6 p.m. Thursday – Walla Walla at No. 22 SOU | Live Stats
6 p.m. Friday – No. 23 Lewis-Clark State at No. 22 SOU | Live Stats
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ASHLAND – The No. 22-ranked Southern Oregon University volleyball team is home for opening week in the Cascade Conference, which appears again to be the NAIA's deepest.

The CCC produced seven national qualifiers last year, had six teams in the preseason Top 25 poll, and posted a combined winning percentage of .775 (55-16) in non-conference play. The No. 22-ranked Raiders (8-2 overall), picked third in the CCC preseason poll, begin their 20-match trek through the circuit Thursday against Walla Walla (Wash.) (0-1) and Friday against No. 23 Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) (6-0). Both matches are set for 6 p.m. starts inside Lithia Motors Pavilion.

NEW STREAMING HOME: SOU home games for all sports will be available to stream free in 2026-27, live and on-demand, on Hudl at cascadesportsnetwork.com. Fans can also watch on their smart TVs by downloading the Hudl Fan app. Using the search function, click the "Schools" tab and type in "Southern Oregon."

BRIEFLY:

• The Raiders took their only non-conference losses against No. 1 Northwestern (Iowa) and No. 15 The Master's (Calif.); dating back to last fall, their last seven losses have come against nationally-ranked teams. They didn't get technically get a Top 25 win, but last week in Salem they knocked off a Taylor (Ind.) team that went on to defeat No. 5 Corban in straight sets and No. 19 Bushnell in four. They left the Hampton Inn Classic with a 4-0 record, running their winning streak to five matches.
• Senior middle Tessa Zimmermann was a CCC player-of-the-week snub after enjoying the most efficient week of her career. She registered 2.2 kills per set on an eye-popping .510 attacking average – posting 28 kills and only two errors – and added 1.2 blocks per set. The Albany product is attacking at a .362 efficiency rate on the season after sitting at .241 last year, ranking fourth in the CCC in that category and third in blocks (1.3/set).
• Senior setter Annie Hite last week surpassed 2,000 assists in her career, cracking the top-10 on SOU's all-time list with 2,068. She has already turned in two double-doubles this season, most recently going for 30 assists and 10 digs against Taylor.
• Senior outside hitter Maya Watters has accumulated the second-most kills in the conference (113) with 10 or more in seven of nine appearances. She has also improved her efficiency, from .173 a year ago to .236 now.
• As a team, the Raiders are No. 15 on the NAIA leaderboard in blocks per set at 2.4. That average is helping them limit opponents to a .151 combined attacking average, as is strong work from libero Maelle Garon (3.7 digs/set).
• The Raiders had a 9-5 home record in 2025. They're 84-22 at home since Lithia Motors Pavilion opened in 2018.

ABOUT WALLA WALLA: The Wolves are relatively unknown with just one match under their belts, a three-set loss last week to Montana State-Northern. They're operating under a new coach in Don Hepker and with a new-look roster, but they still have one of the country's most prolific attackers, Sahara Browning, who has led the CCC in kills each of the last two seasons at 4.6 per set. They took two of three matches from the Raiders last year – the last of those, in the CCC quarterfinals, ultimately kept SOU out of the national tournament and got WWU in – but later forfeited their entire schedule due to use of an ineligible player.

ABOUT LC STATE: The Warriors returned three all-conference selections from last year's 18-9 team that finished in a tie for third place: middle Karissa Lindner (2.0 kills, 1.0 blocks), setter Teagan Scott (5.7 assists) and libero Ella Stosich (4.1 digs). Through seven matches, they also have three pins all averaging at least three kills per set and standing at 5-foot-11 or taller, a group led by junior Taylor Boyce (3.0 kills, .293). They earned their best win two weeks ago against No. 6 Providence (Mont.). They won both meetings last season with SOU after dropping 12 of the previous 13 matchups.