CASCADE CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS | La Grande, Ore.
12 p.m. Friday | 10 a.m. Saturday (5 p.m. finals)
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ASHLAND – Southern Oregon proved over and over again, with upset after upset during the regular season, that it possessed the Cascade Conference's best dual lineup. With the stakes raised this weekend and title aspirations established, the Raiders will find out how it translates to the tournament format at the CCC Championships presented by U.S. Bank.

Eastern Oregon hosts the sixth annual 11-team event inside Quinn Coliseum, with wrestling scheduled to start at noon Friday and 10 a.m. Saturday, and it has shaped up to be the most stacked conference tournament at the NAIA level by a wide margin. A total of 60 automatic bids will be awarded for the NAIA Championships. They were allocated based on the number of nationally-ranked individuals in each weight class; for example, because the CCC has six top-25 wrestlers at 125 pounds, the top-six placers will qualify. None of the other seven conferences will have more than 36 automatic qualifiers.

The No. 14-ranked Raiders, who went 14-3 overall and 10-1 against the CCC in duals, snuck up on the circuit last year – entering the tournament unranked and stealing second place ahead of four Top 20 teams. Eight individuals return from that team, though the Raiders are fourth in the CCC points rankings behind No. 3 Menlo (Calif.), No. 4 Providence (Mont.) and No. 11 Embry-Riddle (Ariz.).

The CCC's number of automatic bids per weight class are as follows: 125 (6), 133 (5), 141 (6), 149 (5), 157 (5), 165 (8), 174 (7), 184 (5), 197 (7), 285 (6).

A rundown of SOU's tournament lineup is below:

125 – Vonn Fenn
Overall/Dual Record: 20-9/11-6
Rankings: No. 4 CCC, No. 18 NAIA
Postseason History/Notable: Making his first CCC Championships appearance as a true freshman … Has won four of his last five matches and is ranked for the first team after pushing Eastern Oregon's top-ranked Hunter Sparks in a 4-1 decision and defeating Corban's No. 16 Brayden Boyd in his most recent outings.

133 – Simon Graeber
Overall/Dual Record: 17-5/12-3
Rankings: No. 2 CCC, No. 10 NAIA
Postseason History/Notable: Back for his second appearance after going 1-2 at the CCC Championships last year … Attempting to qualify for the NAIA Championships for the first time, sitting on a personal-best ranking after winning his final five matches of the regular season.

141 – Evan Potter
Overall/Dual Record: 19-2/15-0
Rankings: No. 1 CCC, No. 1 NAIA
Postseason History/Notable: Can become the 22nd three-time NAIA All-American in team history and the Raiders' first since 2016 this postseason as a junior, having previously placed third and sixth nationally at 133 pounds … Has taken only two losses – both due to dropping out of a tournament with an injury in December – and has owned the NAIA's No. 1 ranking since November … Recently completed his second consecutive unbeaten dual season … Placed third at the CCC Championships last season and received a national wild-card bid as a freshman after placing seventh.

141 – Anthony Perez
Overall/Dual Record: 8-8/2-1
Rankings: NR
Postseason History/Notable: Went 1-2 in the 141-pound bracket at last year's CCC Championships … Last wrestled Jan. 19 at the Missouri Valley Invitational.

149 – Travis Thorpe
Overall/Dual Record: 9-6/5-4
Rankings: No. 7 CCC
Postseason History/Notable: Making his third consecutive CCC Championships appearance … Was key to the Raiders' second-place finish last year, placing fifth at 157 as the No. 8 seed … Has been out since competing at the NWCA National Duals on Jan. 6.

149 – Jonathan Hernandez
Overall/Dual Record: 12-7/4-2
Rankings: NR
Postseason History/Notable: Making his first CCC appearance as a true freshman … Emerged as SOU's regular 149 starter in dual action over the last month.

157 – Aaron Gandara
Overall/Dual Record: 11-2/11-2
Rankings: No. 3 CCC, No. 11 NAIA
Postseason History/Notable: Attempting to become SOU's first three-time CCC champion since the tournament started in 2018, having won at 157 as a freshman and 149 as a sophomore … Seeking his third berth for the NAIA Championships, where he was a 2022 All-American in sixth place … Climbed to No. 11 in the rankings after missing the first two months of the season with an injury, collecting four of his wins against ranked opponents.

157 – Dylan Straley
Overall/Dual Record: 20-13/5-8
Rankings: No. 6 CCC
Postseason History/Notable: Just missed all-conference status and an NAIA Championships bid as a redshirt-freshman last year, placing fourth in the CCC Championships at 157 … Peaked at No. 25 in the NAIA rankings this season.

165 – Noah Talavera
Overall/Dual Record: 9-5/3-1
Rankings: NR
Postseason History/Notable: Heading to the CCC Championships for the third time overall and the first time since 2022, when he advanced to the 174 quarterfinals before an injury ended his run … Earned an automatic bid to nationals in 2020 by placing fifth at 165 … Has been limited recently by injury, last competing on Dec. 17.

174 – Alex Hernandez
Overall/Dual Record: 25-5/15-2
Rankings: No. 3 CCC, No. 8 NAIA
Postseason History/Notable: An All-CCC performer in his first season with the Raiders last year, when he won four consecutive consolation matches (and pinned three nationally-ranked opponents) to place third at 174 … Leads SOU in wins and is one away from 50 in just two seasons … Wrestling in a bracket that features seven of the top-15 individuals in the NAIA.

184 – Adrian Chavez-Morales
Overall/Dual Record: 6-7/6-7
Rankings: No. 6 CCC
Postseason History/Notable: Joined the Raiders in December, weeks after winning the 184-pound title at the California Community Colleges Athletic Association Championships for Sacramento City College.

197 – Andrew Herrera
Overall/Dual Record: 19-6/13-3
Rankings: No. 2 CCC, No. 13 NAIA
Postseason History: In 2022-23, his first season at SOU, entered the CCC Championships as the No. 8 seed at 197 pounds and came away with fourth place to qualify automatically for nationals … Went on to reach the quarterfinal round at the NAIA Championships, finishing a win short of All-America status … Has won nine consecutive matches, including five against nationally-ranked opponents.