KLAMATH FALLS – Over the last decade, the Cascade Conference has become one of the, if not, the best volleyball league in the NAIA. For the Oregon Tech volleyball team, coming off their sixth winning season in seven years, remaining competitive in such a tough circuit is one of the toughest tasks for any of the 11 teams in the league.
 
Last season, the Lady Owls finished the campaign at 14-13, missing out on the CCC Tournament by one game, with the 2026 team having to replace three of the top four hitters from the 2025 rotation.
 
Fourth-year head coach Alexis Garrison is excited the new season ahead, with the new-look club poised to make a statement in the CCC.
 
"Last year, not making the conference tournament was new for all of us and I think that hit deep," said the OIT leader. "Our main goal is to finish within the Top-6 in the conference standings and advance to the final site of the league tournament."
 
A retooled attack was first and foremost for Garrison, after Tech needing to replace 54% of their kills recorded a season ago. "After a lot of reflection following last season, our goal in recruiting was to get some outsides. You have to have consistent and reliable outsides in this conference."
 
Returners Shalyn Bliss and Steffini Goss are looking to make a big jump this season. Bliss used the 2025 season as a redshirt year – but averaged 2.71 kills per set in limited action. Goss averaged 1.44 kills per set and added 10 blocks in 32 sets played.
 
Complementing the returners is transfer Kaliko Schilling and freshman Ka'ala Masaoka. The 6-foot Schilling started her collegiate journey at Division I Coppin State, while last season, earned All-NJCAA Region XIV honors at Bliss CC, averaging 2.5 kills and 2.1 digs per set – while logging 81 aces. Masaoka, who stands at 5-foot-10, was a 2-time All-Big Island Interscholastic Federation pick at Hilo High in Hawaii.
 
"We are excited for Kaliko, a 6-rotation outside – something we haven't had in a while," Garrison said. "Her demeanor and her volleyball IQ is so refreshing. We can run a faster offense with Ka'ala on the outside, as she played middle during her high school years. She jumps really, really well."
 
On the opposite pin, returners Tiffini Goss and Laci Hoylman are back after their first seasons in the program. Goss, a left-handed hitter, averaged 1.19 kills and 0.53 blocks in 32 sets played, while Hoylman used a redshirt year – but posted six kills in a win over Warner Pacific.
 
Joining the duo is newcomer Larryn-Alexis Joseph-Rodrigues, as the 6-foot-1 transfer averaged 2.5 kills and 0.3 blocks per set at Arizona Western CC. Joseph-Rodrigues will also see time as an outside hitter.
 
"Tiffini has matured a lot on the court and become a big hitter for our offense," Garrison stated. "Laci is a massive block defensively for us and Larryn can play both pins and gives us size at the net."
 
Both starting middle blockers are back, each coming off outstanding 2025 seasons.
 
Four-year starter Aleksen Thayer broke the Lady Owls career blocks record during her junior season (339) – averaging 1.16 blocks per set, while improving offensively by logging a career-high 195 kills. Sophomore Alexa Gugilotta had a breakout season, averaging 1.39 kills and 0.73 blocks per set – leading the team with a .287 attack percentage.
 
Garrison knows the middles are key to the Owls success. "Our setters trust our middles to put the ball onto the court. Alexa's offense is always her key piece and has been working hard on defense. Aleks is so good defensively and has continued to improve offensively."
 
All-CCC setter Lucy Boyd returns to run the attack, as the 3-year starter had an outstanding sophomore season – averaging 8.11 assists and 2.07 digs per set – adding 32 aces. The junior ranked among the Top-10 in the CCC in both assists and assists per set for a second-straight year.
 
"It's massive to have a 3-year starting setter," Garrison said. "Lucy has raised her endurance, her vertical and her connection with her team has raised. She is hungry for the season."
 
Sophomore Taryn Ramsay and freshman Daisie Gargurevich provide key depth behind Boyd. Ramsay averaged 3.39 assists over 31 sets last season, while Gargurevich earned All-Southwest Conference honors at Roseburg High.
 
The Lady Owls back row received a huge boost as Kaley Whalen returned for a fifth year after missing 2025 due to injury. The super-senior is a 2-time All-CCC libero and holds the OIT record for digs (634) and digs per set (5.42) in a season, along with a record 45 digs in a 2024 match at Evergreen State.
 
She'll be matched with junior Alison Miller in serve receive, as Miller averaged 2.38 digs per set and posted 33 aces a season ago.
 
"We are excited for Kaley returning for a fifth-year and she works really well on the court with Alison, especially as Ali has learned that middle-back spot well," commented Garrison.
 
Transfer Leilani Kench, from Southwestern Oregon CC, will join three returners – Sumerlyn Spencer, Brooklynn Thesenvitz and Emma Kness – to bolster passing and provide a tough serving attack.
 
Kench makes the transition to defensive specialist after playing as a 6-rotation hitter at SWOCC. Spencer and Thesenvitz, both seniors, combined for 47 aces during the 2025 season, while Kness, a junior, added 19 aces.
 
The 18-player roster heads into the 20-game CCC gauntlet knowing last year the league sent six teams to the NAIA National Tournament, with five teams (Eastern Oregon, Corban, College of Idaho, Bushnell, Lewis-Clark State) reaching the final site in Sioux City, Iowa.
 
National semifinalist, EOU, returns All-American Keira Vaughn, but lost three starters to graduation, with national quarterfinalist, Corban, losing four starters – but has All-American Emma Bischoff to anchor the attack. Both Bushnell and LC State lost All-Americans to graduation, but both return multiple All-CCC picks, as does C of I. Northwest and Walla Walla will have new-look rosters – as NU lost four of their top five hitters, along with their setter and libero, to graduation, with WWU losing five starters for a team that qualified for nationals (but had rescind all wins due to an eligibility issue). Both Evergreen State and Warner Pacific return three starters from their 2025 team.
 
Tech opens the season next weekend in Hawaii, competing at the Paradise Volleyball Classic – facing NAIA Tournament qualifier Oklahoma Wesleyan, along with regional foes Dakota State and Embry-Riddle. A week later, the Lady Owls head to California for the Hope International SummerSlam, facing host HIU, La Sierra and Simpson, along with national power, Northwestern (Iowa). The preseason closes with the home opener, Aug. 29, against Simpson.
 
The Top-8 teams in the CCC regular-season standings will qualify for the CCC Tournament, beginning with a play-in round between the final four seeds. Six teams eventually head to the regular-season champion to determine an automatic bid to the NAIA Championships.