CALDWELL, Idaho – No. 9 College of Idaho volleyball continued its historic start to the season Saturday, rallying past No. 18 Southern Oregon 3-2 (25-13, 19-25, 15-25, 25-17, 15-12) at the J.A. Albertson Activities Center.
The Yotes improved to 11-0 overall and 4-0 in Cascade Collegiate Conference play, extending the best start in program history. The previous best was a 9-0 start in 2017, when current head coach Liz Mendiola led the Yotes to the NAIA national quarterfinals.
College of Idaho opened the match in dominant fashion, hitting .353 with 15 kills in the first set while limiting Southern Oregon to a .057 attack percentage. The Yotes closed the opening frame on a 10-3 run, capped by an Alexa Wheeler kill from Shaynee McWilliams.
Southern Oregon answered by taking the second and third sets, hitting .226 and .179, respectively, to take a 2-1 lead.
The Yotes responded when it mattered most. College of Idaho hit .161 in the fourth set and pulled away late, turning a 13-12 advantage into a 19-13 lead before closing the set 25-17 to force a decisive fifth.
In the fifth, the teams traded points early before College of Idaho seized control. The Yotes took an 8-7 lead at the changeover and scored three straight points to build a 10-7 advantage. Southern Oregon cut the deficit to 11-10, but College of Idaho answered with four of the final six points to secure the comeback victory.
Kelsy Stanger led the Yotes with 14 kills and six block assists, while Cierra Bohrn added 13 kills and six block assists while hitting .367. Cora Young recorded six kills and a match-high 11 block assists as College of Idaho finished with 32 block assists.
McWilliams orchestrated the offense with 34 assists while adding five kills, 13 digs, three service aces and three block assists. Liza Montalbo contributed seven digs and two service aces, while Avery Lewis added 11 digs.
College of Idaho finished with 50 kills and a .175 hitting percentage, compared with 47 kills and a .098 mark for Southern Oregon. The Yotes also held a 46-42 edge in assists and 56-57 disadvantage in digs.
Maya Watters led Southern Oregon with 11 kills, while Marian Vega Castro added nine kills on .300 hitting. Tessa Zimmermann recorded eight kills and five block assists, and Friley Curtiss finished with nine kills. Annie Hite directed the Southern Oregon offense with 23 assists and added 15 digs. Jadyn Daviscourt led the Raiders with 15 digs, while Maelle Garon and Isabelle Foote each recorded 14 and 10 digs, respectively.
