CCC TOURNAMENT PRESENTED BY U.S. BANK
Lithia & Driveway Fields | Medford, Oregon
TOURNAMENT CENTRAL

Sunday – Quarterfinals (CCC records in parentheses)
10 a.m. – (1) College of Idaho (12-0-0) vs. (8) Corban (4-4-4) | Field 11
10 a.m. – (2) Oregon Tech (9-3-0) vs. (7) Northwest (4-3-5) | Field 13
1 p.m. – (3) Eastern Oregon (8-3-1) vs. (6) Southern Oregon (5-5-2) | Field 11
1 p.m. – (4) Carroll (7-3-2) vs. (5) Rocky Mountain (6-4-2) | Field 13
Tuesday – Semifinals (at Wheeler Field)
10 a.m. – Highest remaining seed vs. Lowest remaining seed
1 p.m. – Other quarterfinal winners
Thursday – Championship (at Wheeler Field)
11 a.m. – Semifinal winners

PLAYOFF PICTURE: The Cascade Conference Championships presented by U.S. Bank have a new home this fall after spending the last eight years in Springfield and Eugene. The circuit's top eight regular-season finishers will meet at Lithia & Driveway Fields in Medford, starting with Sunday's quarterfinal round. Southern Oregon hopes the short trek will be advantageous after an up-and-down regular season that the Raiders finished at 8-6-2 overall and 5-5-2 in CCC play. They tied with Northwest (Wash.) for sixth place and earned the No. 6 seed based on tiebreaker criteria, leaving them matched up with No. 3 seed Eastern Oregon (9-4-3, 8-3-1) at 1 p.m. Sunday.

An automatic spot in the NAIA National Tournament, which begins Nov. 23, is on the line. College of Idaho already clinched the CCC's first automatic bid by winning the regular-season title for the second year in a row. The second bid goes to the tournament champion, or to the other finalist if C of I wins it. The tournament is not bracketed, meaning the lowest remaining seed plays the highest remaining seed in Tuesday's semifinals.

SOU vs. EOU: A 20-yard, 79th-minute goal from Kaydence Martinez, her first of the season, was the difference in a 1-0 win for Eastern Oregon over SOU on Oct. 4 at Raider Stadium. The peripheral numbers were fairly even – the Mountaineers had edges of 16-11 in shots and 7-4 on goal, and corners were even at four – but the outcome marked a turning point for both teams. Following back-to-back losses, it triggered an 8-1-1 stretch for EOU to end the regular season. For the Raiders, who'd won their previous three games, it was the beginning of a stretch in which they'd go 1-4-1.

The Mountaineers have outscored opponents 24-12. They have a uniquely balanced attack (no one on the roster has recorded more than nine points) led by Kapri McMillan's four goals and Ashley Smith's two goals and four assists. They'll face an All-CCC keeper in Ashlynn Hernandez who just broke the SOU record for career shutouts (27) and has the highest save rate (.822) in the conference among those who have played at least 10 games. Friday Vargas (4 goals, 6 assists), Cora Thorndike (4 goals, 3 assists), Brooklyn Hayes (5 goals, 1 assist) and Ava Johnson (5 goals, 1 assist) are the team's top creators.

The Raiders are 17-8-1 in the all-time series. The teams have only met once in the tournament: in the 2013 first round, which went 2-0 to SOU.

SOU TOURNAMENT HISTORY: The Raiders are making their 14th consecutive tournament appearance. They advanced to the semifinals each of the last four seasons and six of the last eight, but are seeking their first-ever appearance in the title game and their second trip to the NAIA Championships after first qualifying in 2019. College of Idaho has eliminated them three years in a row. Last year, it was after SOU became the first No. 7 seed to reach the semifinals since 2018 with a 1-0 upset of Carroll (Mont.).