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Raider netters ranked high in preseason poll By RICH ROSENTHAL For The Tidings Buoyed by back-to-back ninth-place finishes at the national tournament, the Southern Oregon University volleyball team opens the 2003 season Friday afternoon armed with a program-best No. 9 ranking in the NAIA preseason top-25 poll. The two-time defending NAIA Region I champion Raiders, who return nine players from last year's 27-7 squad that lost a 30-27 tiebreaker to defending champion Columbia (Mo.) College for a spot in the 2002 national quarterfinals, face Bethany (Calif.) College Noon Friday at the 20th annual Fresno Pacific Invitational. SOU tangles with 18th-ranked Azusa Pacific Friday at 4 p.m. and completes the two-day fracas Saturday against unranked regional rival Lewis-Clark State College and second-ranked Fresno Pacific. "The ranking is nice for our program and a reflection of where we were at the end of last season," 13th-year head coach Paul Elliott said. "Five of the eight teams at the Fresno tournament are ranked in the top-23, so we'll find out in a hurry where we stack up to start the season." Southern, led by two-time All-American outside hitter Kristina Matchett and regional all-star middle blocker Lindsey Aitchison, was also voted No. 1 by coaches in the Cascade Conference preseason poll. Although the official NAIA preseason poll won't be released until Aug. 26, the SOU football team is No. 2 behind defending national champion Carroll (Mont.) College in Don Hansen Football Gazette (donhansen.com) and in NAIAfootball.net magazine preseason polls. The Raiders, who open a nine-game 2003 regular-season slate Sept. 20 at home against Linfield College, are coming off an 8-3 campaign that ended with a last-minute 35-31 loss at Carroll in the NAIA quarterfinal round. "I doubt we'll be No. 2 in the first NAIA poll, but it's nice that our program is respected in small-college football circles," eighth-year head coach Jeff Olson said. "It wasn't that long ago that we simply hoped to be ranked in the top-25 some day, and it's nice to have arrived. But it's still the 'Selection Sunday' NAIA poll that matters the most." Southern Oregon's cross country teams were each tabbed No. 3 in conference preseason polls, while the women's soccer squad is a projected No. 4. LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. OTHER: Road Cams Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -