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FRIDAY February 6, 2004 - Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card Valley&State Backpage O&E Sports Archives Classifieds Faith&Beliefs Obituaries Revels December 23, 2003 A strange opening week indeed The Raiders' first week of league play can be summed up in one word: Huh? Lets list the peculiarities, shall we. Their baaaaack 1. Faster than Southern Oregon women's basketball coach Kevin Wilson can say "psyche," his merry band of runners-and-gunners buried league title-contender Western Baptist on Thursday to cap a picture-perfect 2-0 start. 2. The Raiders entered the Cascade Conference-opening home stand - they beat Concordia on Wednesday to kickoff league play - with just one win in six tries, but looked like the high-flying SOU women of old in their first crack at a league foe. The Raiders topped the 70-point mark in both games and controlled the tempo like the defending league champs that they are, proving once again that judging a Wilson-led team by its nonconference record is akin to judging an NBA team based in Portland by its payroll. Turnaround 3. Just when SOU men's basketball coach Brian McDermott started sounding like the Grim Reaper ("It was worse than pickup ball"), his team plays nearly flawless, committing just six turnovers Thursday night en route to a clutch win over Western Baptist. 4. More plot-bending, the 80-76 triumph came only a day after second-leading scorer and starting point guard Jay Mayernik became an academic casualty - a loss that looked fatal during Wednesday's unwatchable 82-68 loss to Concordia. Maybe McDermott went nuclear after the Concordia game, or maybe his ultra-young team suddenly got it, but the rise in the Raiders' level of play was downright Twilight Zonish. One day they were the nastiest fruit cake you ever laid eyes on, and the next they were grandma's fudge. The way things are going, McDermott would settle for pumpkin pie and a consistent effort. Voted out 4. This doesn't have anything to do with Raider basketball, but the SOU football program suffered a bit of a letdown last week when running back Dusty McGrorty was passed over for NAIA national player of the year honors. McGrorty, who rushed for 1,788 yards and 22 touchdowns on 259 carries in his senior season, was one of 12 nominees. 5. In what has become a rather annoying little trend, the Raiders' hopes were once again dashed by the Fighting Saints when Carroll College sophomore quarterback Tyler Emmert won the POY award. Now before you conspiracy theorists start bashing everything that has to do with Midwest football, consider that Emmert was highly qualified. He passed for 3,815 yards and 35 touchdowns while being picked off just five times during a 14-0 season that ended with Carroll hoisting its second consecutive NAIA national championship trophy. Hard to argue with those numbers and results. 6. McGrorty's chances would have been far greater, however, had SOU made the playoffs. At the rate he was going, McGrorty could have set a new career rushing record in the national championship game. 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 Site Search: A new improved archive search is coming! Look for it in mid-February! .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - ODOT Road Cams