No. 1 RAIDER SOFTBALL (25-1, 9-0 CCC)
2 p.m. / 4 p.m. Wednesday – vs. No. 2 Oregon Tech (17-3, 7-2)
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ASHLAND – Cemented by two World Series championship matchups in the last four years, Southern Oregon and Oregon Tech have the best softball rivalry currently going in the NAIA, and there isn't a particularly close second. Entering Wednesday's matchups at University Field, there are no signs of it dropping off.

SOU (25-1 overall, 9-0 Cascade Conference) and OIT (17-3, 7-2), the top-two teams in the latest Top 25 poll, will meet for the first time this season in a doubleheader scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. It's the first of two twin bills the top-ranked Raiders and No. 2 Owls will play on consecutive Wednesdays in Ashland as they make up their March 15-16 postponements. Game 1 is expected to feature two of the country's best pitchers in SOU freshman sensation Ayla Davies and OIT senior All-American Kacie Schmidt.

SOU STREAKING: The Raiders extended their winning streak to 14 over the weekend with a four-game sweep of Providence (Mont.). They put the eight-run mercy rule in effect every game of the set and have now done so 11 times this season. During the streak, they've outscored their opponents by a combined margin of 119-16. They've matched the best start in program history – accomplished previously by their 2021 championship team – and are the only team in the NAIA without multiple losses.

WILLIAMS NAMED PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Junior right fielder Ari Williams received her first CCC Player of the Week award on Monday after going 7-for-11 with four extra-base hits and nine RBIs against Providence. The latest in a long line of SOU's impactful San Mateo C.C. (Calif.) transfers went 6-for-6 on Day 2 of the series, registering a double, a triple, an inside-the-park home run and six RBIs. Williams leads the CCC in RBIs with 27 and in triples with four, ranks third in total bases (43) and fourth in runs scored (42), and has raised her batting average by 55 points over SOU's last seven games to .382.

SHORT HOPS:

• SOU's pitching staff has given up a grand total of two earned runs over its last 48 innings of work. At the heart of that number, of course, is Ayla Davies. The freshman right-hander is second among NAIA pitchers in ERA (0.66) and wins (15-1), first in saves (4), and fifth in strikeouts (117), topping the CCC in all four categories along with innings pitched (96). She is working on a streak of 24 innings without an earned run surrendered; earlier this season, she had a streak of 36 innings. She logged her eighth and ninth shutouts last week – her third and fourth in a row – and has allowed two or fewer hits in seven different five-plus-inning appearances.
• The Raider lineup boasts the three best individual batting averages in the CCC with Kailer Fulton (.506), Sarah Kerling (.479) and Faith Moultrie (.471). (SOU's team average of .375 is the eighth-highest in the NAIA.) With three more runs scored and three more stolen bases, Fulton will become the fourth player in team history with at least 160 hits, 150 runs and 80 steals in a career. Kerling is eight hits away from 200 in her career, a number only six Raiders have ever reached.
• All-American catcher Piper Love ranks only behind Williams on the conference RBI leaderboard with 23. She is up to 101 in her career, the 10th-most in SOU history.
• Dating back to 2018, the Raiders have won 28 consecutive CCC series played solely at home. They're 10-0 at University Field this season.

ABOUT OIT:

• The Raiders are 74-73 all-time against the Owls. OIT has swept each of the last two regular-season series, but SOU owns the upper hand in the postseason. The Raiders won twice in last year's CCC Tournament, twice in the 2023 World Series and twice in the 2021 World Series.
• Senior pitcher Kacie Schmidt – a selection to the All-America first team in 2023 and second team in 2024 – enters the doubleheader at 8-2 with a 1.33 ERA. In 12 career appearances against SOU, she is 5-3 with a 2.85 ERA across 46 2/3 innings. The three pitchers behind her in rotation have a stellar 2.41 combined ERA.
• The Owls returned six regular position starters from last year's team that was one of the last four standing at the World Series. Among them are All-American second baseman Nita Cook (.344), all-conference first baseman Puakea Milbourne (.328), all-conference catcher Jayce Seavert (.267), and all-conference outfielder Zoe Allen (.208). Their top performer so far at the plate has been a sophomore transfer, shortstop Gina Allen (.441, 12 XBH).
• The Owls dropped two in their CCC-opening series against No. 13 Eastern Oregon. Other than that, they've lost only to No. 5 Oklahoma City. They're seeking a fourth consecutive CCC regular-season championship.