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Inspired team has been untouchable By Rich Rosenthal,Tidings Correspondent Sep 20, 2005 12:00 AM A A A rare and traumatic home loss to Oregon Tech on Sept. 7 lit a fire under the Southern Oregon University volleyball team, and the 14th-ranked Raiders have not dropped a game & let alone a match & in four subsequent outings. But McNeal Pavilion spectators as well as this week's visitors, Corban College and Concordia University, might notice something a bit different about the Raiders since two early season tournaments and the setback to the Owls: a more potent offense featuring senior all-star Nicholette Le Bel hammering away from the outside instead of at her usual mid-net patrol. The positive results of the nacent experiment has the 12-3 Raiders hot on Northwest University's tail for the Cascade Conference top spot, but a stumble against either the Warriors (3-7, 3-3 CC) or Cavaliers (8-6, 4-2) would all but doom SOU's hopes for a third consecutive league regular-season crown. Southern enters the weekend set having won 22 of its past 23 home tilts since October of 2003, and the Raiders have won four straight against Corban (formerly Western Baptist) and four of the last five against Concordia. Successful path beaten through Caldwell, La Grande Southern Oregon swept the tough and lengthy Albertson-Eastern Oregon road trip for the fourth time over the past six seasons last weekend, and the Raiders did it in straight games for the first time since 2000. Friday against the Coyotes, SOU used deft passing to frustrate ACI's league-leading blocking and serving prowess. Nicholette Le Bel had 13 kills to start a great weekend (see below), while sophomore Shanna Claflin added 10 winners, and Kristen Lilly led all players with 17 digs. On Saturday in La Grande, SOU topped Eastern Oregon for the 31st time over the past 32 meetings since 1991 by out-blocking the Mounties 12-2 and finishing with a 10-0 edge in service aces. The middle still in the middle of the action Senior Nicholette Le Bel is under Cascade Conference player-of-the-week consideration for the second time this year as a result of her stellar weekend numbers. The six-foot Crater High graduate compiled 28 kills in 75 swings in the two wins, including 15 Saturday at Eastern Oregon in her first two full-time appearances at the outside hitter position. The two-year starter and three-year member of the regular rotation as a middle blocker ranks third in the 10-team conference with a 3.8 kill-per-game average and is seventh for attack percentage (.303). Le Bel, who received the loop's weekly honor Oct. 5, 2004, also posted five blocks to increase her season game average to 0.90, which ranks sixth in the circuit. 39, 10 and .417, respectively The countdown (and statistical count-up) toward career milestones is reaching the latent stage for both senior libero Kristen Lilly and Raider coach Paul Elliott. After posting 35 successful defenses of attacked volleyballs over the weekend, Lilly is now 39 digs away from breaking Debbie (Rohlfing) Jensen's SOU career dig record of 1,362 established between 1993 and '95. Lilly, who set the school's season record with 619 in 2004, currently ranks No. 2 in the Cascade Conference with a 5.38 per-game output (a pace .47 higher than last season). Elliott, who has 349 wins in 15 seasons at the Raider coaching helm (an impressive .694 win percentage), needs 10 more victories to surpass Raider volleyball program architect and 18-year coaching veteran Joanne Widness in the category. Meanwhile, Southern's lone league statistical leader remains freshman middle blocker Mia Wortel, who has an amazing .417 attack efficiency (86 kills in 180 swings with only 11 miscues) in 39 games of action. Complete conference team and individual leader lists are posted at www.cascadeconference.org. See CC; C-U soon Corban remains a strong contender for a Cascade Conference playoff spot despite losing two of the school's greatest players from last year's regional tourney-qualifying squad. Gone are regional all-stars Kim Turin, who averaged 5.4 kills, and record-setting libero Jamie Ruda, who assembled a 5.6 dig average, but the Warriors are rebuilding with freshman Chelsea Reeher (3.11 kills/game) and junior Becky Horn (5.3 digs/game) serving in the two key vacancies. Corban, however, has won only twice at McNeal Pavilion since 1980 and is just 7-30 overall against the Raiders. Having watched Southern supplant them as the premier NAIA Region I program, the Cavaliers have won five of their past seven frays and took a game from Northwest before falling in four last Saturday at home. The Cavs still have a key piece from the 2002 team that ran the table in conference play and won a fourth straight loop crown: six-foot all-star middle Krista Ekeberg, who is averaging 2.4 kills and .76 blocks per game. The top CU offensive threats are junior Mari Lopes (3.6 kills/game) and senior Bradey Wallenborn (3.1), and junior Erin Blythe is the loop's No. — digger (5.8). Despite an 11-match win streak from 1999 until 2002, Southern leads the all-time series 36-17.