Question: Trouble Bending Strings on Cutlass

I recently got a Cutlass RS with the roasted maple fretboard and this is the first guitar I’ve ever owned with a maple FB. I’m not sure if it’s the maple FB or maybe the setup (string height) but I’m really struggling to bend strings when playing. Here is what I’m finding when trying to bend two or more octaves higher:

A). I get a lot of sound from my finger rubbing against the FB It’s like a dry running sound and to that end the movement of my finger against the FB isn’t very smooth. I feel like my finger tips skip a bit almost like I’m pressing down way too hard on the FB. If I try to not press down as hard it seems to be a tad better. Is that usual with maple FBs? Is there an oil people use to prevent this?

B). I am really smacking against adjacent strings when I bend. On my other silhouettes and other guitars, when I do a bend upward my finger kind of goes under the strings above. Hopefully that’s makes sense. On the cutlass, my fingers end up kind of bending the strings above and this making lots of noise both on the way up and the way down. I’m wondering if perhaps my strings are too low?