ASHLAND – A Sadie Byrd-led defensive takeover at the net stifled Bushnell and sent No. 5-ranked Southern Oregon to a 25-20, 22-25, 25-13, 25-19 Cascade Conference victory on Saturday afternoon at Lithia Motors Pavilion.

The Raiders (10-1 overall, 4-1 CCC) mounted a season-high 23 blocks and Sadie Byrd broke her own single-match school record by assisting 14 of them. Byrd was in on six of 10 blocks in the third set to deflate the Beacons (8-5, 3-2) after they'd tied the match by winning the second. The performance bumped the senior middle from Maple Valley, Wash., to No. 2 on SOU's career blocks list with 445 – 81 away from a record that remains well within reach.

SOU's team blocks total was its highest in any match during head coach Josh Rohlfing's 18 seasons, just three shy of the program record established 29 years ago. It dropped the Beacons' attacking average to a season-worst .043.

The Raiders got more defensive boosts from redshirt-freshman right-side hitter Friley Curtiss and sophomore middle Tessa Zimmermann, neither of whom appeared in Friday's five-set loss to No. 9 Corban. Curtiss assisted nine blocks and delivered five kills, and Zimmermann assisted six while needing only nine attacks to generate six kills.

The back-row defense, led by outside hitter Mylena Testoni's career-high 21 digs, was also up to the challenge. Marin Mackey added her eighth consecutive double-double with 14 kills and 14 digs, and Kayla Neidigh contributed 13 digs.

Mackey's kill total led the team. Byrd matched a season-high with eight of them and committed only one error. Vitoria Mattos (22 assists, 8 digs) and Annie Hite (21 assists, 6 digs) conducted a .221 team attack.

Amyah Semau totaled 19 kills and 17 digs for the Beacons. They'd won seven of their last eight entering the matchup.

SOU plays next weekend on the road, visiting Walla Walla (Wash.) on Friday and Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) on Saturday.