to the left post, where Evan Norconk used his left foot to knock it home on the fly.

Bryan Mendoza and Alex Hjulmand matched Norconk's flare with their scores. Two minutes before halftime, Josue Reyes sent a ball from beyond midfield into the box and Reyes aimed a long header off the bounce over keeper Ryan Solis. In the 57th minute, Hjulmand received a pass from Daniel Palomino and streaked in for an 18-yard dart that left Solis with no chance while flying under the crossbar.

The Raiders have won three consecutive regular season games against their rivals dating back to 2021. They improved to 4-0 against the Owls all-time in Ashland and haven't surrendered a goal in any of those games.

This one was as consequential as any. They hold a two-point lead over second-place College of Idaho with one game in hand and three left to play, all at Raider Stadium.

Norconk's goal was his ninth of the year and fourth in SOU's last five games. Hjulmand has had goal involvements in three of the last four games, and Mendoza has scored in two straight.

The Owls mustered three shots on goal, each of which were stopped by Casey Ruvolo. The shutout was his eighth of the season, and he's helped the Raiders blank five of their last six opponents.