LA GRANDE, Ore. – The attention of the No. 8-ranked Corban University Volleyball team has officially been turned towards the 2024 NAIA National Tournament following a forgettable three-set sweep tonight in the Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) Tournament semifinal stage by No. 7-ranked Southern Oregon University, as the Warriors couldn't find any consistency from their opening service error in the first set to the Raiders' service ace that completed the third via 25-19, 25-17, and 25-17 set scores.
"SOU is a senior heavy team, well coached, very talented and they simply out played us tonight," Corban head coach Kim McLain stated earlier this evening. We struggled with passing as well as serving them tough, which is key with a team that has so many offensive threats. I'm proud of them for beating this strong program twice in conference play, but anyone will tell you it's very difficult to beat the same team three times in one season. We are looking forward to getting back in the gym this week and working on our weaknesses as we are hopeful for an opening round bid."
With two of their three losses on the season thanks to the No. 8-ranked Warriors (23-5), the No. 7-ranked Raiders (27-3) jumped out from the get-go and refused to make it three-straight to Corban in 2024, as they trailed for just a single side-out the entirety of the three-set match and held the Navy and Gold to their lowest kill total (28) in a single game all year long. Additionally, Corban's 27 total assists ties their lowest output in a single match thus far this season, with their .065 team kill percentage ranking second among their least productive outing thus year.
Meanwhile, the Raiders crushed a .322 attacking percentage against the Warriors after hitting into the Corban blockers throughout their first two regular season matchups, providing the Southern Oregon fans in attendance at Quinn Coliseum with their first win in the CCC tournament over the Navy and Gold since 2018. The Warriors were previously 9-1 in their past ten matchups with SOU dating back to 2021, including a 2-0 record in postseason action.
Junior opposite hitter Makayla Roginski and sophomore outside hitter Emma Bischoff each had six kills apiece in the Warriors' efforts, followed by sophomore outside hitter Kendra Bittle and redshirt junior middle blocker Jadah Schmidtke with five and four kills, respectively. Junior setter Abby Guindy (13) and sophomore setter Nadeiah Howard (11) combined for 24 of Corban's 27 assists, senior middle blocker Allyson Reid was involved in five of seven blocking plays, and senior libero Marissa Uehara dug up seven digs.
A 12-kill effort by opposite hitter Hannah Stadstad on a .409 kill percentage was the offensive force behind Southern Oregon's victory, while middle blocker Sadie Byrd, outside hitter Marin Mackey, and opposite hitter Megan Perry each added seven more kills. Libero Kayla Neidigh was the game leader in digs with nine and setters Annie Hite and Vitoria Mattos dealt out 17 and 16 assists, respectively.
An at-large berth to the 2024 NAIA National Tournament is expected but not guaranteed for the Warriors after failing to lock up one of the CCC's two automatic bids to the national championship tourney for the first time in six seasons, meaning they'll have to wait until this upcoming Monday, November 18th for the NAIA Selection Show to see if they'll be advancing to their ninth-consecutive NAIA Opening Round. If the committee deems the Navy and Gold to be a Top 24 squad thanks to their 23-5 overall record, then they'll host an opening round at the C.E. Jeffers Sports Center on Saturday, November 23rd. The selection show can be viewed at 12pm CT, 10am PT by clicking HERE.
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