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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Valley&State Backpage O&E Sports Archives Classifieds Faith&Beliefs Obituaries Revels November 15, 2004 Raiders cap dominating run By Jennifer Squires Ashland Daily Tidings All season, the Raider volleyball team knew another Cascade Conference tournament championship was within the team's grasp. SOUTHERN OREGON SETTER Jamie McCreary (6) and outside hitter Kristin Ferris (4) celebrate with their Raider teammates after Saturday's win over OIT. Photos by Andrew Mariman | Ashland Daily Tidings The preseason No. 10 ranking in the NAIA hinted at it. The early rise to first-place in the league standings indicated it. The rights to host the conference tournament showed it. Saturday evening, Southern Oregon zipped past Oregon Tech in the conference tournament championship match, 30-26, 30-23, 30-15, to capture its second-straight league tourney title. "It's always good to win it, but it's great to when you know it's your last one," Raider senior outside hitter Kristin Ferris said. Life got even sweeter for the Raiders when SOU athletic director and Cascade Conference commissioner Phil Pifer announced Ferris had won the conference player-of-the-year award. "It was a very nice gesture," Ferris said. "I was very very surprised." During the season, people periodically hinted Ferris could be in line for the MVP award, but nothing was set in stone. "I was kind of surprised," 14th-year Raider head coach Paul Elliott said. "Kim Turin from Western Baptist had a great year as well. I know Kristin is our MVP and we need her, but it could have gone either way. I'm pleasantly surprised." Ferris, along with junior middle blocker Nicholette Le Bel, earned first-team all-conference accolades and junior setter Jamie McCreary was honorable mention. Quick work After a three-game blast of Western Baptist on Friday night, the Raiders felt confident entering the championship contest against the streaking Owls. Oregon Tech had risen from the No. 6 seed to upend threats Albertson and Northwest on Friday afternoon. "We were a little bit fired up for it tonight," Ferris said. In Game 1, OIT went step-for-step against Southern, coming back from a 15-9 deficit to tie the game at 19, 20 and 25. The Raiders used a three-point punch at 25-all to push past the Owls to the 30-26 victory. Game 2 saw similar dueling between the two teams. However, after a 19-all knot, the Raiders took advantage of Owl ball-handling errors and sealed the win 30-23 with a Ferris ace. "I think they were competitive in games 1 and 2," Elliott said. "I think pushing to win those games kind of broke their spirit a bit." The championship experience the Raiders boast - the team has played in the NAIA Region 1 tournament and the national fracas the past three years - became apparent in Game 3. The Owls, playing in their first-ever conference title match, came out flat and never had a chance to contend with the Raiders. Southern went on two runs of six and one seven-point blast en route to a clean 30-15 win. "It's never easy," Ferris said. "They played well and they never gave up. They made it tough for us, but that makes it better." Deep, deep, deep While Ferris came away with a balanced 14-kill, 12-block, three-ace night, freshman outside hitter Jaclyn Hamilton-Smith had a huge 17-kill effort to lead all players. On the defensive side, Le Bel scored eight blocks with her nine kills. McCreary added 41 aces and junior libero Kristen Lilly recorded a game-high 17 digs. "It's pretty fun to have that kind of athleticism on the bench," Elliott said after checking out Hamilton-Smith's numbers. "We're deep and I think it helps us because in practice we have a really good time going against one another." Marcie Mitzner led the Owls with 10 kills and Jennifer Cueto had 12 digs. All-star setter Megan Albertson had 32 assists and 13 kills. Both Southern and OIT have a few days to rest before the regional tournament kicks off Thursday at McNeal Pavilion. Northwest and three other schools will complete the six-team field, battling for a trip to the national tournament. DailyTidings.com Home Page Valley&State | Backpage | O&E | Sports | Archives | Weather | Classifieds Columnists | Faith&Beliefs | Obituaries | Revels | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2004 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Click Here Site Search: .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams